Somehow, Devlin managed to lead them out of the forest without getting horribly lost or becoming food for any monsters. It was probably only because by some stroke of luck, they had ended up near a town called Cape Landing, which was about half a day from Shipwreck Village where Myles had previously been staying. His frown deepened as he recognized the buildings they were approaching. He was vaguely familiar with this place, having taken a few contract jobs that had led him here in the past, and he hadn't intended on returning.

  "This your brilliant plan?" He said gruffly. "I thought you were trying to get away from the army. You led us straight to them. Their base is here in town."

  Devlin was his usual cheerful self. "You've been here before? Nice! Where should we go to get good snacks?"

  Myles looked him up and down judgementally. "How are you planning to buy snacks without any money?"

  "You worry too much." Devlin pulled out a handful of gold coins from his pocket. "Stupid army, stealing all of our treasure. Now this is all I have left."

  "Wait a minute, you pocketed cash while we were at the bandit camp?"

  "Myles, I can't believe you didn't grab any of the food! You had one job!"

  "What?! Why didn't you grab it if you wanted it so bad?" Myles realized he was getting worked up into responding to the stupidity and grit his teeth.

  "Say, Myles. You said you've been here before. Where do I go to buy a sword in this town?"

  "You think I would know that?"

  "Why don't you have a sword, Myles?"

  He was starting to get irritated by all the questions again. His eyes flashed. "Don't need one," was all that he answered. He let the silence hang in the air for a few minutes and then he sighed. "There's a shop attached to the smithy up ahead that might have something, but a few gold coins isn't going to be enough."

  "Perfect! Let's go." It was like the kid had selective hearing.

  Myles reluctantly followed Devlin towards the weapons shop, and the two made their way inside. It was only after they were standing there that Myles realized he had no reason to have followed him here. He told himself he was taking a few minutes to satisfy his lingering curiosity before figuring out his own next steps.

  "Now we're talking! These are great!"

  "Can I help you boys?" There was an older gentleman behind the store counter.

  Devlin walked right up to him. "Yep. I'm here to buy a new sword."

  "Well, this is certainly the place for that," the gentleman said amicably.

  Devlin narrowed his eyes at the man. "But it can't just be any sword. I need one that is worthy of stories. The kind of sword that can conquer anything in front of it. Because I'm going to travel the whole world, and nothing is going to get in my way."

  The man's eyes crinkled as he laughed. "Is that so? Kids are getting more ambitious these days. That would be quite the sword indeed, wouldn't it? Though usually it is the wielder who makes the weapon worthy of stories more than the blade." His laughing had faded, but he was still smiling at Devlin's enthusiasm. "I don't know if I've got anything like that here, but you're welcome to look around for yourself."

  Myles watched as Devlin walked along the side of the wall where weapons of all kinds were hung on display, eyes running over the options. Of course the idiot immediately reached for a large monstrosity. Sure, the blade was big, but it looked like it weighed half a ton, and was not super finely made. Devlin was holding it up in front of him, posing as if he were a character in some kind story.

  "What do you think, Myles? Now this one looks cool."

  "You may as well buy a metal baseball bat rather than a sword. It's way too big for you."

  Devlin pouted, but he put it back, moving on to look over the next few swords hanging on the wall. He reached for one with a hilt that was carved into the shape of a flamingo, and another one with a bright orange scabbard. None of them were anything like what Myles would have considered, and it was making his eye twitch slightly.

  Myles let his attention be drawn away from his companion and towards the tables on the other side of the shop. This area was messier, and some of the displays were dusty. There were swords loose and in barrels.

  There, tucked underneath some boards, was a blade in a navy colored scabbard. The pommel was only lightly adorned, and the handle was wrapped with black leather.

  Myles couldn't help but reach out and run a finger along the length before shaking his head and turning away. He wasn't able to totally drop it though, because all of a sudden Devlin was holding it in his hands. "This the one, Myles?"

  Myles physically flinched when the boy rapidly pulled the sword out of the scabbard in a big swing. It was a miracle he didn't take out any part of the store. It made a 'tching' sound as he did so, and even as Myles protested saying that he hadn't said anything, his eyes caught on the shine of the steel.

  Devlin swung the sword experimentally, making sound effects as he did so. Myles rolled his eyes. What did he care which sword the kid picked out? He wasn't the one shopping after all.

  Devlin grinned in satisfaction, resheathing the blade and taking it to the counter.

  "This is the one."

  The shopkeeper raised his eyebrows at the choice. "An interesting selection. To be honest, I don't know too much about that sword. It's quality, but I don't know who the bladesmith that forged it was or anything of its history before it went up in my shop. Whoever forged it surely had skill, but it's been sitting here in the shop for several years now."

  "Well, then maybe it was just waiting for me! I'll take it. How much is it?"

  Myles almost rolled his eyes. A handful of gold coins might be enough to buy him a few meals, but not to buy him a nice blade like that. Maybe Devlin could talk the shopkeeper into one of the practice swords in the back made by some apprentice. That was if he agreed to work in the shop for the next month to pay it off. But a quality sword? That was nothing more than a pipe dream. Myles wondered what he was even still doing here.

  A bell rang as the door opened.

  "Father, I-" Myles turned to see who had entered the shop. He was surprised to find a familiar face. It was the blonde girl who had been one of the prisoners of the bandits. "You!" She looked at Myles and then at Devlin. "Father, these are the men. These are the ones who fought the bandits and saved me!" She bowed to the two of them the same way she had when they had briefly met her in the camp. "Thank you, again. I am in your debt."

  Devlin just smiled at her. "No need to thank us. We were just lucky we got to meet you."

  She did wear a slightly confused expression when she commented. "We would have waited for you guys, you know. But you said you weren't coming back to town..."

  Myles felt his frown deepen with a tinge of embarrassment, but he didn't have it in him to say that he had only come here by accident while following Devlin's questionable navigation.

  The shop owner, who was apparently her father, spoke up. "You, young men? You saved my daughter?" Myles was stunned. What were the odds?

  "You must either have the best or the worst luck of anyone I have ever met," he muttered to Devlin.

  The girl was the one who answered her father. "They showed up in the middle of the camp and fought off all of them! They must have taken out over twenty men all on their own! The rest ran. And then they came to set us free."

  The man bowed low to them then. "Then I am in your debt as well. I would be honored if you would take that blade as a token of my gratitude."

  "Really? Thanks, old man! Awesome!" Devlin wasted no time strapping the belt and sheath around his waist.

  Myles turned to the girl with his own question. "Wait, you're from this town? You're not from Shipwreck Village?"

  "Oh, no. About half of the hostages who were taken were from there, and the other half were from here in Cape Landing. The camp was inland between the two."

  "Hostages? What do you mean?"

  "It was part of a scheme by the man who leads that group. His men kidnap people from the village, and then he ransoms them off for money. Anyone who can't pay risks being sold off to someone much worse."

  Myles frowned. If that was the case, why would they have gone after him? "Were they just grabbing anyone off the street?"

  Sasha's brow pinched together. "I don't know. They had to have been careful about who they chose otherwise they wouldn't have gotten away with this for as long as they did. But please- my father has expressed his gratitude, but if there is anything that I can do, please, you must only ask." She bowed to them.

  "Actually, there is something that you can do."

  "Yes? Please! Just tell me. I'll do anything."

  "Will you vouch for us with the army base leader here in town? The only cart left when we were leaving was that prison wagon, and they caught us with it and goods from the bandit camp. They think we're behind the whole mess. Not that this idiot helped the situation by opening up his mouth and then forcing us to run." Myles pointed at Devlin as he finished his commentary.

  The boy in question seemed to be too preoccupied with his new toy to be paying attention.

  The girl lowered her eyes to the floor. "Oh. I'm so sorry. That, I can't do for you."

  Myles narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean you can't? Seems like the least you could do."

  The girl looked back up and her eyes were wide and turning glassy. "No, I wish I could, but you don't understand. If I go to speak with the sergeant here in Cape Landing, it won't help you at all. You see, he is the one who handed me over to them in the first place. I think they pay him in exchange for him looking the other way of their operation."

  "Are you kidding? How the hell does someone get away with that? And the people around here just do nothing? It didn't seem like the soldiers were looking the other way when they showed up to arrest us in the woods!" All of a sudden, Myles understood. They had infiltrated the operation, hostages had been released, and now the base leader had to do something about the situation. He also probably had heard reports by then of who was behind the incident and was targeting them. This was a bad situation. They probably needed to get out of dodge fast. "We're the scapegoats." He said as he pieced it together.

  Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  Devlin finally spoke back up. His tone was uncharacteristically serious. "What do you mean he handed you over to them?"

  Sasha looked down at her feet. Her hands fisted in her skirt to hide their slight tremble. "It's a long story. He wanted something from me. When I refused, this was his punishment for me and my family. It's alright though. I'm leaving. My aunt lives just a few days east of here, and I'll go to stay with her. I should be safe out there."

  "Do you want to leave?" Devlin's tone was still flat. Sasha's expression told him everything he needed to know. "What is this base leader's name? Sounds like he's asking for a fight." Myles raised his eyebrows in surprise. Was this kid seriously talking about picking a fight with the army? Just to help some girl he didn't even know?

  Sasha's eyes widened. "His name is Sergeant Holke, but you can't go anywhere near him! He's got powerful connections. And even if there was something you could do, you'll be marked criminals for sure if you threaten an army officer. Besides, it's a base! You can't just go over there."

  Devlin looked at her and grinned. "I don't care about that. You can't just give up your home because someone is being a real jerk. Especially not an officer who is supposed to protect people." Sasha tried to interject something, but Devlin kept talking. "Besides, you are my friends now, and you gave me this great sword. It's only fair that I make a deal like this. Don't worry, Sash. I promise I'll fight for you."

  With that, the boy didn't hesitate to walk straight out the door. Myles was a step behind him before he even realized it, and wondered whether he was rushing to stop him or join him as he opened his mouth. "Do you know where the base is?" Devlin asked, cutting him off. Myles wondered what kind of person so fearlessly put themselves on the line for someone they hardly knew, first for him, and now for Sasha.

  Myles pointed in the right direction, and Devlin stopped and turned around to march that way. When Myles fell into step beside him and the boy tossed a feral grin his way, Myles couldn't help but feel his own expression become something fierce. Screw it. What did he have to lose anyway? Myles didn't take the time to question what he was doing. He had spent the past day and a half repeatedly telling the kid that he wasn't going to be taking any orders. But Devlin hadn't asked him to do anything. He had just looked at him like he had expected him to be right beside him in this. Myles, for one, felt a fire burning in his gut that had only seemed to spark up when he was faced with a fight. He knew that this was a dumb move, but he supposed it wasn't the first time he had been marked a criminal. And attacking a military base couldn't add too much more to his sentence than the kidnapping, extortion, and banditry he had already been accused of...

  What it really came down to though was that Myles was itching to fight. Despite everything, there was nothing he hated more than a soldier who betrayed their duty. Soldiers were supposed to be loyal. They were supposed to be protectors. Devlin clearly felt the same way, and Myles had relished in the simplistic, black and white way that he had explained the situation. Myles had fought side by side with him once before. If Devlin was going to try to teach that scumbag Holke a lesson, he decided he didn't mind working with him just a little bit longer.

  As the two of them grew close enough that the base came into view, it occurred to Myles that maybe he should have asked what their plan was before jumping into action. Surely, Devlin had a plan, right?

  The boy was still charging full speed ahead until they were past the last set of buildings between them and the wall. The large entrance gate was open during daylight hours with two soldiers stationed on either side. Past it was an open training area that led to several buildings. This was a small town and it wasn't a huge outpost, but even if it hadn't been, the central command building where they were most likely to find an officer was straight ahead.

  Devlin attempted to march straight past the gate without a word, but four spears immediately crossed in front of him to block his path. "Who are you, and what is your business here?"

  "I am here to talk to Yolk. Where is he?" Myles felt like rolling his eyes at the way Devlin butchered their leader's name.

  The soldiers looked at him in confusion. "Excuse me?" One of their eyes widened. "Are you talking about the Sergeant? Sergeant Holke?"

  "That's what I said. Now tell me where he is."

  The men laughed at him. "What kind of business could you possibly have with him? Sorry, kid. No can do. The boss is a busy man."

  Devlin shrugged. "That's okay. I'll find him myself."

  Before Myles could blink, Devlin had slipped under the spears in front of him and was making his way inside the gate.

  "Hey! We just said you can't come in here!" The guards all turned to go and chase after him, practically tripping over each other. Myles just shook his head, not saying a word as he leisurely walked in behind them. One of them shouted that someone needed to stay behind and watch the gate and two of them reluctantly turned back, but it was too late. Myles was already strolling across the courtyard. He watched as Devlin kicked open the front door of the command post and the pair of soldiers scrambled to try to stop him. He saw a set of stairs off to the side that led up to the second floor and aimed that way instead. He didn't mind busting down the front door the way that Devlin had, but he figured he may as well use the distraction to go around. If the sergeant was on the second floor, maybe he would locate him faster. Alarms started to ring around him when he was about halfway up the stairs, but it wasn't until he had made it inside the building that soldiers started rushing at him, noticing the intruder.

  Most of the men were holding either issued rifles or spears. For the first time in a while, Myles instinctively reached for his own weapon at his side, just to remember that he had shown up here unarmed. He frowned, but it quickly turned into a smirk as he took in the approaching horde. Time to change that.

  Myles didn't like guns very much. They weren't common where he had grown up and he didn't really have any aptitude for them. More than that they always felt like cheating. But that didn't mean that he couldn't find a use for the big metal contraption. He ran at the men, ducking under the first round of bullets that shot his way before slipping into the center of the group. While it meant that he was surrounded, his strategy was to dissuade them from shooting by putting their comrades at risk of friendly fire.

  As he moved, he grabbed one of the soldiers by the neck, maneuvering him as a shield and disarming him of his gun. He proceeded to slam the butt into the man's gut to put him on the ground, and then started to fight with it as if it were some kind of baton or spear. When the next two soldiers made their move, he deftly countered the twin spear attacks, using two hands to block them with his makeshift weapon and then shoving them to the side. He felt someone coming up behind him and jerked the barrel behind him without looking back. The resulting grunt told him that he had hit his mark.

  He heard shouting from further down the hall and decided to keep moving, leaving behind the soldiers he had just knocked around.

  "EGG MAN! WHERE ARE YOU? WE NEED TO TALK!" And that was Devlin. Myles saw a railing up ahead and the hallway opened up to a larger room. Devlin was standing down below, a mess of unconscious soldiers around him, and Myles launched himself over the rail to land down next to him. Devlin's eyes lit up when they saw him, mouth reforming a big grin.

  All of a sudden, soldiers poured in from all four sides of the room, cutting off their exit and pointing guns straight at them. The two boys moved closer to each other, wary of their situation.

  A man stepped out onto the main landing in front of them. He looked over the whole scene and silence filled the room for a few moments while he made his assessment.

  That is, silence would have filled the room if someone hadn't taken a step forward to start yelling up at him. "Are you Yolk?! I've got business with you. Is it true that you're the one who helped kidnap all of those people? The people that the army is supposed to be here to protect?"

  The man in question took his time answering, strolling several steps forward. Everyone else in the room was silent, so even from the floor below they could hear the click of his shoes on the tile floor. "What do I have here? A criminal accusing an army leader of being a traitor? It seems I didn't need to send out patrols to track down the villains terrorizing this town. If I had known you would come straight to me, I would have saved the trouble." He gave them a smile that could have chilled the air. There was a grand staircase leading up to where he stood, and he took two more steps forward to bring him to the edge.

  The way that he spoke made it clear to Myles that he was one hundred percent guilty. He was not a good man. Glancing beside him at Devlin, Myles knew that he wasn't the only one who had confirmed his opinion of the base leader standing above them. But that did nothing for them. They were surrounded and didn't have a plan of attack.

  The man was looking at the two of them with interest. He observed Devlin first because he had been the one speaking, but then his gaze turned to Myles. It seemed to linger for a moment on his hair before his face lit up with recognition. He smirked. "I don't think we've met, but I believe your reputation precedes you. Do you make a habit of choosing the wrong enemies? I suppose I'll have to deal with you myself." Myles was certain he had never seen this man before.

  Devlin didn't seem to care what he was saying. "You hurt my friend," he called out to the man. Myles watched him drop down into a fighting stance and bring his new sword up in front of him. "You don't deserve to be any kind of leader at all." With that, Devlin sprung forward faster than Myles could have possibly expected. One leap took him halfway up the steps and towards the sergeant at top speed. Myles turned his back to him, spinning the gun in his hands as fast as he could to deflect the bullets flying at him and Devlin. Several ricocheted back towards the troops, causing some of the ranks to break as they dove for cover. Others shattered against the floor around where he stood. At least one grazed his left shoulder though he barely felt it with the adrenaline pumping through his body.

  Behind him, Devlin had almost made it to the sergeant when he was intercepted and pushed back by reinforcements coming from the second floor. Soldiers were closing in on Myles but that meant that they were in melee range. He found himself fighting to defend from attacks on all sides as he slowly backed up the stairs behind him. These soldiers were better trained than those bandits had been. If he and Devlin had a prayer of making it out of this, they needed to get their backs to a wall to limit the number of sides they were being attacked from. A stray blow made it past his defense and slammed him to the side into the railing. He felt it spark his anger further and doubled down in his efforts to fight. He was halfway up the stairs now, but the enemies just kept coming.

  All of a sudden, arms grabbed him from behind and he was falling over the railing. It took him a second to realize it was Devlin, and then the two of them were standing side by side from the bottom of the staircase once more. The notable difference was that this time, most of the soldiers they were concerned about were between them and the top. Both boys were breathing heavily, taking a second to catch their breath.

  Devlin looked at him. "Wanna try again? Fight our way to the top?" Devlin brought the sword up over his shoulder with both hands like he was staging to swing it like a bat. Myles smirked at the posturing, and then looked ahead at their enemies.

  "Let's take that asshole down." He answered. And then they charged, this time side by side.

  When the two boys plowed into the line of soldiers coming at them around the base of the stairs they sent several of them flying. Myles was still using his stolen gun as some sort of cross between a club and a baton. After the first few exchanges, his eyes caught on Devlin and widened slightly. He had already witnessed him fighting the bandits the other day and knew that he could hold his own despite his unorthodox methods. But Devlin hadn't had a sword in his hands then. Myles had foolishly convinced himself that Devlin was looking to buy a sword because he knew how to use one. Even when he had posed with the weapon in ridiculous positions, Myles had told himself the kid had been joking around. It wouldn't have been out of character. But it was clear to him now that he had been horribly wrong. A blade was supposed to be used with finesse. It was a specialized tool that took years of discipline and study to begin to master properly. What he was watching was far cry from any of those things.

  Devlin was holding the hilt in his right hand as he ducked under one soldier's attack and kicked off the knee of a second one to get airborne again. From his new angle, he slammed his fist into the first man's face, completely ignoring the fact that he was holding a sword at all. He flipped over forwards as he came down, landing on his shins behind the now fallen man. Only a second later, he had spun back around into a crouch, and then he was stepping into that same stance he had a minute ago before they had charged. He had two hands on the hilt, holding the sword over his right shoulder, and then he picked up one knee for momentum before he swung it into the next reinforcements who were coming his way. Myles physically cringed as he watched the flat of the blade smash through all three men and send them flying. A moment later Devlin was throwing another set of punches, jabbing with his left hand, and then slamming the hilt of the sword into a man's gut as he followed through with his right.

  "That's not how you use a sword!" Myles couldn't help the words that fell out of his mouth.

  All of this happened in a few moments and in his distraction, Myles almost missed the attack coming right for his own head. He focused back on his opponents and found himself lost again in the rhythm of battle.

  "Myles!" He glanced to his left at Devlin's call as the boy sent two soldiers flying through the air in his direction. He didn't hesitate to spin under them, coming up with his gun in time to shove them forward and off the side rail of the stairs. The two were about halfway up now, and there weren't very many soldiers left in front of them.

  "Launch me." Devlin was running towards him then and jumping in the air. Myles grabbed the gun in front of him with both hands and braced down into a crouch. When Devlin landed on it, he burst upwards, sending the boy flying towards the top of the staircase.

  "Egg man! Enough hiding! I'm going to take you down!"

  Myles started pressing up the stairs more quickly this time, taking out every lingering soldier who rushed to meet him.