Double Cross

Spilled ale dripped through the cracked corner table that the team sat. The two adjacent benches were red, stuffed, musty, and smelt of grease, sweat, and stale ale. The floorboards were splintered and creaking, and in the distance, the voices of the crowd merged to a uniform murmur.

Seth sat in the musty corner with the rest of the team fretfully plotting his escape, all the while trying not to appear overly nervous. The voices of the team merged with the background voices the second Germo uttered those words, "We know your secrets."

At those words, his heart sunk, his throat dried, and every single muscle in his body curled. He hadn't been careful enough. His lies were too transparent. Upon securing a team, he let his focus slip, now he and his sister had to pay with their lives. He would be bound, prodded, and experimented on.

Worse, his sister… He couldn't even think about his sister. He lost all reason, and a rage fountained in him. It spilled over and caused his entire body to vibrate with a renewed determination.

Giving up was never an option. If the team was not with him, he would just have to search for his sister amid the chaos. The decree still came down, and every single mercenary mage in the lower guild would be on their way to the forest. He saw no reason why he couldn't slip right past them, and search for his sister.

His mind was made up. All he had to do was push past the team. Though he was sure his chances of escape were staggeringly low, he still tried prepared his mind for the ordeal to come. First, he needed to grab the cores, then before they noticed, he'd dash as fast as he could for the door.

His heart thumped so loud, he only managed to pick out a few initial phrases, and Germo and the strange lady explained to him.

"… We aren't saying you are out of the team entirely. It's just that without magic, you are of little use…"

"…you need urgent care. We need you to…"

Seth fingers slowly inched towards the orbs that laid in front of him. The swathe of clothes that housed them was within reach when Germo faced him directly, his voice filled with concern, he asked, "what would you have us do?"

"I would-" the man's question startled him, but he was not so green that he was a stranger to deception. "- I would like for us to continue," he said, as he slowly wrapped his hands around the cloth in front of him.

Seth's eyes scanned the expectant eyes of the team and began, "I barely know you all, and yet you have shown more kindness than most nobles and lords I grew up with. Any sane mage would have abandoned me, stole my blight cores, and left me for dead when they discovered my secret, but you all stayed. Stayed long enough to give an explanation."

His word words struck true in the hearts of every mage seated in the stall. His performance surprised Seth himself- perhaps after his sister's rescue and his houses redemption, he could pursue a leisurely life as a performer.

"We are happy you think that highly of us, but flattery won't change my mind or Ren's or Raylee's," Germo said plainly.

"We think it best for you and the Sera to remain here. We will try to send Brick to secure your sister if he can, but otherwise, our plans haven't changed. Your core is unstable- I looked at it myself," he said.

"I haven't quite seen anything like this. I reckon only Greater mages can help you. From the look of things, you could collapse even as we speak." He folded his hands and spoke with clear authority, "I simply won't risk it."

"I have a few years at least," Seth blurted out, his voice desperate. From the look of on their faces, they were torn up about the decision. Seth discarded his earlier plan of braving the forest of Black Wershe by himself and sought to convince his partners if he could.

"A few years?" The dark-skinned healer eyebrow perked up.

"I- I had had a greater mage look at my core a few hours before I came looking for all of you. He told me I had a few years at least," he hurriedly added.

"Whos's this mage you speak of?" Brick spoke up, his baritone voice oozing with distrust. "We know of every major greater mage in Brightmont. If you dare lie to us, we'll know."

Brick's soft child-like eyes bore down on Seth, his ruthless eyes, further bolstering his threat. Seth frantically searched his mind for an answer, a name that he could pass off to reinforce his lies.

"Mesok, Memenok, I believe." he said. "If I am being honest, he's a Knight, not a mage, but the experience and power carries over," then added.

Brick frowned, "don't insult us with you half-truths. And you must recognize that mages and knights are not the same people?"

"Brick, I am sure he knows." Germo hurriedly interjected. "This is neither the time nor the place to explain the intricacies of spell craft to a green borderlander."

He turned to Seth with a stern look, "I am glad that you have a few years left to sort out your problems, but as you said, and this operation is sensitive. We assumed that you would be well enough to fight by the time we were confronted the mage. Core sickness lasts a day, two at most. But with that illness of yours, you will become a burden even to Sera. The simplest spell from the bloodmage will knock you off balance. With hundreds of mages joining the hunt too-" his voice trailed off. He shook his head and let out a tired sigh.

Ren spoke up, her voice sharp as glass, "Look kid, What Germo is trying to say is you will only be a burden if you came. You battle prowess is commendable. A lesser mage would have fallen to those beasts, but Sera could have easily handled those beasts unscathed with her magic. It would have been easier still if you had yours. But, it's not coming back, at least not while we are on this task."

"It's a real shame. I would have loved to train you, mold that strength into something more," she said wistfully, "but the mission comes first. And with the rewards we all stand to gain, we cannot simply risk it."

Their speech was a lie: excuses, every last word. Seth glared at them all, even Sera. It was never about keeping him safe, or anything so noble or altruistic. They were cutting him out—all of them.

His eyes darted around the table. They didn't want to babysit him now that he found out that he had no magic. He already told them everything they needed to know, and now they planned to back out on their side of the deal? He shouldn't have ever trusted mages. They were rotten, all of them.

"How long have you been planning this," he said, his voice severe and low.

"You gave us little choice, Seth," Germo admitted with a shrug. "Sera will stay with you and will watch you until our return. I assure you, I had every intention to save your sister, but with you out of the picture- there just wasn't much that I could do."

"Bring me," Seth demanded. "Bring me, and I will stay out of your way. You were training me with the bow, show me what you can on the way, and I fix firebombs on them, and fire. Provide support."

The team turned to Germo, eyes expectant, but he stood his ground. His mind was made up. "I don't think that would be wise, Seth. Without magic, you are no different than a skilled hunter or commoner. Firebombs and arrows will run out. I think you should stay here with Sera and-"

"No." Seth spoke, his voice vibrating with rage. "I won't sit in this stupid little town while you use the opportunity that I brought you without me there," he got to his feet.

"My sister needs me, and there is no way in hell I'm waiting here just because you asked me to." His eyes were red with rage and determination. His voice carried through the tavern floor. The entire room turned eyes to the table and whispers, continued.

A barmaid walked over to the table with a scowl, and both hands on her hips. She was round with pasty skin and wore a low cut blouse, "Now I told you earlier that we don't serve your type here, but you being the sweet-tongued liars you are, begged me to let y'all in." Her severe glare traveled the table and lingered on Seth, who, despite his rage, sat down when his gaze met hers.

Germo put on his most charming smile and turned to the sour woman, "Berta, is it," he began. "I'm sorry that my associates and I are making your guests uncomfortable. We'll get right out of here as soon as we finish our ales, and we'll make sure there is something a little bit extra for everybody when we clear the bill since we were so rude."

The maid remained stone-faced as the team awaited her response. After nearly a minute, she reluctantly agreed and walked back to the bar, all the while keeping a wary eye on the team.

Germo spoke, his voice stern "I know you are angry, Seth, rightfully so, but don't mistake our kindness for weakness. As you said, we didn't have to meet you or save you, and we didn't have to promise to save your sister," his eyes narrowed, and his face hardened.

"But we did. We won't certainly risk our lives or meet the mission with the same devotion as you would, naturally, but we plan to rescue her all the same. Instead of fighting us, you should be grateful. Don't expect this sort of kindness from any other guild."

Seth glared at the man, still unsatisfied. His kindness was noted but ultimately benefited him very little. It was clear they wanted him nowhere close to the battle, and for good reason. He shifted his gaze to Sera, who had been tasked with watching him and finally, then to the rest of the team, and with a forced smile, he conceded.

"You are right," he raised both hands to signal defeat. "There is little wisdom in turning down your help. Although I want to be there with you, it's clear to me now that I have no hope of convincing you, so I will await your return." His face fell, and looked to Germo with a modest understanding. The man nodded and smiled.

"Just like that," Raylee said, her thin yet clear. The entire table turned to her. Everyone was slightly nervous. Raylee was not the most vocal member of the team, but she was the most respected. Her icy voice always spoke the truth, and she was unrivaled in combat.

"You seemed determined a minute ago. Where did all that anger and fire go?" her gaze bore down on him.

"I recognized that my protest wouldn't win you over. If I am not careful, my nagging might even force you all to change your minds," Seth said with a nervous smile. Raylee looked at him with questioning eyes, tension mounting between them. Then, she just shrugged and went back to her drink, excluding herself from the rest of the conversation.

The meeting didn't last long after that. They ordered one or two more rounds of ale, hashed out a new plan, which involved subterfuge, cheating, backstabbing, and poison. Seth marveled at the group's ruthlessness and decided that perhaps his earlier assessment was not far off the mark.

They joked about murder like it was a past time activity, and even Sera snickered at some of Brick's more surely jokes. The boyish exterior did well to hide the hate and poison in his heart. Next to Ren, Seth would rank him the most unstable, going off the time he spent with them. The Healer lady, whose name was actually Tela, was far more interesting and spontaneous than he expected.

Chatting with her was like was akin to conversing with an unhinged genius mage. She was far more knowledgeable in the ways of magic than he was but was seemingly ignorant of basic etiquette tradition and even history. When he asked why she answered with a noncommittal shrug and a flippant excuse of "it was not as interesting as magic."

Amid the laughs and reassurances from Germo and the rest of the team, as they drank and discussed in hushed tones, Seth remained tensed and ireful, but he veiled his displeasure well.

Whenever questions were thrown at him, he answered with a near-true smile or a nervous laugh. By the time they drained their mugs, they already covered the plan numerous times over, taking special care to account for contingencies and plans for the other mages they knew were coming. Germo paid the barmaid as promised and bought a round of the cheapest ale in the bar for everyone in the bar. The regulars at ushered the team out with cheers and hoots.

The team left the weasel, and Sera saw Seth back to his room, tracing the cobblestone winding road they passed earlier. They climbed the long stairs of the tower, and she paused in front of his room, nostrils flared, "this is your fault."

"You could have said something earlier on. We could have figured something out, negotiated better, now we are both going to be cut from our own mission."

"You know I couldn't. You would have turned me away, as they did back there. And I found out much later than I let on. It doesn't matter; it's done now," Seth said in a soft, defeated voice, and he opened the door to his room.

"Don't you walk away from me?" Sera yelled. "You are going to give up just like that?"

"What choice do I have?" he said without looking back.

"Coward!"

Her voice cut through him and forced him to tremble. He clutched the door handle so hard, he nearly crushed it. He was firmly glued in place, unable to move on. He knew he should leave her to think what she wanted, but he could quite help himself.

"I can't just thoughtlessly act," he yelled back. "Have the years apart really changed your perception of me that much."

He walked towards her and started, "I wanted to do this on my own, but upon second thought, I realize my plan won't succeed with pursuer like you on my tail."

"What plan?" Sera asked, her anger bubbling still.

"A plan to steal the blood mage's body and kill the Red hornet," Seth answered with an impish smile. Sera's eyes widened, she took several steps back. "What you are asking of me," her voice shaky, "it will cost us both our lives. I can't-"

"Don't pretend that you haven't considered it." Seth interrupted. "I know you Sera, and I know you are far more dangerous than any of them truly know." He took another step forward and stood directly in front of her, "I also know you won't turn me down."

Sera eyed him thoughtfully and finally grinned, "I am not saying yes. Let's hear this genius plan of yours."