Chapter 68 - Worth The Same

Getting into the outpost without being noticed was easier said than done. Drake only remembered why getting into Major Erinster's base was so easy when he was already outside the walls. He missed Frainer for many reasons, and now Telekinesis was one of them.

His plan had been to climb the wall, but that wasn't possible without his companion. He wouldn't be able to find a grip on the stainless steel wall. Glancing at the gate, a few tens of meters away, he frowned. It was closed, and guarded by two soldiers on the railings above it. And, based on his experience, there would be two or three more black-coats at ground level on the inside. The spotlights aimed at the outside would make sure he was discovered in an instant.

He was very close to giving up. It was a pity to leave the scouts to die, and it didn't feel good either, but he also wasn't about giving up his life in a futile effort to help strangers, no matter how strong the sense of camaraderie he felt with them was. It was one thing to help people like the Forlei. For starters, Drake didn't have as much time to consider his actions, and, more importantly, they weren't soldiers. The scouts were more than aware of what would happen to them if they were captured.

"Hum?"

Suddenly, Drake heard shouting coming from inside the outpost, and the rumbling sound of the gate being opened. Pressing himself against the wall, trying to hide in it's shadow, Drake watched as a group of about a dozen soldiers left the base.

Not one to say no to an opportunity like that, Drake quickly crawled to the closing gate, and squeezed through it, startling the two black-coats guarding it. They opened their mouths to shout an alarm, but he aimed his pistols at their faces, and put one finger over his lips, quieting them down immediately.

Without giving them the time to change their minds, Drake smacked the butt of his gun against the side of their heads, in quick succession, knocking them out cold. Carefully scanning the silent outpost, he let out the breath he didn't notice he had been holding. No one had seen him, not even the two soldiers on top of the gate.

Quietly climbing the ladder that led to the railings, he holstered his pistol, and pulled out his knife. Using the blunt side of it, he sent the first guard into unconsciousness. The dull 'thud' of his body falling attracted the second soldier, and someone else Drake would rather not have.

"Grrr..."

A dark shadow lunged at him, trying to tear Drake apart. He didn't have time to discern which species the Ifere belonged to, because he was too worried dodging a pair of sharp claws, When they slid against his blade, sparks appeared, illuminating a maw of surprisingly flat teeth.

"F*ck!"

Great, an electric-type. Muttering a curse, Drake fell on his back. He had to end this quickly. Electric-type Iferes weren't considered the most dangerous, but they were the best at stunning and paralyzing their foes. And, to make matters worse, the startled soldier had recovered, and had his fingers on a device Drake supposed was a trigger to the alarm.

Now, the decision to use the knife to threaten the black-coat had come to bite Drake in the ass. Nothing convinced someone to talk quietly like cold, sharp steel pressed against their throat, but that advantage came at the price of a short attack range.

Knowing that he would be finished if the soldier called for reinforcements, Drake did the only thing he could. Kicking the Ifere aside using his two feet, Drake got into a crouched position, and threw his knife.

It was a clumsy throw. He had never practiced it before, so not only the blade spun sideways as it flew, but it also cut his palm open as it left his hand. Stifling a groan, Drake stared at the improvised projectile. By luck or sheer coincidence, the knife hit the soldier right in the middle of his chest.

"Ugh!"

Drake didn't get to confirm if he had killed the black-coat, because the Ifere jumped on him again, it's body flashing with the easily recognizable activation of Dipolar. Eyes widening, Drake grabbed the feathery neck of the creature, and squeezed it. If the skill came through, the best-case scenario was becoming momentarily blind. In the worst, he would be quite literally fried.

Luckily for him, the Ifere was either old or tired. After a short struggle, it fell unconscious due to the lack of oxygenation. It's body flashed one last time, then stopped. Letting go of the creature before he killed it, Drake let out a sigh of relief. That was close. Too close.

Glancing at the being, Drake once again thanked the Mystic Iferes for his quick reactions. If he wasn't wrong, it was an Itanna. The green patterns on the feathers hinted at one of the southernmost subspecies, but that wasn't important.

Itannas had long and sharp claws, and a powerful bite. They used both of those to break open fruits that had a shell much harder than his bones. One could imagine what would have happened if it managed to land a blow on him.

"Ugh..."

A series of moans brought Drake back from his divagations, and he discovered that the soldier he threw the knife at was still alive, just in a lot of pain. That brought him relief, not because the man was suffering, but because he had avoided needless killing.

The hilt of the blade, in a stunning show of luck, had hit his sternum. Most of it could be attributed to Drake not having a proper throwing knife technique, but there was no doubt the black-coat was lucky. If the knife had spun a little more in it's flight, it would have found itself buried in his chest. The way it happened, it only left him breathing with difficulty.

Picking up the blade, Drake walked to the poor soldier, and grabbed him. Touching his exposed neck with the tip of the knife, Drake threatened him, daring him to move.

"Why did that group of soldiers leave? Why now? Where did they go?"

"T-They are answering an emergency call! Ack... S-Something about heavy storms west of here. They were called to help! I swear!"

Heavy storms? Drake supposed the army could help with that. Still, it was one hell of a coincidence, but one he was happy to accept. Staring straight into the soldier's eyes, Drake felt certain he was telling the truth. Inverting his grip on his knife, Drake smacked it's hilt against the man's head, causing him to faint.

"Storm, hum? That's perfect."

Looking west, Drake did see dark clouds that hadn't been there before. The moon had been covered by them, which would help him - and hopefully the Menoraz scouts - escape unnoticed. The storm seemed to be coming his way too, which would also be helpful. It looked like even the heavens were on his side today.

With the guards at the gate having been taken care of - somehow - now the only obstacle between him and freeing the prisoners were the four guards outside the jail, and whoever else was inside. Luckily, he had a plan. Not a very good plan, but one nonetheless.

Putting on the black jacket of one of the soldiers, he sneaked his way until he was just outside the prison. Then, after confirming no one else was around, he wobbled and limped his way towards the four guards.

"Hey! What are you doing?!"

"H-Help..."

"What happened to you? Had one too much? Haha!"

The soldiers, hearing the weak groan, exchanged glances, and two of them went up to help Drake, without thinking too much about it. After all, why should they? Not only they were in their territory, but he was wearing a Lapidum Army uniform. The thought that it might be a trick never crossed their minds.

As such, their expression of surprise was even bigger when their 'comrade' suddenly pulled out a pistol, and bashed it in the face of one of the black-coats - he was getting really good at that. The second soldier didn't even have time to react before Drake grabbed her and pressed the muzzle of his gun against her cheek.

"What the..."

"Yell and I will blow her brains out, understand?"

He didn't need to say it twice. They uttered curses at him, but didn't raise their voices. Clearly, they valued the lives of their companion more than they cared about what would be made of the prisoners.

After putting the three guards out of combat - with the good old strike to the head - Drake entered the small prison. There was only one more soldier inside, which he quickly took care of, using the same method.

It was the first time Drake entered a jail, so he couldn't help but look around for a bit. There were only four cells, lined up along a single corridor, since the outpost obviously wasn't meant to hold large amounts of captives at a time.

Of the four cells, only one was occupied. After finding the keys in the guard's pockets, Drake opened the door to it. The five blue-coats, disturbed by the sound of keys jiggling, woke up and looked at him with mouths agape.

"Now, who in the holy f*ck are you?"

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Ruli felt that her friend's response to the situation was appropriate. The scouts had already accepted their destiny when a person appeared and freed them. He was young, early twenties at most. Brownish-black hair, and brown eyes, with the stubble of someone who hadn't shaved in a few days. He was wearing a Lapidum Army uniform, but clearly wasn't one of them.

"My name is Drake, and I am one of you. You are the Menoraz scouts, aren't you?"

"Yeah..."

"Good. Is there anyone else? Companions..."

The young man stopped talking mid-sentence when he noticed the shaking heads and gloomy looks. Iferes were a lot harder to control than humans. While they were arrested, their companions... Ruli clenched her fists, and turned her eyes to their rescuer.

"Where's your badge?"

One couldn't blame Ruli for being distrustful of him, considering their identities, but the glare the man threw at her was full of sarcasm. Still, she didn't budge, making him sigh in exasperation.

"Seriously? For all the Mystic... I had to throw it away a few days ago, when I had to pass by as a Lapidum soldier."

"Then how do we know we can trust you?"

"Really? I break into prison, and that's not enough? Look, if you want, you can stay here. I came to help, if you don't want it, suit yourselves. I'm leaving."

He stared meaningfully at them for a moment, then turned to leave, not caring if the scouts were following or not. Drake seriously couldn't believe they still doubted him, and was starting to wonder if risking his ass to save theirs had been a mistake.

"What do you think?"

"That it's better to die in a failed escape attempt than before a crowd tomorrow. I say we risk it."

"I agree. Let's go, boss."

Nodding, Ruli left the cell, and gestured for the other four to follow. Drake was kneeling besides an unconscious black-coat, from whom he stole a pistol, and threw it to her, already having identified Ruli as the leader of the scouts.

"Here you go. There should be more with the guards outside, but don't go shooting and waking up everyone. Let's try to do this quietly."

Ruli didn't like taking orders from someone she didn't know, and appeared less experienced than her, but she endured it, and answered with a low groan.

"A*shole!"

One of the hot-headed members of her squad, when passing by the fallen soldier, spat on him, and raised his leg for a kick. Before he could land it, however, Drake held his ankle, making him trip and fall.

"What the f*ck are you doing?!"

"He is already down! You are both soldiers, so give him the respect he deserves!"

"Who do you think you are to give me order, mother..."

He didn't get to finish the sentence. Faster than the scouts could blink, two pistols had appeared in Drake's hands, one aiming at the scout, and the other at Ruli. His eyes were cold, but deep down they could see burning anger, which made them all freeze, not daring to move.

"I'm the guy that just busted your asses outta jail, and if you don't do as I say, I swear on Ingenum's name I'm putting you back there."

"You!"

"Shut up, Holber! You give the orders, Drake. For now."

Ruli stared at her subordinate until he looked away, his entire complexion red. Then, she gestured for Drake to continue. Slowly, he holstered his weapons.

"Until we are out, no noise, and, especially, no killing unless it's absolutely necessary. I managed to get inside the outpost without taking anyone's life, I'm sure experienced veterans like you can get out while doing the same."

"Why do you care so much about these Lapidum bastards?! Aren't you one of us?"

"No, I decided to save you because it is fun. Of course I am one of you, idiots! But they are just following orders. To me, your life and his are worth the same, so don't make me regret choosing you."