Tenebris Renasci: A World of Magic and Gunpowder

Zara appeared in front of Alexander, almost as if she had teleported, with her foot swinging towards Alexander's shoulder and charged with mana.

Alexander turned to spot the attack, then swiftly ducked under Zara's strike.

As he crouched, the wind from Zara's attack whipped overhead, showing the raw power she put into the strike.

I cannot get hit like that again.

Alexander knew getting close to Zara was a death sentence, as she was more experienced and hit harder.

So he needed to gain distance, and a lot of it.

After successfully dodging Zara's attack, Alexander charged his feet with mana, before leaping back and escaping from Zara's immediate attack range. 

As he landed a few feet away from Zara, Alexander saw that she was already preparing to dash towards him again.

Shit!

Alexander gritted his teeth as he prepared for another dash of his own.

As Zara blitzed him, Alexander immediately dashed towards the right, then ran forward. 

He had to dodge her attack once more, But this wouldn't work for long, as Zara still classed him in mana capacity. 

And she was already preparing herself for another attack dash.

It would be a game of cat and mouse, where Alexander would continually dodge Zara's attacks.

And hope to find a counter strategy…

— — —

While Alexander trained with Zara, the search for him on the demon continent had been underway for the past two days.

Lieutenant Antoinette and squad sergeant Ben were currently in the port city of Hamala-Don, where Alexander was first kidnapped by the smugglers.

"Fourteen POIs, and not a single lead," Antoinette muttered under her breath as she tapped her chin.

She sat in front of a list of letters and a telegram machine. "this is bad…" 

Ben, stood near the window, looking out towards the dirt streets as carriages rolled by and people bustled around buildings and sidewalks. 

The city expanded far into the distance, with the new construction of buildings on its outskirts. 

"This is bullshit." Ben said as he gritted his teeth, "Alexander's out there, probably scared out of fucking mind…" he said angrily as he looked away from the window, and towards Antoinette. 

"And where are we, sitting in a fucking safe house waiting for Rena birds, and telegrams." He said with a frustrated sigh.

Antoinette let out a low sigh as she leaned back in her wooden chair. "I understand your frustration, Ben, I do…" she began, "but we have an entire platoon searching the city, someone has to stay here to coordinate the mission."

Ben rolled his eyes as he crossed his arms. "I should be out there, he's my responsibility."

Antoinette frowned, "No, your responsibility is the service of house nova, and right now, you are stationed in this post, so that is your responsibility." Her voice was stern, and it was clear she wasn't in the mood to argue.

Ben looked up to her, his expression unmistakably irritated. 

The two pathfinders stared at each other in silence, neither of them moving a muscle.

The tension between them began to build, charging the air which could go alight at the slightest provocation from either party.

Antoinette remained firm, but calm.

She knew Ben's anger and frustration weren't aimed at her, but rather at the hopelessness of the situation. 

She knew Ben was in pain, and wanted nothing more than to comfort him. 

But she also knew that if she were to give Ben even the slightest inch, he would take a mile.

Eventually, what broke the silence was not the sounds of their voices, but the sounds of feathered wings flapping near the window. 

Ben turned his head sharply, looking towards the window with narrowed eyes.

What he was greeted with at the window was not other but a Rena bird perched on the windowsill.

The bird was rather large, about the size of a bald eagle. It had beautiful, bright-colored feathers that shimmered under the hot morning sun.

It had a large, sharp beak along with black eyes and black feet.

Around its left foot, was a wooden tube that contained a small sheet of paper tucked safely within its depths. 

"Great," Ben said with a shrug of his shoulders, "let me guess, another worthless report." He mumbled under his breath as he approached the bird.

"You should have more faith," Antoinette said, her tone softer but still commanding authority. "We have an entire team searching the city, if there's any intel here, we're bound to find it."

Ben scoffed as he returned the wooden tube to the Rena bird's leg. "You said that the last fourteen times."

With the tube in hand, Ben turned towards Antoinette and tossed it towards her.

She caught it effortlessly and retrieved its contents. "Because it's only a matter of time, that I know." She replied while opening the small paper message.

On the message was handwritten Morse code that read the following.

Team 4

POI found, original smuggler, target uncooperative, orders?

Location, district Ura, southside factory.

Antoinette carefully scanned the dots and dashes that filled the paper. 

As she deciphered the message, her eyes narrowed, and her expression shifted.

"Hmm…" 

Ben crossed his arms as he watched her closely. "What's it say?" He asked, his tone skeptical, "more crap no doubt."

Antoinette frowned as she continued to study the paper. "No, this one… this is different."

Ben raised an eyebrow as he stepped closer, "What do you mean… different?" He asked, his tone becoming intrigued.

Antoinette placed the paper on the table as she turned towards Ben. "Team four, they found one of the original smugglers, in the ura district." She replied, "But–"

"It's about damn time!" Ben shouted in relief, his face lit up as he approached Antoinette. "Come on, let's go meet them."

"Ben," Antoinette said, her tone measured, "there's an order to these things, and I will not let you jeopardize the lead."

Ben clenched his fist as her expression turned sour, "jeopardize the lead?" He asked with a snarl, "What about jeopardizing Alexander's life?!"