“Regroup at the hotel,” the lieutenant commanded, his voice cracking out from Yuna’s communicator. “We’ll be having a debrief.”

“Roger,” Yuna replied. She looked over at Fisher who was speaking into his own communicator. “Fisher, we need to tell the lieutenant about our thinking.”

“I know, Princess. Leave that me,” he said with a grin though his eyebrows were furrowed. “He’s used to hearin’ bad news from me.”

Yuna nodded before heading back to the southern gate of the village. She looked around as she did, at the carcasses of monsters, their limbs dismembered and their bodies charred, their blood soaking the battlefield. She watched as a few her fellow soldiers limped off, some leaning against one another for support. One no longer had an arm. Another looked as if he was going to lose one soon.

‘If there was a rank S out there, we’re in no shape to fight it,’ Yuna thought, her jaw tightening. ‘I hope Fisher and I are wrong.’

She made her way to the hotel. The streets of the village were deserted, all the villagers evacuated. The only people she could see were a few soldiers that had been a bit quicker than her in responding to the lieutenant’s summons. 

The hotel doors were wide open, the lieutenant and the corporals already inside. They were seated around the wooden table that used to have trays of food on top of it. Now instead of trays, it had worried hands clasped together and holographic screens that displayed reports. The lieutenant sat at the head of the table. Splatters of blood stained his uniform.

“Take a seat, soldiers,” the lieutenant said, waving his hand to the various couches and chairs spread throughout the lobby. “We'll start in a few minutes.”

“Yes, Sir,” Yuna replied with a nod before taking a chair that gave her a clear view of the table and everyone at it. 

She waited quietly, watching the corporals whispering among one another, pointing at things on their screens. Every so often, they would motion to the lieutenant and he would comment. All the while, soldiers streamed into the lobby, sometimes alone sometimes with their squadmates. 

Fisher pulled up a chair beside Yuna, Yuna nodding to him, but staying quiet. Owl walked by them, waving, but not stopping. He sat with another squad member instead, the two of them greeting each other before falling silent.

“Let’s get started,” the lieutenant announced. The room quieted at his voice. “Most people are here by now. For anyone that comes in after, please fill them in quietly. As this is a debriefing, if anyone of you have something to add, please do so.”

He paused, waiting for questions. When no one gave any, he continued, tapping a screen that floated in front of him.

“The monster force that we just repelled has been counted and tallied to about ninety seven monsters. They have all been eliminated,” the lieutenant said. “Lowest ranking monsters were a high rank C and the highest ranking ones were a mid rank A. Why such a large group of monsters were together is unknown at this time and requires further investigation.

“Moving on to the state of our squadron. Currently, we have fourteen soldiers who are fit for combat. Over the next couple days, that number should go up. In about a week’s time, squads two, three, four, five, six, and seven will be returning and thus bolstering our numbers. Once they return, we will have another debriefing and combine our intelligence. However, from the looks of the situation, we may need to head into the Keynal Strip as a squadron and conduct an investigation.”

He swiped at his screen for a brief second.

“The townspeople have been completely evacuated and are currently inside the underground shelter. However, the shelter was not created for prolonged stays, so we will be transferring them to Fenrir. They will be staying there until our investigation is completed. Are there any questions or objections?”

The lieutenant’s eyes scanned the room. There were none.

“Good. Any thoughts then?”

“Yeah, I have one, Sir,” a corporal said, lifting his fingers into the air. The lieutenant nodded to him. “Just a concern. The average rank of the monsters we just fought were a low rank B, but the extremes are quite worrying. If we go into the forest for a direct investigation, it would seem likely that we may be fighting more monsters like the minotaur and the ogres.”

“A valid concern,” the lieutenant nodded. “I suspect the same. That’s why I’m holding off on the decision on whether or not to go into the forest until the other squads have regrouped with us here. Their intelligence will allow us to form a more concrete idea as to what we will be getting ourselves into.”

“Understood, Sir,” the corporal replied.

“About the rank A’s. We can deal with a few at a time collectively, but I would be stretching to say that they wouldn’t be a problem, especially if there were a large amount in a short time period,” the lieutenant continued. “Thus, if things start to become dangerous and I can only see it becoming more dangerous, I will pull back and wait for orders from the headquarters.”

“Lieutenant,” another corporal said, a woman. It was Carol. Her mouth was set in a small frown as she stared at her own screen. “I’m worried about why those monsters were grouped together.”

“As am I,” the lieutenant replied. “Do you have any thoughts on that subject?”

“A few. Some observations I had when I was fighting,” Carol said. She moved the screen away from her face. “Those monsters weren’t working cooperatively. Them being together seemed to be more an accident than anything. So they weren’t controlled.”

“Alright. Anything else?” the lieutenant asked. Carol nodded.

“They seemed scared,” she said. “The wolves were the most telling. They’re not unlike dogs, so their emotions are quite obvious from their tails and body language. They were terrified of something and saw us as only an obstacle that they needed to get past.”

“Maybe they were scared of the rank A’s that were behind them,” another corporal suggested. 

“Maybe,” Carol said. “Maybe. But the trolls seemed to be scared as well. Which isn’t normal since they’re usually too stupid to realise when something is too strong for them.”

Yuna glanced over to Fisher. He must have felt her eyes as he turned to meet her gaze. Yuna raised an eyebrow and he nodded. Then his hand went up lazily into the air.

“Lieutenant, can I add somethin’?” Fisher asked. The lieutenant frowned but gestured for him to continue. “It’s about the monsters. Groupin’ together. I thought of somethin’. I got an idea.”

The attention of the room went to Fisher. The corporals stared at him intently, waiting for his next words.

“Well, first thing is that them monsters did look scared. I could tell. They wanted to get past us more than they wanted to kill us,” Fisher said. “So somethin’ out there, was scaring the hell out of them. Owl said that, um, there were thirty the first time he noticed the monsters comin’ to us. Then that number went to ninety in five minutes. So with everything put together, there’s something really fuckin’ scary out there.”

“Do you have an idea as to what it could be?” the lieutenant asked. 

“Hold on. I was gettin’ to that,” Fisher said with a wave. The lieutenant frowned but didn't say anything. “So there were rank A’s in that group of monsters. That means that whatever that scary thing in that forest is, it has to be big enough to scare hell out of rank A monsters. So what do y'all think would scare rank A’s?”

The question weighed heavily in the room. The lieutenant’s face darkened and he muttered something under his breath that looked like it started with the letter f. 

“Fisher. Are you saying that there is probably a rank S monster roaming around in that forest?” the lieutenant asked, his voice low. Fisher gave him a nod. “We need to tell the headquarters about this idea. How certain are you about this?”

“Pretty certain,” Fisher replied. “I can’t think of any other reason why rank A monsters would look so scared.”

“Then I really need to notify the heads.” The lieutenant sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “We still might need to investigate. Even more so now. For signs.”

Notify the heads. The phrase tickled at Yuna’s mind. She felt like she was forgetting something. Then it clicked. If there really was a rank S monster out there, there was one person who needed to know. Yuki.

‘I need to tell her. But the communicator I have connected to the guild is back in Junction,’ she thought. ‘I need to get it. But how?’

She thought quietly as the debriefing went on. Questions were being thrown around, some panicked, others angry. A solution appeared in her mind. A way to return to Junction for a few moments. She raised her hand, waiting for the lieutenant to notice. 

“Yes, soldier?” he asked, his voice silencing the room. Eyes turned to Yuna. She resisted the urge to curl up. 

“I have a suggestion,” she said. She licked her lips before continuing. “If we were to go into the forest to investigate, there is a distinct possibility of us facing rank A monsters or even worse. However, the weaponry that I am currently using, will limit my abilities.”

“Are you asking for an upgrade, private?” 

“No. I have a better weapon, and I’m sure others do as well. A personal weapon. But it’s currently at my residence. Would it be possible for me to return and retrieve it?”

“How would it help you?” the lieutenant asked.

“Well, the sword I currently have isn’t receptive to mana,” Yuna explained. “I’m a swordswoman class. I normally infuse my blade with mana when I’m in combat. If I did that with the current blade I have, it would shatter it. There’s also the fact that the sword is unfamiliar to my hands, and a more familiar weight and length would only help me.”

The lieutenant leaned back and gazed at her with cool eyes. Yuna stared back. After seeing the lieutenant’s normal side, that gaze no longer felt as intimidating.

“Is there anyone here that feels the same?” he asked, not taking his eyes off of Yuna. A few murmurs of agreement replied along with hands being raised into the air. “I see. Then I’ll allow it. However, you must keep your communicator’s on at all times. You will have until noon to report back here. If you fail to do that, you will be dismissed. Understood?”

“Yes, Sir,” Yuna replied, her voice in sync with the other soldiers. 

“Good. Go,” he said. 

Yuna stood and gave the lieutenant a salute before rushing out of the hotel. She made her way to the small transportation station that sat in the back of the town. It contained only two transporters, one for leaving and one for arriving. There was one operator there. When the operator saw Yuna, his eyes lit up.

“Is the town safe?” the operator asked.

“For now,” Yuna replied. The operator frowned but didn’t question her further. “I’m heading to Junction.”

“Junction? Alright,” the operator nodded. He tapped at his screen. “What for?”

“Picking up equipment.”

“Alright. Head on in,” the operator said with a wave. The door of the outbound transporter slid open. Yuna walked in.

‘I just need to tell Yuki,’ she thought. ‘If I get the message to her, then she’ll know what to do. I’m sure.’

And with that, the world flashed bright white as the transporter whipped her away to Junction.