Tucker stepped out of the chamber as the steel doors closed behind him with a metallic creak. The rustle of armor plates echoed in the stone corridors. In an instant, the guards assumed positions, blocking the grand steel doors after Tucker had passed them. Their spears tapped the stone bricks, releasing a pulse of emerald aura before fading into the walls.

  Across the hall, Ray pushed himself off the stone, finally raising his head.

  “How’d it go?”

  Tucker didn’t stop. He shook his head once, not in defeat but with a newfound purpose. “It went to shit. They don’t believe we found anything of value.”

  “Then… what do we do?” Ray looked at Tucker as they began walking down the empty hall.

  The dragon-scaled knights snapped to attention as they passed with a sharp salute, but Tucker didn’t utter a word. For once, he didn’t know what they could do to fix the situation. There were only two months left before the artifact moved locations, and if the Administrators had already made up their minds, then they had done their best.

  But in moments like this, Tucker couldn’t help but wonder if his best was enough. If there were another option, he hadn’t realized yet.

  Their steps echoed in the empty corridors. Not a single watchman was in sight besides them, and the halls that were once filled with life became nothing more than a hollow shell. The Administrators were right. There weren’t enough watchmen to carry out the operation, even if they tried. And if they sent several hundred watchmen to a remote location with no return, then it would just be suicide.

  So why was it that Tucker couldn’t back down?

  He held onto the empty space before his heart, unable to ignore the danger that he saw in the memory that played in Pyron’s office. Slowly, his footsteps came to a halt. Tucker looked at Ray with a gaze that had accepted his fate.

  In a calm voice, he said, “I’m going to scout the location.”

  “By yourself?” Ray stared at him in disbelief, yet once Tucker nodded his eyes widened. “Are you insane? There’s no guarantee you’ll even make it far enough to find the artifact!”

  “There’s no guarantee we’ll be able to do anything if we don’t try,” Tucker replied with a smile. “If I can reach the tower or at least confirm the location of the artifact before the memory orb gets disrupted, then I can send the information back with a mist hawk to prove them wrong.”

  Ray clenched his hand. “But… you’ll die…”

  “Well… living up to your responsibilities never promised a happy ending.” Tucker patted his friend on the shoulder. “There’s no need to make such an expression. Honestly, I should have known better when we stood in front of those steel doors. I just never realized how hated I was in the Order.”

  Ray’s heart sank when he heard this. “Why? You haven’t done anything wrong.”

  “Now that we both know isn’t true.” Tucker exhaled softly before continuing down the stone path. “I’ve made many mistakes in my time as a watchman, and if it weren’t for Alex, my career would have ended long ago.”

  A quiet chuckle escaped him. “It was bound to catch up with me eventually. I mean, let’s face it. Alex can only protect me from all the political nonsense for so long.”

  “But it’s not fair!” Ray cried out. “You’ve done so much for the Order, and to just accept this outcome because you don’t have a choice is fucking bullshit.” He swung his arm out to the side. “I mean, why are you even pushing yourself like this?”

  Ray glared at Tucker’s back, anger tangled with guilt and sorrow for his friend he didn’t know how to voice. “You don’t owe them anything,” he snapped. “Is this about honor? Your family’s name? Is it really worth dying just for some acknowledgment!”

  “Acknowledgment?” Tucker couldn’t help but laugh as his lips slowly curled upwards. Not to where it reached his eyes but just enough for others to see. “If there’s one thing I don’t want, it’s acknowledgment from them.”

  With a single look, Ray felt it immediately. He had crossed a line.

  Yet Tucker didn’t seem to mind; instead, he turned to face him with a calmness that outweighed anger. “Have you ever wondered why I hate my family?”

  Ray didn’t respond.

  “It’s not because I’m a bastard, a child born out of wedlock,” Tucker replied. “It’s because when I was a kid, my mother forced me to go to the Welford estate, claiming that I would be given a life I would never have.”

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  He scoffed, shaking his head. “I never asked for that. Never wanted it either. I was fine with what we had. Just the two of us living in a small countryside village.”

  Ray swallowed. “Then what happened?”

  Tucker slowly released a drawn-out breath. “The same old story you’ve heard a hundred times.” His gaze hardened. “I watched my mother die right in front of me. On some dirt road heading to the estate. They said it was done by bandits, but I don’t believe that for a second. Maybe they spared me out of pity or some sick, cruel joke. Either way, I lived when I should have died right beside her.”

  He gestured for Ray to follow. “And when I thought it was finally over once I reached the estate. I was hauled off to some grand hall and forced to kneel before my so-called father.”

  Tucker’s jaw tightened. “All of them were there. Retainers. Stepmother. Step-siblings. Every single one of them, standing in horror as I was bleeding out on the polished stone floor.”

  A bitter laugh escaped him. “I personally delivered the news of my own mother’s death that night, and you know what my father did? He fucking laughed, right in front of me and all of his retainers.”

  Ray paled once he heard this.

  “I was only seven when this happened,” Tucker continued. “So if you ask me if I’m doing this for my family’s honor or some bullshit like that. Then you’re wrong. I’m doing it for myself. To prove that I don’t need that bastard’s influence. But it’s not like that matters; I already failed.”

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to bring it up,” Ray said, scratching the back of his head. “I can’t imagine what it must have been like living there then.”

  Tucker stared off into the distance, reminiscing about his childhood. “It wasn’t all bad,” he replied. “My step-siblings weren’t like most bastards from other noble families. They were kind.”

  They walked on in silence, their footsteps softly echoing against the stone. The warm glow from the lanterns spilled across the corridor, casting warm halos that guided them through the Order with no destination in sight. Everywhere Tucker looked reminded him of the past. He couldn't imagine that so much had happened in less than a year.

  At eighteen, he had achieved one of his lifelong dreams of becoming a watchman. And within that same year, he had lost the other: a chance to become a ranger. But if anything, it was proof that he shouldn’t have rushed his journey in hopes of chasing merits. Every steady step forward was proof that he was growing stronger than the day before, even if it felt like nothing was changing.

  It was just a shame that he realized it too late.

  “I’m not telling you this because I want pity,” Tucker said calmly.

  “I know.” Ray shut his eyes and sighed. “It just fucking sucks that this is what it comes down to.”

  “It’s not the end of the world for you,” Tucker said with a smile. “Only one of us needs to gather information, and I’m the one best suited for it.”

  “Isn’t there anything I can do to help?” Ray asked. “Maybe if I go along with you, we could increase our chances of finding the artifact. And what makes you even think it’s there?”

  Tucker paused for a moment, thinking back to the recording.

  “Because we saw that mountain of bodies and the blood trailing into the artifact,” Tucker said. “It would be hard for Pyron to hide such a thing from everyone else if it weren’t in such a remote location. If I had to take a guess, then the reason we have two months before they move it is because that’s when the artifact is ready.”

  Ray nodded slowly, but soon stopped. “What if that isn’t the case?”

  Tucker raised a brow and halted. “What do you mean?”

  “I’m saying, what if the artifact is already prepared or close to completion and you went?”

  “Then… odds are it would be on the move…” Tucker’s words trailed off. He stared at Ray as his expression twisted. “You’re not saying…”

  “I am, what if you discover the artifact only for them to move it?” Ray asked. “Then your sacrifice would be for nothing.”

  Tucker’s eyes fell to the ground. He knew what Ray was about to say despite every muscle in his body fighting against it.

  “You’re right; you have a responsibility to fulfill, but not alone. We might not get Watchmen to join us, but we have men that would answer our call in an instant,” Ray said with confidence. “We should send word out to the others and let them know of what we’ve discovered. If the Administrators won’t listen to us, they will.”

  Tucker shut his eyes, thinking back to the Thirty-First and the knights of Hearthfire and Lionheart. He didn’t want it to come to this. A point where he would need to summon those he used to serve with when they had barely made it out of that hell.

  “We’re asking our friends to die,” Tucker whispered.

  Ray stood still without uttering a word. Only a heavy nod followed.

  “I know there’s no one else that would listen to us,” Tucker muttered. “But does that really give us the right to pass this burden onto their shoulders?”

  Ray’s gaze fell to the ground as he leaned against the cold bricks. From a few meters away was the courtyard, an open space filled with trees that reached for the clouds and an array of breathtaking flowers of vast colors. They could see the sunlight pierce into the darkness of the hall, but neither of them moved.

  “It doesn’t, but we have to do it. We have to give them the option of taking part,” Ray said. "They've earned that right."

  Tucker slammed the side of his fist against the wall. He gritted his teeth in resentment. Not at his men but at himself because he knew that if he asked… they would answer. It wasn’t right of him to ask them to take part in a mission that the Order refused. The only reason they even suggested for several hundred watchmen to take part was because it would guarantee the highest chance of survival.

  “This disaster is bigger than any of us, and right now we’re the only ones who can see it,” Tucker said. “I honestly still don’t want to involve them, but we don’t have a choice, do we?”

  “I’m afraid not,” Ray replied.

  Silence filled Tucker’s mind as he shut his eyes. The memories of his men dying around him surfaced one after another. He could feel their bloodstained hands latch onto his limbs, and slowly climb upwards until finally reaching his neck.

  It felt suffocating, knowing that he would once again make a decision that would cost him the lives of those he cared about. But what choice did he have? If the artifact moved, then the only time they would see it again was in action.

  They couldn’t afford to waste any more time. If the Order wouldn’t do anything, then Tucker would have to take it into his own hands. He opened his eyes and gave a firm nod to Ray. “We have a lot of work ahead of us. If we’re going to pull this off, then I need to know that you’re with me.”

  Ray smirked. “Is that even a question?”

  Tucker revealed a faint smile. “I suppose not.”

  We went from getting rejected to a solo operation to now a full-scale operation done outside of the Order.

  Thanks for reading, and I'll see you in the next one.

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