A New Mission

Theo was glad the dagger drop off was going to be in the same town because the divine dagger would not shut up.

[Shut up? What crudeness is erupting from your mouth? And directed toward I. Oh Numen's child. Simply unbelievable.]

Theo rolled his eyes.

Thankfully, Marc had arrived at the fountain early. The drop off would go a bit more quickly.

"Got the package?" Marc asked.

"Yes," Theo said, "the only thing is it has a habit of burning people it doesn't like into ashes."

"Wait, what?"

"But I've thoroughly threatened it, so it should behave."

"Should?"

"Will." Theo corrected himself. "It will behave."

Marc's face was slightly pale as Theo handed him the dagger.

[Hmph. I cannot believe I am letting a being with such little mana handle me.] The divine dagger began to complain as soon as Marc held it.

Theo grimaced and Marc's eyebrows shot up. Theo had thought he wouldn't be able to hear the dagger if he wasn't making contact with it.

"It talks?" Marc squeaked. "I thought all that stuff about divine weapons having their own personality was just, like, allegorical."

"It was literal, sadly." Theo sighed. He wondered just how far the weapon could project its thoughts.

"This is amazing." Marc's eyes practically shone as he looked at the divine weapon.

[Well, as puny as this one's mana is, I suppose he isn't all bad.]

"Anyways, good luck with whatever you're planning." Theo said. "I'll get in touch with you when I know what my next mission is."

***

When Theo arrived at camp, everything was in disarray. Structures were being dismantled, belongings were being packed. By the looks of things, Theo would guess that about three-fourths of the camp had already been moved.

A large, rough portal was hewn from cobbled stones in the middle of the camp.

Dullahan was nowhere to be found, so Theo reported to the camp doctor. Dullahan had appointed the healer as Theo's second keeper when he wasn't available.

The doctor's lips curled into a sneer when Theo entered. He was sitting in a chair, drinking a cup of coffee. No patients were in.

"Did Dullahan leave any directives for me?"

"He'll be back tomorrow. Ah, he did ask me to draw some blood if he was busy."

Theo grimaced.

"Have a seat."

Theo perched on the edge of a patient's cot. The smell of alcohol burned his nostrils as the doctor popped open a vial. He then rubbed Theo's inner elbow with the liquid.

"Clench your hand into a fist."

The doctor jammed the syringe into Theo's vein. Dark red filled the syringe, and the doctor quickly set the now full syringe aside and repeated the process. He took five syringes of blood.

"Hold your hand above your head." The doctor instructed Theo after filling the last syringe.

After a few seconds, he wrapped a bandage around Theo's elbow.

"You may go, but have a snack and drink some water." The doctor instructed.

Theo ignored the doctor and went straight to Carrot and Scourge. He brought them to a small clearing.

Carrot growled as soon as he saw Theo's arm.

"They took your blood again."

"It's no big deal." Theo protested.

"You know they're not doing anything good with it." Carrot whickered. "They must be running experiments or something in a secret lab."

"It'll be fine." Theo insisted. "You know my blood only summons things when it's fresh."

Carrot turned to Scourge.

"You're pretty small. If you were quiet, you could be undetectable.

"I'm not small. I'm mighty!" Scourge protested while digging his claws into Theo's shoulder.

"And we need a mighty good detective." Carrot replied.

"You aren't turning a baby into a spy." Theo held one hand up as he interrupted Carrot's thoughts. "He's a little kid."

"And you're too straight laced for a villain."

Theo jerked back.

Carrot sighed.

"You're not a villain, Theo. I was just complaining."

Theo picked at his nails.

"I guess, it wouldn't be a bad idea to learn what's happening to my blood, but we're not sending a little kid to be a spy. I can figure it out after-" Theo finished the thought by pointing to his neck.

"Yeah, it would be good for you to have some goals for later." Carrot sighed.

"Hmm…" Theo mumbled and flopped over onto the grass.

The weather was starting to get warmer. Spring would be coming soon. He could easily drift to sleep like this.

"Lying in the grass. How undignified."

A cold voice shocked Theo awake. He rocketed to his feet and bowed his head.

"Forgive me for not meeting you, sir. I was under the impression that you would be arriving tomorrow."

Theo's eyes darted around. He didn't see Scourge. The dragon must have hidden in time.

Dullahan grabbed Theo's hair and forced his gaze up.

"Your gaze is quite ill mannered today."

"My apologies, sir."

"Did you retrieve the item?"

"Yes, sir."

Theo pulled the jewelry from an inner pocket in his cloak.

Dullahan shoved Theo to the side, releasing his hold on him.

"Excellent. I expect this same level of success on your next mission."

"You will assassinate the traitor, Owen Audie."

Theo schooled his face into a blank, expressionless slate.

"He's a spy for the king of Lyresis. His sister is in the King's Guard, Marie Audie. Kill her while you're at it."

Dullahan handed Theo a file.

"This is all the information our information guild found about the Audie siblings. Use it."

"Yes, sir."

"You have two weeks to complete the mission. Leave immediately."

Theo sunk to the ground as soon as Dullahan was out of sight.

"Carrot. What do I do? What do I do?"

I can't kill them. Theo wanted to choke the words out, but the oath around his neck wouldn't even allow that much.

"What do I do, Carrot? She saved my life and Owen trusted me, I can't-"

A scaly nose brushed against Theo's hand.

"Mortal Theo." The tiny dragon whimpered.

"Sorry, Scourge." Theo took some deep breathes. "I can stay calm. I can figure something out." Theo's voice shook slightly as he spoke.