If Drake were to follow the road, he would need to traverse well over a hundred kilometers to get to the nearest outpost. However, if he went through the mountains to his east, it was only a bit over fifty kilometers in a straight line. Normally, he wouldn't have made that gamble, but this time, the stakes were worth it.

The mountains weren't too high, and at this time of the year, there wouldn't be any snow. All things considered, as long as his Yscalent - or him - didn't break a leg, they should be okay. Luckily, Yscalents were able to run through almost any kind of terrain as if in flat ground, and steep inclines weren't an exception. Kniivar, on the other hand, was going to have problems.

"Uhmm... We are going to have to split. Frainer, Kniivar, I will go ahead. You two stick to the road, but don't show yourselves, okay? If you walk through the night, you should get to the outpost by tomorrow morning."

His two companions whimpered, unwilling to separate from him. Drake felt pretty much the same, but this time they didn't have much of an option. If Kniivar were to get hurt in the middle of the mountains, they would be really screwed.

"Listen here, buddies. I need you to do this for me, all right? We will reunite very soon. Just stay out of sight, and help each other. Good luck."

Without waiting anymore, he pulled the reins, and rode into the forest, towards the mountains looming in the distance. The two Iferes watched him for a while, then resumed their journey. The quicker they got to the outpost, the quicker they would see Drake again.

...

Drake reached the foot of the mountains half an hour later. From up close, they didn't see like much, barely more than big hills. Still, he could see how the loose stones and pebbles, as well as boulders and crevices could pose a real problem. It was no wonder travelers preferred to take a hundred kilometers detour than to go through the mountains.

Shaking his head, he made his Yscalent keep going, although at a slower pace. Trees and bushes slowly gave way to bare dark soil, and cold wind hit his face. Still, Drake braved on.

Two or three times, he saw some large Iferes analyzing him from a distance, and once he had to use his rifle to scare away a creature. The loud noise was enough to show it that Drake was no easy prey.

The next two hours were as quick as they were eventful. At one moment his mount stumbled, throwing Drake off the saddle, and he thought he was done for. Thankfully, after carefully examining it's paws, he saw it wasn't hurt. On another occasion, when they were already descending on the other side of the mountains, several dozen large boulders were dislodged by something, causing a small avalanche that almost hit them.

Still, mishaps apart, they were lucky. After another twenty minutes, Drake found himself in the forest again, and saw the outpost. It was working as usual, a line of people entering, another few leaving, and the always stern soldiers keeping watch.

"Where do you think you are going?!"

"Stop right there!"

Ignoring the indignant exclamations of the people outside the outpost, Drake rushed to the gates, where two soldiers stopped him. Calming down, Drake threw his weapons at the stunned corporal, and pushed past him, who seemed unsure of what to do. Once inside the outpost, he saw a captain, who was already walking towards the commotion he caused.

"You will do perfectly. I need to see the commander of the outpost. Immediately."

"Err... And may I know why? And who are you?"

"No to the first question. As for who I am..."

"Sorry, ma'am! He gave away his guns, so we were unsure of what to do."

Finally catching up to Drake, two of soldiers guarding the gate grabbed his arm, but he didn't bulge. Instead, he only stared at the captain, who seemed to notice something from his eyes.

"Let him go."

"Uh? Captain, he..."

"Let him go, I said. Continue what you were saying."

"My name is Drake Stronter. You can confirm my identity later, if you want. But now, I have vital information I must pass on to the commander of the outpost. People lost their lives for it."

The captain stared at him for a short while before nodding, and beckoning him to follow her, which he gladly did. Soon, he was in front of a middle-aged man, who was sitting behind a desk with a plaque that read 'Major Alcamont'. Drake sighed in relief when seeing that the major wasn't one of those snobs that needed an appointment to meet someone.

"May I know what this urgency is all about? Captain Mander said you told her people died for whatever you have to tell me. Is that true?"

"Unfortunately yes, major. Here, take a look."

He passed the note and the camera over, and as the old soldier looked through them, his expression became grim. Judging by the quick look and frown he threw at the letter, Drake guessed he had no idea what it was written in it either. Probably a code of some sorts.

"Where did you find these?"

"A dead Sercoliot, over a hundred kilometers southwest of here, following the road. It was already dead when I found it, killed by a death-type skill. As for it's companion... I didn't see any signs of them. The blood was still fresh when I got to Sercoliot. I took a shortcut through the mountains to get here, meaning I am a few hours in front of whoever killed them. That is, assuming they are still in the region after completing the job."

"Uhmm... Did you look at the pictures?"

"Of course. I wouldn't be in such a hurry if I hadn't, since I can't tell what's written in this letter."

"Me neither. All right, kid, you did a great service to your kingdom by bringing those to me. I'm gonna have to ask you to step out of the room now, so I can make some calls. Stick around, I might still need you."

"Roger that. I'm waiting for some friends anyway."

"Good. And, kid? Don't tell anyone else about this, got it?"

Drake nodded, and left the room. Finding a chair to slump down on, he closed his eyes. It was only a few hours of riding, but now that the adrenaline was settling down, he was tired as never before. Slowly, he fell asleep.

...

Drake woke up to someone shaking his shoulder. Instinctively, he grabbed the hand, and twisted it, causing the person to yell in pain. Realizing that it was just a soldier, he let go of it, an embarrassed look on his face.

"What the f*ck, man?!"

"Sorry. Instinct."

"Instinct? Who the f*ck are you, that your first thought when you wake up is to break someone's wrist?!"

Apologizing again, Drake asked what the soldier wanted, and it turned out that he just couldn't stay there. Something about that area of the outpost being to military personnel only. Sighing, Drake got up and stretched, before leaving to the open air part of the base. Looking at the sun, he guessed he had slept about two or three hours. Still a long while before Kniivar and Frainer arrived.

Walking to the gate, he nudged one of the soldiers, and told him to go get his weapons. The man wasn't too happy with being ordered around, but recognizing Drake as the guy who caused a ruckus and still managed to talk to the major, he said nothing. Unfazed by the soldier's displeasure, Drake mounted his Yscalent. Major Alcamond had told him to stay in the outpost, but he cared more about his companions than his orders. Besides, all he had to do was follow the road to find them, and then come back.

----------------------------

Amidst the trees, two very different Iferes walked - and floated - side by side. Usually, Kniivar and Frainer would have seemed each other with hostility, but the Spirit Contract that bound them to Drake also bound them to each other. A sort of secondary contract. If they fought, it would hurt Drake, and so the contract erased that very thought from their minds. Only then could such different beings become close friends.

They didn't need to talk to know what the other was thinking. The last battles they fought side by side taught them how to understand each other through their movements and actions. They could take care of themselves, so they followed the road from the treeline leisurely.

Their journey was uneventful. The sun set, and night came. The bright full moon hang above their heads, it's light shining down through the cracks in the foliage. Once or twice they saw other Iferes, and even a group of travelers, but none noticed them.

Suddenly, Kniivar's nose twitched as it smelled something. Touching her head against the grass with her eyes closed, the Ifere jumped excitedly, and chirped at Frainer to follow her. Speeding through the forest without a care in the world, they soon saw a familiar figure crouching behind a tree, his back to them.

Both of them jumped at him, catching Drake off guard, and almost inciting a yelp of surprise from him. The adventurer, however, managed to keep his silence, and, after seeing who were the ones to 'attack' him, he calmed his racing heart. Putting a hand over Kniivar's snout, and pulling Frainer down, he told them to stay quiet.

-----------------------------

Drake was glad his companions had found him, but now wasn't the time for cheerful reunions. While searching for them, he had noticed something unsettling. A bunch of shadows were moving through the forest sneakily. He wouldn't have seen them if not for the fact he was attentively looking at the treeline, trying to find Kniivar and Frainer.

Usually, just people moving out of the road wouldn't be enough to gather his attention. After all, he had done that a bunch of times, so who was he to judge others? However, considering he had discovered a war was about to start, and that Sercoliot's killers couldn't be too far away, he let his curiosity take the better of him.

It was good he did. The people walking through the forest were in fact a pack of Iferes, plus six or seven humans. They were all wearing black clothes, and didn't say a word. That on itself wasn't much. They could just be a group of tired travelers. But their companions weren't.

All the Iferes belonged to the same species, one that Drake couldn't properly identify, but was bound to be a death-type one. Each of them was well over two meters long, with a skin and muscular body. Their long long snouts couldn't hide the sharp teeth, and dark purple saliva dripped out of their mouths.

The sleek bodies were almost entirely covered in black spikes, and the few places that weren't had black fur. The color alone was a dead-giveway to their type, and, if that wasn't enough, the trees against which they rubbed their bodies smoked, and the spots they touched withered. Also, Drake found the lack of eyes unnerving.

Drake was cautious of any death-type Iferes, due to Lapidum Kingdom's troops tendency to make Spirit Contracts with them. The well-coordinated and disciplined way the group moved convinced him they were military.

Making sure to stand against the wind, he sneaked after them, until they eventually stopped. Inching as close as he could without being discovered, he eavesdropped on their conversation.

"We are in too deep, boss. The Menoraz folks are gonna find us if we get any closer."

"Think I don't know that, dimwit? But we have to find the message and the cameras before they get to the hands of someone who understands what they mean."

"Meaning we have a f*cking odyssey ahead of us. Thanks, Pilp."

"Shut the f*ck up, Mantis. If you had killed the freaking spy instead of toying with him, that wouldn't have happened."

"It wasn't my Andasite who missed, a*shole."

"Shut up, you two! It doesn't matter whose fault it is. Unless we want the general to skin us alive, and feed her kids what's left, we have to complete the mission."

There were several grumbles of agreement from the group. It was about that same time that Kniivar and Frainer arrived, but thankfully they weren't noticed.

Drake could roughly grasp the situation from what they said, and sighed relieved. The group appeared to be way out of their territory, which meant that at least for now, he wouldn't have to worry about a huge army. Still, they were too many for him to face, and all of them had dangerous Iferes by their side.

He had to go back to the outpost, and warn the major about them. The question was, would it be enough? By the time he got to the base, and a patrol or something was sent after the scouts, they would be long gone. Maybe that would be for the best. Less bloodshed. Thinking that, he turned around to leave, and it was then that he f*cked up.