ã€ŠMercenaryã€‹


 1 Chapter 1 The dreamer of Moore Aisle

    A note to any who begin reading this series: Unfortunately, I have decided to stop writing Mercenary. The series ends unfinished, and while I may decide to continue writing in the future, I do not anyone to spend time reading an unfinished series that may never be finished.

    It had been 1254 years since the surface was overrun by monsters. The use of magic, which had been vacant previously in the world, appeared seemingly out of nowhere. Not only humans, but animals and plants began to exhert various qualities and abilities they had not been able to use before.

    With the appearance of magic, the humans, even with their millitary might and technological developments were driven back by the unknown that lurked in the wilderness.

    Moore Aisle was a continent in the southwest, shaped like a circle with a natural landbridge that connected it to a much larger landmass, paramesia. Paramesia took the shape of an upside down L, which spanned from the northwest corner of the world to the southeast corner.

    The humans, driven back by the newfound capabilities of the beasts, found new ways to survive. Over the periods of hundreds of years, entire empires were built underground, away from the reach of the creatures on the surface.

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    Magical radiation which entered the planet was strongest on the surface, and as a result any beings that lived underground remained mostly unaffected, and so humans lived their lives peacefully in the underground cities.

    Our story takes place in Lardis, a bustling underground city in the southeast area of Moore Aisle.

    The doors of the swindled pig saloon flapped open and closed. Shady figures entered and exited as they pleased. The voices of drunkards and gamblers could be heard multiple buildings over. Beer fizzed as it was poured, coins clanked as they were handed from one party to another. The job board was filled with wanted posters and other dangerous tasks, fit for only those who were willing to risk their lives.

    A man with long black hair, and a scar across his eye, lit a cigarette as he plopped his boots onto the card table in front of him. Customers avoided his grimacing look, and he waited in solace impatiently.

    The man let out a sign, and a frown drew itself upon his face as he thought to himself.

    Memories flashed back to a week earlier. A red haired woman wearing leather armor and holding a crossbow watched the mans back, and a burly bald man who had overly large fangs and a spiked club, resembling a caveman took the lead. The black haired man held his sword in its sheath, ready to attack. A blonde short haired man wearing a green robe stood by the woman, and they all walked through a dense forest, jumping over thick roots and climbing over the brush.

    They were a mile out from the underground entrance, tasked with clearing out a pack of wolves who had given even the city guards trouble, and caused multitudes of casualties.

    The yellow haired man held his hands together and a bright aura glowed between them and then dispursed. (Scan Location). "Raggard, it seems there are 5 nearby! Prepare for battle!" Leonard said.

    "Got it", Raggard stated, pulling out his sword. "Artus, Leonard, you guys take the left, me and Chantelle will handle the right." Raggard ordered, as they all shifted into position.

    They heard a howl, and similtaneously two wolves jumped out from the right side. They charged towards Raggard, and Chantelle took aim at one of them.

    A crisp sound emerged as the bolt shot through the air, and a splattering of blood came out of the wolf as it pierced its side, before it had reached Raggard. The other wolf, as if taking advantage of the first ones plight, jumped on top of the first one and used it as a springboard, leaping onto Raggard.

    Raggard dodged and swung his sword, lightly grazing the wolfs face, however this only aggravated it further. The wolf reoriented itself and planted its feet to jump once more. The injured wolf had changed its target to Chantelle, and a purple aura surrounded it.

    Its legs began to become larger and more muscular, and its speed far exceeded that of a cheetah. It flew towards Chantelle and gouged its fangs into her gut, tearing open her stomache. She let out a scream as the wolf feasted on her intestines, catching Raggard off guard. He looked over to see the horrifying scene and before he knew it, the wolf he was paying attention to had knocked him to the ground and began clawing at his eye.

    He stabbed the wolf in the head and pieces of its brain flew onto his face. He spit them away and got up to help his comrade, only to see that the wolf was feasting on her corpse, and that she had already been mortified beyond recognition. He looked over to his other comrades, to see Leonards face mutilated as well, and the chest of Artus had been ripped in two, his bones crushed and lungs ripped open.

    Three dead wolves lay next to them, and Raggard let out a scream of rage. The lone remaining wolf, injured, noticed him and began to limp away.

    Raggard would not allow this to happen. He ran over to the live wolf and began to violently stab its body, over and over to the point where it could no longer move. The wolf twitched while Raggard stabbed it until it ceased all movement.

    Raggard bent down, sheathed his sword, iron drenched in a bloody mess, and pounded the ground. Tears flowed endlessly as he screamed for his companions, and he knew this was the end. "Are there any more of ya!? Eh!?" he vented. "Finish me off wont ya! You took everyone else, why am I the only one who doesnt get to die!?"

    Raggard snapped back to reality, in the pub. The doors squealed and a youth came through, with messy hair and rags for clothes. He had a white rope wrapped around his waist and a fancy black dagger tied to it. He wore a green beanie that made his yellow hair stick out from underneath, and his eyes were wide.

    He held a cheeky smile and gained the attention of all the customers as he carelessly stomped around the bar. "Ragggggard! Where ya at old pal? Im ready to go take on the surface!"

    The pub went silent, and everyone began to whisper. A large man with a buzzcut walked up to the kid and cut him off.

    "Oi kid. This bar aint the place for you. And nor is the surface. Even right close to the cities are the wild animals that can use buffing skills to enhance themselves, but if you try and really go out there youre gonna encounter worse monsters than you can imagine. And even if you manage to get past them, the surface guild is gonna be out to get anyone who tries to take over their land. They got magicians who have bathed in radiation all their lives and are more powerful than any of us underground dwellers can imagine, and they dont take friendly to anyone who they consider weak. If it werent for them we woulda already tried to take back the surface from the monsters, but theyve destroyed anyone who tries to make an outside civilization, no matter how strong they are. You think you can deal with that? Lemme answer for you. No. You cant. Now you better run back to mommy before I beat you out of here."

    The kid made a wierded out expression and stated "Ch! Youre no fun. Imma go out there to join them, and soon enough Ill lead them into taking back the surface for all of mankind. Just watch me old man!"

    The man raged with anger at these words, as the surface guild was a gang of overpowered murderers who did as they pleased, and this kid was saying he was going to lead them.

    "You think youre tough stuff eh? Lemme teach you a little lesson then so you know your place in the world". He pulled back his fist and swung hard at the face of the young man.

    His fist was met with the finger of the young man, which was held up, and in front of it was a thin glass looking barrier. "Ah ah. Look what youve done old man. You tried attacking me and even made me waste some of my mana on you. Looks like youre gonna have to pay me back for that one"

    The man jumped back in surprise. Rarely anyone in the underground could use magic, but to have deflected a full punch with a thin barrier, only by lifting a finger was only something the kings knights would be capable of.

    "W-who are you? How did you obtain such skills? Are you a mage specialized in defense!?" The man exclaimed.

    "Wrong! The names Dubiliaris. Call me Dubs! Nice to meet you! Now, its time to get that payback..."

    Dubs held out his hand and pulled it back as if stringing a bow. A blaze of flames formed the shape of an arrow and he let go, and the arrow flew off towards the man. Dubs snapped his fingers and an explosion occured near the man, causing him to fly backwards, straight into Raggard, who caught him.

    "Alright alright kiddo, we get it, youre a genius. Now, lets get going. We got work to do."

 2 Chapter 2- An unknown savior

    After Raggard''s comrades had been slaughtered by wolves, he contemplated what to do. His mind was a jumble, he was filled with emotion, unsure of where to go, what to do, or if he even had a purpose anymore.

    He wiped his tear filled eyes and thought to himself, "This is all my fault. I was the leader. I was the one who hired them as mercenaries. I was the one who trained them. I was the one who filled their minds with the hopes and dreams of the outside world. But this is the cruel reality. The outside world is not an escape from confinement. Its merely a land of death, waiting for all who tread upon it. That''s what I''ve been taught my entire life. Why did I think I could be different?"

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    Raggard continued to mope and blame himself for the tragedy that had befallen him and his comrades. He decided that it was his responsibility as a leader to meet the same end as his comrades, and stood up. He grabbed his sword, and his eyes became filled with revenge.

    "Ill struggle to the very end to get rid of the monsters out here, and I will meet my comrades shortly."

    He grabbed his eye with his left hand, and wiped the streak of blood that was blurring his vision. He then set out, away from the direction of the underground entrance.

    A few minutes of rustling through the brush had passed when Raggard heard footsteps around him. They were soft, as if they were trying to conceal themselves, and Raggard quickly realized he had been surrounded.

    "Show yourselves, beasts!", He exclaimed. "Well well, I didn''t expect to be called a beast today." A tall thin man with long brown hair emerged from the brush.

    "Say, fellas? What do you guys think? Should we let this guy off for calling me a beast?"

    Another man emerged, with short black hair, and similar figure. "Of course not boss! He should pay the price for disrespecting you.", he retorted. "Mmm I completely agree."

    A number of other people came out from the bushes, some women, mostly men, around 20 in total. All of them wore leather armor, aside from the one who was called ''Boss'' who wore an aluminum chest plate.

    He smirked and arrogantly put his hand on Raggard''s chin.

    "Alright bud. Here''s how its gonna work. Either you give me all the money and equipment you got on you, or well kill you right here and take it for ourselves. Whats it gonna be?"

    "Heh" Raggard remarked. "You probably thought some lone guy in the woods would value his life and be easy prey, am I wrong?"

    A look of displeasure came across the bosses face. "Are you trying to be smug with me? EH??"

    The boss slapped Raggard across the face. "Anyone can see that I have the advantage here. You should be begging for your life right now and you have the balls to talk back to me?!".

    His face became flustered and he kneed Raggard in the gut, causing him to topple over to the ground.

    Raggard slowly stood up, gasping for air. "I just lost all my comrades in a battle bud. You think I give a shit about my own life anymore? I gave that up before you met me boy. You thought I''d quietly submit, but I''ll show you that you wont get out of this unscathed."

    Raggard grabbed his sword and lunged at the boss. Caught off guard, the boss didn''t react in time, and the sword pierced through the aluminum, leaving a hole in his chest.

    Raggard tried to pull the sword out but it was firmly rooted in the mans chest. The boss coughed up a spit of blood and began to screech out his final words. "Geht-ugh blech... him..!!"

    It turned into a frenzy. The boss toppled over and with him, Raggard, who was trying to pull the sword out was flung to the ground. All the bandits charged at Raggard, and his life flashed before his eyes as they came close enough to strike.

    "I guess I was only good enough to slay a single bandit. Too bad I''m not a genius magician like you were, Leonard. Well, I guess that didn''t do you much good anyway when the enemies were close enough to attack. My comrades, Ill be with you all soon".

    A white string of light flashed before Raggard, bouncing from head to head of the attacking bandits. Their heads flew off, and blood spurted everywhere.

    20 men had been decapitated in an instant, and when Raggard looked in front of him, there appeared a young boy, seemingly about 14 years of age, wearing a green beanie. He sheathed a twisted black dagger, which was glowing with a dark aura, into his rope like belt.

    "I have a deal to make with you," The kid stated.

 3 Chapter 3- The Magic Scientis

    Raggard, who had previously been prepared to die, blankly stared at the boy in front of him. "Um, Im sorry, what did you just say?"

    The boy looked annoyed and repeated himself. "I have a proposal for you. I can tell by your eyes. You''re the type who has lost everything, and you were about to give your life for your pride. No?"

    Raggard opened his mouth and closed it, thinking. "Who is this kid? What does he want with me? How can he read me so well?"

    The kid continued. "Let me cut to the chase. I''m someone who has found interest in you. You are someone who has lose all purpose in life. And i''m here to give you a new purpose. You read me so far?" Raggard nodded hesitantly.

    "I am a scientist. I''ve spend the past ten years studying magic and the properties that envelop it. I would like you to assist me in my endeavors. If you help me out, ill give you a position in my lab, and ill even assist you to get stronger so that you can one day venture outside without losing everyone precious to you. Good deal, right?"

    Raggard was speechless. How could this kid possibly understand what he was going through? Furthermore, how could he be so heartless as to propose something so quickly and expect an immediate answer. He was most likely using the people who are disheartened to further his own purposes. But the real question that bogged Raggard''s mind was that the kid said he had been studying magic for ten years.

    He looked as if he was only 14 years old, and yet if he was telling the truth, then he would have begun his studies at 4 years old.

    There was no way that could have been the case. So either the kid was lying, or something that he didn''t understand was going on.

    "10 years? Do I look like an idiot to you kid. If this is some sort of prank cut me out of it."

    The kid rolled his eyes and snapped back with a sassy tone. "Do I look like a kid to you? O wait. I do. Right, so when I began studying magic at 14 years old the first spell I mastered was the ability to suspend my body in time, causing the aging process to halt. This is but common knowledge among the magicians of the world. Why do you think that they end up living thousands of years, and only ever die of unnatural deaths? Its because this was the original goal in all magic. To gain immortality, to be able to live an indefinite lifespan. However, of course, with the acquisition of power comes the power hungry, which is why many fights occurred between those who were at the top, splitting humanity into the surfacers and the underground dwellers."

    Raggard had no idea what this kid was talking about. The kids story was completely different from everything he learned in the history books as a kid.

    He was told merely that the surface dwellers were a society of murderers and outcasts, who were originally punished by being forced to live in the monster controlled society, eventually leading to their deaths. However, with the passing of time, they became stronger and learned to survive in the harsh world, leading to their threatening existence, and the primary reason why mercenaries were only allowed to wander close to the city entrances, and anyone who went any further was likely to be killed, either by monsters or by those who had become strong enough to survive among the monsters.

    "Ah right. I guess you look so confused because of all the brainwashing the empire has done to their people. Well, just forget what I said there. Either way, ill give you an option. Either come with me and assist in my lab, or Ill leave you out here to try and find your way back home alone. If you feel like dying, ill just find another person to help with my experiments."

    Raggard felt fear of the wild in his heart. He was different from how he felt before, when the adrenaline had kicked in. He wanted to live now, more than anything, now that he had been saved.

    "I.. I must live on for the sake of my comrades. I must not allow their deaths to be in vain! Alright. I''ll go with you. What is your name kid?" A flashy grin pealed over the kids face. "Dubs. The name is Dubs."

    "Alright Dubs. Can I ask you a few questions then, before we get going?"

    Dubs put his hands in his pockets and turned his eyes upwards, as if annoyed but reluctantly agreed.

    "Fine. But Ill give you some conditions on what ill answer. 1. It cannot have to do with my past. That is something you will discover in due time, as I decide to reveal it to you. 2. It cannot have to do with my overall goal, for the same reason. However, I will allow you to know what that goal is, but the details behind it are for me to know and you to find out."

    Raggard nodded in agreement. "Then what is this goal of yours, Dubs?" They began to walk through the brush, back in the direction of the empire''s underground entrance.

    "My overall goal is to join the surfacers guild, and work my way to the top. I then plan on taking over the underground empire, and eventually ruling over the world as a dictator. Of course, I will be a loving and fair dictator, but a dictator nonetheless. No further questions on this matter. Now, you know my ambitions, so ill present you with one statement. Should you leak this to anyone, I will have you tortured, and then killed. However, should you assist me, and be loyal to my cause, I will reward you in full, and allow you to take a high place in the new order of the world I have planned."

    Raggard''s disbelief reached unparalleled heights. What was this guy saying? He was only 24 years old, and while he seemed to have mastered a number of magic techniques, and surely exceeded the abilities of a normal human, he by no means had any ability to reach the status he talked of.

    Raggard understood by the tone of his words that he was completely serious to every detail, including the part that he had every bit planned out.

    I don''t think I can completely trust this guy, but I don''t feel as if he is lying about his ability to do such things. I can feel something from him that tells me that he really has the mark of a leader, and that he will one day be able to obtain these insane aspirations of his.

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    I don''t know what to say, but something is telling me that a world lead by this guy will be more peaceful than it is right now. Either way, I don''t have a choice about telling anyone, so I''ll play along with him for now and if I realize that he truly is trying to do something evil to this world, ill do everything I can to stop him at that point.

    For now I must gain power and status. I just lost my entire mercenary squad, and as a leader who lost his entire squad dishonor will taint my name.

    Nobody will believe me about this right now even if I wanted to do anything. Yes, my best option is to go with this guy and help him achieve his goals.

    Dubs looked back at Raggard and noticed his crinkled face as he thought. "So you''ve agreed to go along with me for now eh? Well, that''s good enough for me. I''m not the type to judge peoples intentions to be loyal, so long as they realize my dream when the time comes. As soon as you know the truth, the righteous part of you won''t even consider betrayal. I can assure you that while I may have some evil means, that I am the good guy in this world, if there exists one."

    Dubs was speaking in riddles again, but Raggard decided not to think too much about them. He was going to continue taking things one step at a time.

    "So Dubs, is the magic you''ve obtained all due to your research?".

    Dubs pondered for a second, and stated, "Well, the majority of my own skills are due to my research, however my affinity with magic in the first place is due to my past, which I have already said that I will elaborate on when the time comes. For now, just know that I will be able to make you stronger and more adept when it comes to magic abilities, however your practical use is up to you. You will have to train on your own to properly use them in fights or for other practical uses of magic." .

    They both came across a cobblestone tower, with a metal door barring entrance, and a platoon of knights wearing full steel armor guarded the door. One of the guards hailed towards Raggard.

    "Raggard! Did you make it out of your mission alive? I warned you before you went out that the outside world was dangerous. Where is the rest of your squad, and why is that kid with you?". The guard inquired.

    The kid shot him a glance that wreaked of death itself, as if to say "You better figure something out quick or ill kill everyone here on the spot".

    Raggard replied swiftly. "I.. I lost everyone. All my comrades are dead. I was the only one to make it out alive, and I managed to save this kid on the way. I''ve failed as a mercenary leader."

    The guard was compassionate and placed his hand on Raggard. "I''m so sorry pal. Take it easy for the next few days. Here, have a few drinks on me."

    The guard handed Raggard a few copper coins, and Raggard gratefully accepted. "And you kid! I told you to stop wandering about outside the gates! How many times do I have to tell you that its too dangerous. Raggard probably spent multiple lives to save you, so you''d better be grateful to him!"

    Dubs let off a mischievous smile, as if putting on an act to prevent people from knowing he wasn''t merely a kid, and sarcastically responded "Yeeeeeahh I know I get it. Ill be more careful next time guard." The guards face twisted with disgust. "You must have it rough dealing with this kid Raggard. I hope to see you alive and well when we next meet."

    The guards began to pull the chains that held the metal door shut, and allowed the two to pass inside. "How does that kid keep getting past our security anyways.. I swear one day he needs to be locked up, or hes really gonna die out here..." He muttered to himself.

    The two entered the tower and began shuffling down the long spiraling stairway. Torches filled the walls and shone dimly, lighting the corridor, until they reached the bottom and entered into a dark, lamp-lit city.

    Buildings sprawled, and roadways bustled with people hustling back and forth from one area to another. Merchants called out to people in attempts to sell items, and guard platoons marched across the streets patrolling.

    "Where are we going, Dubs?" Raggard asked blankly. "To my laboratory, of course. Its this way". Dubs pointed down a dark corridor that lead to one of the shadiest parts of the town, which culminated at the graveyard.

    They walked through the dark alleyway, drunkards and prostitutes filled the street, and as they shuffled past them Dubs skipped through the menacing scenario as if it was a green field filled with hope and joy.

    "Doesn''t this guy have any sense of situation? Jeez. He clearly is naive, but why do I feel like he knows something that I don''t?"

    Raggard followed him to the edge and they reached the gravesite. Tombstones filled the landscape and a turquoise grass covered the scene.

    The tombstones all had various sizes but they were well made and taken care of, and at the corner of the graveyard there was a shoddy wooden shack that was meant for the gravekeeper.

    Dubs pulled out a silver key ring with many keys on it and unlocked the shack, and opened the door.

    "Welcome to my lab. I''m the gravekeeper, and this is my home".

 4 Chapter 4- Frederic Ruffield

    In the year of 658, Gregory Ruffield, the lead assassin in the surfacers guild on Moore Aisle, and one of the most trusted advisers to the leader of the guild, Marcus Thaust, began the ritual to initiate his son, Frederic Ruffield, into the assassin clan of the surfacers guild

    Frederic, a young boy, 10 years old at the time, had been physically trained from the age of 8 to be able to withstand the harsh practices of the ritual.

    Those without at least a large amount of physical stamina and endurance would die in the process of enabling their bodies to handle magical energy.

    Gregory was an old man, over 600 years old, and one of the original mages. Along with the others, there were 12 total mages who lead the surfacers clan, and 3 of which belonged to each of the 4 corners of the world.

    Gregory had a long white beard and wore a grey robe, and 2 other mages stood next to him wearing black robes lined with a crimson boarder.

    The three mages placed their hands over Frederic, who laid on a stone altar, and began chanting in order to channel the energy into his body slowly, so that he may build up a resistance over time to handle this energy

    Hours passed, and the mages continued their ritual until bit by bit. Frederic began to shake and struggle against the energy flowing into him.

    Dark streams of vapor could be seen surrounding him, and over the course of many hours he finally awoke, his eyes bursting open like a madman''s.

    The young boy, bald, and clothed in a white robe, stood up, eyes widened, and shaking, realized his situation.

    "Was the ritual successful, father?" He questioned.

    "If it were not, your body would have rejected the dark particles and imploded by now. You''ve done well to make it this far, my son. Now go forth, and continue your training in magic to become a skilled assassin."

    The child was taken away by the two men in black robes and led out into a hallway where he was then put into a bedroom.

    He was to spend the next 10 years of his life training himself to use stealth techniques so that he would be able to go on his first mission, and gain experience as an assassin

    In the year 1226, 30 years before the present day, Frederic was the most skilled assassin in the guild. He had mastered both stealth techniques, and the use of dark magic to attack, and as the son of the 3rd in command of the surfacers guild, he was of high standing.

    The mages of the surfacers guild had all mastered the technique to suspend their bodies in time, allowing them to live indefinitely without aging. As such, the man appeared to be only 20 years old, which was the age in which he had fully mastered magical techniques.

    He was bald, looked as if he had a buzz cut, and wore a black robe, similar to the other users. He had a built figure and bright blue eyes, and walked into the hall of the guild leaders.

    The three guild leaders, Marcus, Gregory, and Samuel, all sat in three thrones, two silver on the sides and one golden, and Marcus sat in the middle.

    All of them had long white beards and wore grey robes, as they were of the first generation of magic casters, and they were unable to master the suspension of cells until they had already reached old age.

    Frederic knelt before them and reported. "Honored guild leaders. Your humble servant Frederic awaits his orders".

    Marcus lifted his hand, implying for Frederic to rise.

    "Frederic. Your skills have surpassed those of the other members of your clan. You have proven yourself a worthy asset of the surfacers guild. Our goal to prevent the empire from taking over the surface has been successful due to your promptness in removing anyone who wanders from the underground entrances. However, we have found an area of concern with the empire. Their king, Robert, who has remained alive since the initiation of magic, just as us, has been seen running experiments in order to further his magical power. We cannot allow this to progress any further, should the empire become a threat to the surface guild. This is why we have appointed you to the task of infiltration, in order that you may stop their experimental efforts from within. We do not wish to destroy the empire, nor their people, however so long as they remain a potential threat, we have no choice but to act."

    "Your orders shall be carried out. If that is all, I shall take my leave."

    Frederic knelt once more and left the room. After leaving, Marcus quietly spoke with the other two guild leaders.

    "Gregory. I do not suspect your son of betrayal, however, we know that the people of the empire have methods to convince surfacers of their right to live on the surface. I will send a vassal to tail him, and should the time come, this vassal will be prepared to test Frederic''s loyalty. Is this agreeable?"

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    Gregory nodded in agreement.

    Frederic arrived in the city of Lardis, ready to begin his investigation. The first place he went to gather information on the state of the empire was a bar.

    On his way to this bar, he passed an alleyway, and looked to his side only to see a blonde woman, being threatened by a couple thugs.

    The leader of the thugs, a thin man with slicked back hair, pressed on her, threatening her to come with him.

    "Its either you come with us now, or you lose your life. Its not a hard decision miss."

    He reached over to grab her hand and just as he was about to do so, his hand was grabbed by another.

    Frederic glared at the man, and the two other thugs ran away after seeing his glare and feeling his dangerous aura. The slick haired man brushed Frederic''s hand off him and spit in his face.

    "What do you think you''re doing bud, ruining my fun like that? You willing to offer up yourself for this woman? EH?!"

    A black mist appeared where Frederic previously stood and the man fell to the ground, Frederic''s hand where the mans neck used to be in a chopping motion.

    "I never want to see any of you guys again. Go."

    The woman fell to her knees out of fear and began crying.

    "Thank you. I can''t thank you enough. Please take this, its all I have." She offered up a brown coin purse as payment, and Frederic pushed it back.

    "I have no need for that. But come with me, I will take you somewhere safe."

    Frederic arrived at his new home, and the woman with him looked around.

    "Are you sure you''re willing to take me in, Sir? Do you not have a wife or family?" She questioned.

    "I have none. I''ve recently arrived in this city today. I cannot tell you where from, however as long as you keep quiet about who I am you are free to live here."

    Frederic then went off to perform his duties as a spy, and returned later after gathering sufficient information about what the public believed the hierarchy to be.

    He reported this information back to his father through telepathic messaging, and continued to work his way up as a soldier for the next few years.

 5 Chapter 5- The traitors punishmen

    Frederic entered his home and kissed his wife, Annabelle. She was holding her newly born son in one arm, and their 3 year old daughter in the other.

    Tears flowed down her face and he hugged both of them, and expressed his gratitude.

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    "I cannot be thankful enough for you, Annabelle. You accepted me into this society, despite my shady background as a surfacer, and now we have 2 lovely children, Marie, and our newly born son."

    Annabelle smiled at Frederic and stated "We will call him Dubiliaris, Dubs for short."

    Frederic nodded, but his face turned gray when he realized how much he had to lose at this point.

    "I wish to quit my duties as a surfacer, and to continue to live a peaceful life here in the empire. The surface guild will not sit down and take this loss quietly, and I also risk being discovered by the empire. My wife, should anything ever happen I don''t know where you will be safe. There is nowhere safe in the outside world, and yet if the empire discovers my affiliation with the surface there will be nowhere safe within here, so I plan to cut all ties."

    She nodded, and her face also turned gray, scared for the children.

    "I only want us to live a peaceful life here with our children, and I will give anything to do that".

    They blew out the flame of the oil lamp and went to sleep in the darkness.

    Frederic awoke to a sinister presence making itself wildly obvious, as if someone had set off an alarm in a magical sense.

    He jumped out of bed, and grabbed his dagger, and burst open the wooden door leading to the outside.

    He gazed behind him, and on the roof, a man clad in black thin cloth with a satchel and a ski mask sat on the door mantle, waiting for him.

    "So you''ve finally decided, Frederic. I''ve been on this job for six long years, waiting to see if you would make a move against the guild, and here we are. " Frederic smirked, and wielded his dagger.

    "And what of it? I only wish to live a peaceful life. I have no desire for power, like that of my father. I only wish to protect myself and my family. Is that so wrong?"

    The assassin jumped down and paced around him, clicking his tongue. "Tch Tch Tch... your work has been lacking in the past few months, and we were beginning to get suspicious of whether you really intend to help us take down the empires experiments. Now that we know what has been stopping you, I''ll give you a choice. Either you surrender to us and continue your work as before, and we will spare your life, or we will attack you on the spot."

    A group of 20 assassins all jumped out of the shadows surrounding Frederic, and he realized that he was gravely outnumbered. Even as the assassin with the highest skills in the clan, he wouldn''t be able to take on 20 of them unscathed. He would almost certainly perish.

    "What of my wife and children? If I surrender will you spare them?"

    The lead assassin let out a loud laugh.

    "Ahahaha! What makes you think we would allow the very people who caused your betrayal of the surface dwellers to continue living? Of course they will die either way."

    Frederic''s face blackened with anger.

    "I see, so that''s how it is. Well, I suppose I have no choice now."

    He took out his dagger and disappeared in a mist, and two assassins fell from where they were standing, with holes gauged into their necks. Blood spurted out and their bodies made a plopping sound as they hit the ground, and the lead assassin made his move.

    All 18 remaining assassins disappeared from sight as a black mist filled the air, and one after another assassins kept dropping to the ground.

    The lead assassin swirled around behind Frederic while he was taking two others on, and took a stab at his neck. Frederic reacted in time, but only was able to redirect the blow right into his arm, where the dagger caught into his flesh and tore up his right shoulder.

    Frederic flipped the dagger over to his left hand, and jumped up into the air to attack the lead on his way back down. The lead assassin was able to take a stab at Frederic''s left leg before Frederic stuck his dagger into the assassins back, however this rendered Frederic crippled, with only one leg usable and a dagger in the other.

    The remaining assassins converged towards him in a single swift attack from all directions, and Frederic made one last attack in order to finish them off.

    "Rotational Saw-blade!" He called out as he began to spin on one leg like a ballerina, slicing open the throats of all who came near him.

    The remaining assassins dropped to the ground, however Frederic was left out of energy, and barely able to move.

    "I.. need to move... I cant.. stay here.." he pressed forward, crawling towards his home, hoping that his wife and children were safe in bed.

    Frederic then passed out from blood loss in his shoulder.

    Moments later, a scream was heard in the streets of Frederic''s home, as a passing woman saw the bloody scene. over 20 assassins lay dead on the ground, and Frederic, injured lay next to them.

    "Guards! Guards! There''s been a fight!" She screamed, as a military platoon of knights rushed to the scene. The captain looked at the scene and fell back, astounded that such a massacre had taken place.

    "Who on earth could have done this.." He looked at the uniforms and noticed that all of them were similar aside from one man, Frederic, and the captain walked over to him and felt his throat.

    "This man is still breathing! Bring him to the military hospital and when he wakes up have him questioned thoroughly. You there, do you know who this man is?" The guard questioned the passing woman, who was panicked.

    "Y-yes... that is Frederic, the man who lives in this home with his wife and children.. I.. I don''t know what could have happened here.."

    The guard was confused. There was no way an ordinary man could be involved in a fight of this scale, something fishy had to be going on.

    "Men! Take the wife and children into custody as well, and have the wife thoroughly questioned. We have no time to lose, there might be even more events on the horizon!"

    The men responded "Yes Sir!" and barged into the house to get the suspects.

    Three guards busted into the bedroom and two of them grabbed the children to take away. The mother, waking up from the racket began to scream.

    "What are you doing with my children!? Where is my husband!? What is going on!?"

    The guards, holding the crying children, responded, "You are under arrest for suspicious activity regarding the slaughter of around 20 men of unknown affiliation."

    The woman grabbed the guards and tried to take back her children, but the one who wasn''t holding either of them took the hilt of his sword and knocked her unconscious, and proceeded to drag her out.

    The four of them were taken to the empire jail, deep within the castle, and the wife was brought in for questioning, while the children were put into care of the castle nurses.

    "What do you know about your husbands affiliations with these black clothed assassins?", the torture guard demanded Annabelle to answer his question.

    "I have no idea what you''re talking of! My husband and I only wished to live a peaceful life with our children!"

    The torture guard smirked, almost giddy that the wife refused to tell him. His crooked face let out a toothless smile, and he reached for a pair of pliers. "We will see how much longer you can continue to lie to me, Mrs. Ruffield".

    Both hands full of fingernails had been torn off, as Annabelle was completely loyal to her husband.

    He had always been there for her, and had taken her out of the life in the slums. He had given her a position in society, and brought happiness to her, and there was no way she could rat him out for being a surfacer. Especially after he decided to cut ties with them, there was no reason why their family should have to go through such a cruel endeavor.

    "Where are my children!?"

    She had cried over and over, and the torturer continued to question her until she had no nails left on her fingers.

    Frederic woke in a concrete cell, that smelled of sweat and dampness.

    Rusted iron bars were in front of him, and he lay on a concrete slab for a bed.

    "Where.. where am I?" He looked over to his side and saw his leg and shoulder had been patched up, however on his hands, handcuffs binded him. He tried to use his stealth magic to conceal himself, but it was blocked by a barrier that had been placed on the cell.

    "Well, Freddy, looks like you''ve been hiding something from us..."

    The captain of the squad Frederic had been placed in when he joined the empire as a covert operative was in front of him.

    "Well, don''t worry too much Freddy. We''ll give you a chance to explain yourself at the court hearing tomorrow. Sleep tight."

    The captain walked off, whistling

 6 Chapter 6- Corruption of the Innocen

    Frederic stared blankly at the iron bars of his cell as he heard the footsteps of the captain of his platoon slowly grow quieter and quieter.

    His mind was hazy, and he attempted to remember what had happened last night. Memories came flooding back to him as he recalled his renouncing of the surfacers guild, and his conversation with his wife.

    He thought back to his fight with the assassins, and couldn''t remember anything past the fight. He clearly had not been taken captive by the surfacers, as he was within the empires prison, and the one who came to see him was the captain of the empires 3rd platoon, of which he was a distinguished soldier.

    He deduced that either the empire had discovered his identity as a surfacer, or that they had witnessed his abilities and deemed him to be a threat to the empire, particularly because he had hidden the abilities to prevent suspicion.

    Frederic laid down on the hard concrete slab, and twisted and turned as he wondered what would become of his family.

    As worries filled his mind, he made the resolve to turn himself in, and to beg for the lives of his family.

    He would plea that they had no relation with him or the surfacers, and beg that they be freed and allowed to live peacefully.

    Frederic turned once more, and as he decided this, peace filled his mind, knowing that there was at least hope for his family.

    After being threatened by the surfacer assassins to sacrifice his family, and fighting to the death to protect them, this was a fitting end for someone like him who had come to disturb the peace within the empire. Comforted, he fell asleep.

    Morning came quickly, and the captain of the guard banged on the iron bars to wake Frederic. Startled, he awoke to the sound of the captains voice.

    "Get up Frederic. Its time for the trial. I don''t know what you have to say for yourself, but whatever you''re guilty of, you had better turn yourself in for."

    Frederic lightly smiled, accepting his fate, and was lead out by the captain and two other soldiers.

    He was lead down a long corridor which lead to some large wooden doors, carved with intricate designs. Passing through the doors, a large courtroom was laid out before his eyes, and the judge sat at the center podium, ready to begin the hearing.

    To the left side was a group of nobles, all outfitted in suits and ties, and to his right stood his wife, who was also bound by handcuffs, and the children were nowhere to be seen.

    Frederic could not see that his wife''s hands had been mutilated, as they were behind her back, but he gave her a reassuring look, as if to say "This is my problem, and I will take care of it."

    The guards pressed him down onto a kneeler, and attached his legs to it with cuffs so that he would stay kneeling. The judge brought down the hammer with a "knock", and began the hearing

    "We shall now begin the trial of Frederic Ruffield, who stands accused of unknown affiliations with an assassin group, and of withholding magical power from the empires knowledge, despite being a Lieutenant in the empires 3rd infantry platoon. Everyone, please rise".

    The nobles and the various groups who were in the stands all stood, and the judge continued.

    "We will begin with a witness testimony. Miss Patricia Larkins, you may come forward and state what you witnessed."

    The woman who had passed by the previous day, and called for the guards stepped forward. She was a poor woman, dressed in a ragged dress, with long black hair.

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    She was clearly nervous, and not used to being in a formal situation, as she was merely one who happened to pass by after the incident. She walked up, trembling, but mustered up her courage and began to speak.

    "I.. was walking down 4th street yesterday night, at around 4 am. I came upon a group of about 20 men, all dressed head to toe in black outfits. All of the men had been killed- some throats were slit, others had stab wounds, and all of them laid dead. In the middle of them, wounded and unconscious laid the man accused."

    The judge waived his hand, signaling her that she was free to leave.

    She walked out of the courtroom, and one of the nobles handed her a sack of money on the way out as payment for her testimony.

    "Frederic Ruffield. What say you to this? For what reason were you involved in the matter? What affiliation did the group have?"

    Frederic looked upwards and braced himself to speak.

    "Your honor, I have full intention to confess in full all that I know, so that whatever punishment I receive may only be placed on myself, and so that my wife and children may be allowed to go free."

    At this statement, his wife began to cry, kneeling down in horror under the knowledge that her husband would be deemed a traitor to the empire, and most likely would be executed.

    "I have come from the surfacers guild as a spy, in order to infiltrate the empire to cease the magical experiments that have been ongoing within our walls. After meeting my wife, and having two children, I decided to live a peaceful life and cut my ties with the surfacers, so that my wife and children would not have to live out of fear. As a result of this, a number of assassins were sent after me yesterday, and I dispatched of them. That is the situation. If you brand me a traitor to the empire and execute me, I have no qualms, however I beg of you, please allow my wife and children to live. They have no knowledge of my sins, and are innocent."

    The judge patiently listened and appeared to be in a state of thought. After a few minutes of thinking, accompanied by plenty of murmuring among the empires nobles, he brought down his hammer once more to instill order.

    "My decision is this: The surfacer, Frederic Ruffield, shall be executed tomorrow by guillotine due to his crime of infiltration and betrayal to the empire. The decision of what will occur to your family will be postponed for later discretion. Jury, do I have any objections?"

    The jury remained quiet, and all silently agreed to the decision. Frederic, on the other hand, began to scream in agony.

    "I beg you your honor, please do not allow my family to incur any harm!! They are innocent of my sins!"

    The guard near him slapped Frederic to shut him up, but Frederic continued to struggle and beg.

    "Take him out" the judge stated, and the guards grabbed him to take him away, struggling to undo his chains from the kneeler.

    His wife also continued to scream and cry out for him, as he struggled and attempted to get the guards off him. Finally, they managed to take him out, and the doors to the court shut.

    "Order in the court" The judge stated, as he banged his hammer a few more times.

    The court, now empty of Frederic, remained its session.

    "Now that we are rid of the traitor, we will decide on the fate of his family. My verdict is that the wife and children will be placed under the experimentation committee as test subjects to further our magical discoveries. This shall be a fitting punishment to the one who attempted to stop such research. For the sake of taking back the surface, we the empire shall continue this path."

    Once more the jury silently agreed, and Annabelle passed out from the shock she received from the verdict. Knowing that not only herself, but her children would be used as human test subjects for the rest of her lives, she was unable to comprehend the situation, and couldn''t stay aware any further.

 7 Chapter 7- Test Subjec

    At 5 years old, Dubs gained consciousness for the first time in his life.

    He opened his eyes, to see a short hunched over man, wearing glasses and a white lab coat, rubbing his hands together.

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    He had brown hair that reached all the way around the sides of his head to form sideburns and a beard.

    Dubs emerged from an egg shaped incubator, with all sorts of knobs and settings. This was only one of hundreds in a line of these machines, that spanned down the room. The majority of them were closed, however the open ones lay empty, while the closed ones seemed to glow a variety of colors.

    "It has been over 50 years since I began working in the experimental sector of Lardis, and not once have I met such a capable test subject..."

    The man grinned with pleasure, and approached Dubs.

    "We have undergone thousands of trials. We tried running radiation through adults, your mother included- however this always failed. Why was it that the adults could never handle magical radiation? I theorized that it was due to the lack of exposure that they had been under throughout their lives, which caused their immune systems to reject any magical radiation that came into their bodies. That was what lead to the development of the incubation unit you see lining this room! I predicted that if we were to begin radiation as early as possible, that this would increase the likelihood of survival! And Voila! We have our first success!"

    The man took a drink of water and continued his victory speech

    "Your mothers last wish before she died was that we give you enough humanity to call you by your name. Very well. Test subject 0324, you shall from here on out be known as Dubs. However, do not believe for even a moment that giving you the humanity to call you by your name exempts you from your duties that were assigned to you at birth. Yes, that is right. Every man has to work to eat, and your job is nothing else but to remain here as a test subject, continuing to advance our understanding of magic."

    Dubs may have gained consciousness, but he was hazed. One might think that, this being the first time he had heard human language, that he would have been completely unaware of what the doctor was saying- however that was not the case.

    Dubs had been under incubation for all different types of magical radiation over the past 5 years, ever since his father was executed. Not only his mother, but his sister as well died from the magical experiments. His sister was also put into an incubator, however due to the same reasons as adults, she was unable to survive the extreme levels they put her under, and she died as a result. For Dubs, though, the magical radiation had accumulated across his body, increasing his senses as a human.

    Inside the incubator, Dubs had begun to understand language unconsciously, and gained an acute sense of taste and smell, even while he was inside the incubator.

    The radiation had initially caused much stress to his muscles as well, however as a result of the continuous tearing and reparation of his body, he had become physically stronger than a normal human as well.

    The doctor paced back and forth considering his options.

    "Hmm this is the first success we''ve had on the incubated units. What experiments should I run on him first? I suppose a physical test would be a good place to start." The doctor looked at Dubs. "Can you understand me?"

    Dubs opened his mouth and a gargled "Yes" came out of his mouth, along with a large amount of fluid.

    Dubs began to spit and throw up all over the floor until his mouth had been emptied, and repeated his answer. "Yes." he said clearly this time

    He stood up and began to stretch his arms out. "Where are we going, mister?"

    "Hoh! To think you''d understand me so well, and to be so well mannered at that! And that you''d even be able to stand on your own and move about after 5 years of being cooped up in a highly radiated incubator! You are truly a marvelous subject. Well, let us begin with the physical strength analysis. Follow me."

    Dubs followed the man, and skipped along carelessly as he was lead down a corridor with a number of offices and lab areas. Coming to the end of the hall, the man unlocked the lab and entered with Dubs.

    "Now, go ahead and lay down on the table there, I will begin the experiments shortly."

    The "table" was actually equivalent to a medieval torture device, except that it didn''t stretch out the body. It was a wooden slate with iron shackles where the hands and feet would be bound, and neither the doctor nor Dubs seemed phased by this.

    Dubs got onto the table and asked, "Should I lock up my hands in these slots? And my feet down there?"

    The doctor was a little shocked, but smiled wildly, partially in disbelief that the child was not only indifferent to the experiments, but rather seemed to be cooperating with them.

    "Mm yes allow me to do so". The doctor chained Dubs down and pulled out a scalpel. "This might hurt a bit, but it is all for the sake of furthering our progress, so hold out for us, wont you?"

    The doctor stuck the scalpel onto Dubs finger, and made a slicing motion along it. To his surprise, rather than cutting open the flesh of the boy, the scalpel broke in two as he scraped Dubs flesh, as if it were made of diamond.

    "What on earth..." The doctor exclaimed. He took out a scalpel that was made of steel, a much stronger material, and with much effort and hacking he was able to create a small slit on Dubs'' finger.

    A small amount of blood edged out, and the doctor was amazed at the physical resistance of the boy.

    "Hmm, I must find out if this physical resistance is limited to his fingers only, or if he had any weak points."

    Days of cutting and slicing later, the doctor had examined every area of Dubs back and forth, and discovered that he was physically strong in every area.

    "With the steel scalpel, after much effort I could only scrape him, and this was true for every area of the boys body. How did magical radiation cause him to become so physically strong? I am not sure, but the next question I must answer is this: I put him under the influence of every type of magical radiation, to an approximately even level. How resistant is he to magical skills?"

    There were 6 classes of magic, and from each class there were a number of ways to use these magical skills. There were also ways to combine abilities from multiple classes to create unique spells and skills, so the possibilities were endless.

    Among these classes were Dark, Light, Fire, Air, Water, and Earth.

    Light magic included both the use of physical light and light energy, as well as the elements of life and biological uses.

    Dark magic included stealth skills, the manipulation of dark energy, and the manipulation of nonliving things such as necromancy and other motion related skills.

    The other 4 branches were used to control their respective element, and any abilities that formed from such an element.

    The doctor spent the next 9 years toiling and putting Dubs through all forms of magical spells. He discovered that Dubs had gained a complete and utter resistance to every element of magic, and even when the highest levels of knights came in to test their strongest abilities on him, they were rendered completely useless

    . The existence of Dubs was kept top secret even among the government, and only the high ranking nobles knew of what was taking place, along with the few people who had been present at the court hearing of Dubs father, Frederic, 14 years before. As such, the empires citizens had no idea about the experiments.

    To the average empire citizen, magic was something that only the powerful knights were allowed to have, and obtaining it was extremely dangerous.

    Dubs, who had started out eager to find out what experiments he would be put under, had become much more intelligent over the years. He was no longer the curious little boy he used to be, but rather became someone who logically analyzed everything.

    "It hasn''t been too terrible living in these quarters for the past years, due to my resistances to pain and damage, but I think its finally time I should get out of this place. At the next chance I get I''ll deceive the doctor and make my escape. I need to figure out where my place is in this world. Where did I come from? Why was I born into this lab? What are things like outside the lab? From what I know, my mother and sister died due to going under the same experiments as I did, however I need more information. The next opportunity I get i''m going to take."

    The doctor left for the day, and Dubs sensed an aura he had not recognized before.

    "An unrecognized aura, eh? I wonder if someone new has come to test out their skills on me. There is one- no, two people."

    The metal door to Dubs containment room unlocked and slowly slid open.

 8 Chapter 8- Escape

    Two figures emerged from the metallic door. Both males, one seemed to be in his late 30''s- though he was good looking enough to be considered in his twenties.

    His short white hair brought out his thin piercing eyes, and he glanced over at Dubs silently

    The thin man towered almost 2 feet above Dubs, who was around 5 feet tall, which was considered average in this world for a full grown male.

    His leather trench coat fluttered as he approached Dubs, and his black boots squeaked as he stepped across the tile floor.

    Another male came through the door- this one about the same height as Dubs, with curled red hair. He appeared to be only a few years older.

    The boy''s glasses gleamed as he walked past the beams of light that protruded from the window slits in Dubs'' chamber.

    Wearing a black coat, similar to the other mans, he hauled along a contraption on his back that seemed to be a crossbow at first glance, loaded with a mini-harpoon.

    The white haired man had a leather sword holster attached to his belt, and the sword handle was golden with a red jewel imbued in it.

    They both approached Dubs, who was chained to the wall, and the older man began to speak with a smooth, yet sinister voice.

    "Were willing to help you out of here, if you are willing to join us. I cant tell you the details now, but I can assure you that we will make coming with us worth your while."

    Dubs didn''t know the meaning of the word fear, as he had been experimented on cruelly for his entire life, to the point where his very existence was composed of suffering. However, he had already given in to his curiosity about himself and about the world, and decided to escape at the next possible chance.

    This was his chance

    Without hesitation, Dubs agreed.

    "Sure, I''ll go with you guys."

    The man gave a slight nod, as if to say "seems like you understand how the world works", and took an iron key chain out of his pocket, and after fumbling with the keys, undid the shackles

    Dubs stretched out his hands, and could feel the blood flowing through his veins in places that had been under the pressure of shackles for years.

    "follow me", the white haired man said, as he gestured with his hand.

    When they exited the room, the white haired man asked Dubs "Do you know any of the other test subjects here? We would be willing to take them with us."

    Dubs had been locked in his room without being allowed out for the entirety of the experimental period, and did not even know if there were even any other test subjects alive. All he knew was that the survival rate of the test subjects was next to zero, and that if there were any survivors they would be precious assets to the empire.

    "Hmm I''m not quite sure but can we take a look around to see?" Dubs responded

    The man with the white hair hesitated, but agreed. "Clark, wait here with this one. I''m going to take a look at the surrounding area. If I don''t come back in a few minutes, get out of here."

    Clark nodded and pulled out a metallic sphere that had a number of slits and mechanical parts. He pressed a button on the sphere, and it expanded to envelop the area surrounding him and Dubs.

    Clark''s nasal voice resounded in the sphere, as he explained to Dubs what had just happened.

    "I''m a magical engineer. I use magical properties and mechanical structures to create gadgets and weapons. This is a stealth field, and anyone who passes by this area will see it as a gap of air. We are currently inside another dimension, so even if they walk into us they will pass right through."

    The white haired man also used a stealth spell, and dissipated in a flash of black mist. Dubs and Clark waited patiently for his reappearance, which happened a few moments later.

    Clark undid the stealth sphere as the white haired man appeared in front of them. "Whats the situation, Ivan?"

    Ivan replied, "There is one room with an unguarded subject. She is unconscious but it shouldn''t be a problem to retrieve her. We grab her and head back to HQ"

    Dubs and Clark followed Ivan down the hallway for a few corridors and came upon another experimental chamber, similar to the one Dubs was in. They entered quietly, and saw a girl, a few years older than Dubs, chained on the wall.

    Dubs assumed that she had gone through experimentation as well, and for the first time in his life felt a pang of emotion in his heart. He didn''t realize what it was, but decided to ignore it for now.

    The girl had long black hair that was uneven as if it had been snipped off randomly with scissors, and torn here and there. She wore a ragged dress, of the same material as the rags Dubs wore due to the materials high resistive properties to magic.

    Her body was covered with bruises and blisters, and in the dark the larger ones glowed with radiation. This girl was most likely recently put under experimentation, unlike Dubs who had been under it his entire life.

    He felt an odd urge to help her, but didn''t know why he felt such. Ivan grabbed his ring of keys and unbound her shackles, and lopped the girl onto his shoulder.

    "Were heading back, prepare for teleportation." Ivan stated as he held his hands in front of him and particles of energy began collecting between them

    A concentrated mass of particles formed a sphere, which then slowly expanded to envelop the four. With a flash, the particles disappeared, and their surroundings changed from a dark experimental room to a smaller room with a golden pad in the center.

    The four of them were standing on the pad and Ivan headed towards the door.

    Dubs followed and was lead into a large dining room, which bustled with activity. People of all ages were present, and all of them wore trench coats, some of them leather, and most black. A single figure sat at the head of a large table, wearing a white robe.

    The figure wore a white hood, and there was a dark aura in the area where the face should have been, to conceal their identity. Even so, the figure was speaking casually to the people around them, as if good friends.

    Food was plentiful around the area. Wooden tables lined with meats and vegetables surrounded the eating area, and people took from them as they pleased, as you would in a buffet.

    The girl awoke from Ivan''s shoulder, and her eyes widened at the scene. She looked around frantically, and began to scream and pound on Ivan''s back

    "Where am I!? What is this place!?"

    Ivan took the girl off his back as she squirmed to get loose. He held her shoulders and looked her in the eyes.

    The dining hall had become quiet, and the eyes of all the inhabitants focused on the squabbling pair.

    "I freed you from your life as a test subject. You''re in the resistance headquarters."

    "Huh?? What is that supposed to mean. I don''t know what you''re talking about, but the last thing I remember was falling asleep at home. Now I wake up to see some weirdo carrying me, and he starts spouting nonsense?!"

    Ivan put his hand on his face, very annoyed. It seemed that the girl had been unconscious the entire duration of the experiments, and she didn''t have any memories of them.

    The figure in white stood up at this point, and walked towards the girl. "Who do you think you are, dressed all important like that? I''ll have you know that I am a noble of the house of Orphus. The empire will have the entirety of their forces mobilized in order to get me back home."

    "My child, it seems you''ve been mislead by the empire. Allow me to show you the events leading to your being here." The voice of a loving mother came from the person in the white robe, who then waved her hand and placed it on the forehead of the girl.

    The girls eyes widened as she became aware of the experiments that were done on her, and the transaction between her father- a noble- and the empires experimental sector. She had been sold off as a test subject in her sleep.

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    "This.. this cant be.. my father.. I refuse to believe this! You are trying to play tricks on my mind, you witch! Bring me back to my family this instant! I will have you all executed for slander and treason!"

    "I do not know what you have been shown, but you have been made aware of the truth behind your circumstances. Whether you believe that is up to you, and what you do with that information is also for you to decide." The white robed woman gently stated.

    After the woman had returned to her seat, the dining hall resumed as if nothing had happened. The girl stood speechless and put her hands on her head unsure of what to do. All of a sudden, as if moving on its own, Dubs put his hand on her shoulder and muttered the words

    "Its gonna be alright."

    Dubs thought to himself, "I wonder what impulse is causing me to do these things. I''ll have to further investigate my reactions to certain situations."

    The girl looked up at him and whispered "thank you.." and Ivan motioned for them to have something to eat.

    "Both of you, we have much to discuss. I am now responsible for your care and training. Its time to begin your new life as a Mercenary."

 9 Chapter 9- The Resistance

    The four sat at a table and Ivan folded his hands and began to speak to Dubs and the girl.

    "Where do I even start? There are probably many things you all would like to know. I suppose ill start with who we are."

    Dubs decided that the best thing to do right now was to listen and gain information. Once he understood more about this world, he would be able to move from there.

    Ivan addressed Dubs and told him "You probably have no idea about the empire, or the ruling order. To make it short- you''ve been locked up as a test subject for your entire life. Your father- Frederic Ruffield- was executed under accusations of being a traitor to the empire, and you were taken to the experimental labs to prevent information leaks, and to produce results for the magical knights."

    Dubs understood this much. He nodded, and Ivan continued

    "We are an underground resistance, made up of those who oppose the empire and their ruthless desire for magical power. Our goal is to one day undermine the nobility that rules the empire, and instill a system which will ensure that magical research does not allow for human experimentation."

    Dubs began to think about this. "I don''t think that these goals would benefit me, but they also wouldn''t hinder me. The ones who captured me would most likely go to extreme lengths to dispose of me, since I know so much, and instilling a new system where the leaders aren''t out for my head would be ideal. However, in the time that this new system comes about I should try to become the head of it, if possible. Before I do that, I must increase my power to beyond that of the leader of this resistance."

    Dubs decided that the best thing for him to do right now was to gauge how powerful he was, and figure out how to become as strong as he could

    Ivan continued his explanation. "The majority of people who are members of the resistance are former test subjects. Most subjects don''t survive past a few days of experimentation, however those who did ended up becoming extremely adept with magic. Anyone who wears a leather jacket is a Capo of the resistance, and survived the procedures for over a month."

    "The resistance uses much more stable methods of experimentation, and so we were able to save most of the people we have found, through our own research. Those who wear black jackets survived the experiments, but only because they were rescued very shortly after they were taken into the labs."

    "Ah, so that''s how the ranking system works here? So by surviving multiple experiments, it means that one has a greater aptitude with magic, and therefore is able to become stronger. If this is the case, then I should be in a good position." Dubs thought to himself

    "The leader of the resistance is Mrs. Isabelle. She is the one in the white robe, and she is extremely adept in light magic, which includes restoration and stabilization. She is the person who allowed so many of us to survive after being put under such extreme conditions. She will be treating both of you shortly to determine your conditions and stabilize them."

    Dubs began to snack on a cob of corn. The flavored juices sizzled as he took a bite, and his eyes turned wide as he ate it. This was his first time eating- in his life. He knew that people consumed food, but in the labs they had filled his body with magical energy, which meant that he lacked the need for nutritional sustenance.

    "Once you two have been stabilized, Isabelle will determine your current strength as magicians, and inform me, your mentor, as to what paths I should take you down with your training."

    The girl had been blankly staring at Ivan the entire time, with a look of disbelief, yet she knew in her heart that what he was saying was true. She accepted that her father had sold her as a test subject for personal status and profit, and mustered the resolve to become stronger.

    "I will join the resistance! And I will assist you in the establishment of a new order!" She exclaimed

    "I''m glad you''ve finally come around to your senses." Ivan grinned. "Now, as far as you are concerned, I saved you on a whim without any prior information. Our goal in the previous mission was to get Dubs out of there, but we don''t know your identity, aside from the fact that you are a former noble."

    The girl sat up and proudly stated. "I am Lilith Orphus, former noble. I wish to join the resistance!"

    Dubs was satisfied that the girl had overcome her fear and confusion so quickly. He felt that she would be able to move forward with great speed if she kept this resolve up.

    "As for you Dubs, there is something I must tell you about your father. I was present at his trial, 14 years ago, as an undercover agent for the newly formed resistance. We had recently discovered the ongoing experiments of the empire, and when your father was sent to execution his possessions were kept in an evidence locker in the platoon I served in. Before I left my undercover mission a few years later, I managed to obtain this, in hopes that I could return it to you someday."

    Ivan reached underneath his trench coat and pulled out a shining black dagger, intricately carved with a purple aura surrounding it. He laid it on the table in front of Dubs, and had a very serious look when he said to him

    "This is all that is left of your family lineage. Treasure it, and learn to use it someday."

    Dubs took the dagger and tied it to his side using the rope that he used for a belt. He felt a dark aura as he picked it up, as if the dagger was trying to consume him, however he felt a pulsing sensation a moment later as if the force had been driven back by something.

    "Do any of you have any remaining questions about who we are, or our intentions for you?" Ivan asked

    "Ah, one thing." Dubs inquired. "What were you saying earlier about starting our lives as mercenaries? What did you mean by that?"

    "Ah! How could I have forgotten." Ivan exclaimed. "In order to preserve our organization, the resistance has passed its members off as mercenaries- people who take on jobs to clean up the surroundings of the entrances to the surface. We are, however, much more than that. We intend to one day become powerful enough to survive on the surface, however the methods we use to achieve this will be much more humane than those of the empire."

    A flash of memories sparked in Dubs mind, as if something had triggered with those words. He saw his fathers memories in his mind, including his upbringing on the surface, and his betrayal of the surface guild. He then saw his execution, and the judges decision.

    The faces of the nobles were clearly presented, and Dubs was aware of each and every one of their thoughts and intentions. He heard them whispering to themselves.

    "Its about time we take out the garbage within the empire. If the surfacers were allowed to take root who knows what would happen to our research and statuses!"

    Dubs felt a hint of anger, but it was nothing major. He had been mostly desensitized, so he didn''t think too much about it. He did however, decide that getting rid of the nobles was certainly a top priority.

    He stared at the dagger on his side. "Was it this that showed me all that?"

    Dubs was confused, but quickly hid his confusion as if nothing had happened.

    "I had better keep my knowledge of this secret from the resistance. It could prove troublesome if I let it leak that I now know more about the situation on the surface than they do." Dubs thought

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    "If you have both finished eating, then we should head out. We shouldn''t keep Mrs. Isabelle waiting.", Ivan suggested.

    Lilith and Dubs agreed, and Clark was focused on the feast he had in front of his. He was devouring a piece of meat like a wild man, and waved to them and mumbled, his mouth half full, "Go on without me. Ill catch up with you later."

    The three stood up and headed outside the dining hall, into yet another corridor, this one filled with lamps and paintings, and a velvet carpet laid out before them. Coming to the end of the hall they entered a room with a large marble door, with a lion crafted on each side. Opening the door, Ivan whispered.

    "It''s time to check your status. I''ll be waiting for your results."

    The two headed inside.

 10 Chapter 10- Incompetent Genius

    Dubs and Lilith entered the room and shuffled quietly along to where Mrs. Isabelle was standing. Lilith looked away, her face slightly red due to the outburst she had caused earlier

    "Do not be ashamed, child. Whatever you may have been through to come to this point, it must be hard to believe. Your reaction was not out of the ordinary. The majority of people who were unaware of the truth have reacted similarly.", Isabelle tried to comfort Lilith.

    "Raise your head, you are now a proud member of the resistance."

    Lilith raised her head, gave a smile and stated "Yes!"

    There was a glass prism, with a metal handle on it in the center of the room. Isabelle opened the door and motioned for Lilith to step inside, and she did.

    Isabelle began to wave her hands and an array of numbers and quantities appeared in front of her. Bolts of light flashed from within the prism, and scanned Lilith up and down. After a minute or two of number crunching, the numbers stopped changing and became green.

    "Hm I see... It appears that we will have to expel quite a bit of remaining radiation from your body." Isabelle stated. "I''ll begin immediately, then we will have a look at your magical affinities after the process is complete."

    Isabelle once again waved her hand and began to focus immensely on the array in front of her. Streaks of various colors began to emerge from the bruises that covered Lilith, and they gathered at the top of the chamber like smoke, however their colors remained separated and distinct.

    5 minutes passed. 10, 20. After 45 minutes, the amount of smoke that had gathered at the top was extremely compact, and Isabelle waved her hand to cease the process. "I''ve expelled any harmful magical energy from your body, but I managed to leave in an amount that would not be harmful to you. This energy that is not harmful to you is your mana limit, and each person has a different mana limit for each class of magic."

    Dubs noted this information and continued waiting patiently for his turn.

    Isabelle once more began to channel her energy and used the spell "Evaluate Status"

    A final display of statistics appeared, and she looked over them intently. "Interesting.. It seems you have a high affinity with both light and earth magic after the experiments you underwent. Your physical strength is about average, and could improve with training, but focus mostly on improving in those two areas.", Isabella analyzed

    Lilith stepped out of the chamber and bowed towards Isabella. "I will do my best! Thank you ma''am!"

    Lilith then exited the room and the door shut behind her quietly

    Dubs stepped up next to get himself evaluated. He stepped into the chamber and shut the door, and Isabella began the expelling process. After the numbers had appeared, her eyes opened wide with shock as she looked at them.

    "What on earth? This cannot be right. Allow me to redo my analysis. Pardon my mishap, Dubs.", Isabella apologized.

    She once again ran the analysis, only to get the same results. "There.. there is no mistake. Dubs, haven''t you been under experimentation your entire life?" Isabella asked.

    "Yes, I have. What is the matter?" Dubs responded.

    "There is not a single piece of harmful radiation within you. According to this data, it seems that your body has developed complete resistance to all 6 of the elements. This is extremely odd, however what is more strange is the fact that despite this full resistance, you have absolutely zero ability to use each element! Your resistances are at 100%, however your affinity with each element is zero!"

    She thought to herself and asked Dubs. "Have you ever tried to use magic before?"

    Dubs had not, for he was merely a test subject during his days in the lab. He had never considered trying to use magic, much less to try to master it.

    "Even without ever attempting, for a person to have zero affinity with magic, there must be some sort of interference with my numbers."

    "Um, could it be this?" Dubs asked, and pointed to the dagger on his waist.

    "Ah, of course! Why had I not said so before? Please place any magical items outside the scanning area so that I may re scan.

    Dubs took the dagger off his belt and placed it outside the door, and stepped back inside. Isabelle scanned once again, and this time was intrigued by the results.

    "Fascinating.. Your resistances remained at 100%, however your affinities with each element have changed. Your current mana for each class is equal to that of a regular non-magic user, however you have a highly resonant affinity with dark magic, and your affinities with all the other types are above average. With some training and time, you could become an expert in every class!"

    Dubs pondered this information. This meant that he would be able to train his skills in wherever he wished to specialize, and he determined that he should find out the various uses of different classes before starting to train in one.

    Isabelle continued. "On top of your high affinities, your resistances to all types of magic are unheard of. You could literally walk into a highly concentrated enemy spell and come out unscathed. According to your physical stats, physical attacks are the only way people can harm you. You shouldn''t rest easy, though. You will still need to go through intense training to use even the most basic of spells, without which you will be nothing more than a training dummy for veteran warriors."

    Dubs nodded. "I too will do my best to improve myself through training."

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    Isabelle gave him a motherly smile, and let him go. "Starting today you will be training under Ivan. His sector is stationed on the outskirts of Lardis, the city in which you came from, which is multiple cities away from the HQ. I most likely won''t be seeing you for a while, so do take care."

    Dubs bowed, grabbed his dagger, and slid it back into the rope. He then left the room quietly.

    Ivan was waiting in the hallway, discussing matters with Lilith.

    "Ah, Dubs, perfect timing. I was just given the data on you. What a surprise that was. We''ll be traveling back to Lardis on foot since we only have a teleportation portal here in the city of Silith, at the HQ." Ivan stated

    "And most importantly, we wont be able to get you trained until we get back. Both of you, make sure to stay by me at all times during the journey. We''ll be taking the surface route since it would look suspicious for a mercenary like me to be dragging along two kids wearing nothing but rags across the country. On top of that, we don''t want your identity to be revealed Dubs, so were gonna have to keep you hidden from the public for a while until things settle down."

    Dubs and Lilith understood, but Lilith had a worried look on her face. She seemed to be somewhat concerned about Dubs, but also curious about him. She didn''t know much about him, or who he was, and had no idea what to say.

    Ivan lead them to the exit of the headquarters, which was a long staircase that seemed to continue on forever. After half an hour of climbing, they reached a wooden trap door that Ivan unlocked and opened.

    They emerged to the surface, and began walking.

 11 Chapter 11- Stagmites

    As Ivan opened the hatch to the surface, the three heard a loud voice call out from down the stairwell.

    "Ivan, you''re heartless! How could you leave me behind?"

    Dubs looked back to see Clark panting and sweating as he stumbled his way up the stairs.

    Ivan rolled his eyes and sarcastically replied,

    "If you don''t wanna be left behind then why don''t you keep track of time and stop spending all your time eating?"

    Lilith let out a giggle, and the mood lightened.

    Clark laughed and looked forward, ready to press on.

    "Were moving out, be on your guard at all times. Newbies, stay behind me if we encounter an enemy. Don''t be eager to fight, your time will come."

    Dubs and Lilith acknowledged Ivan and the four of them stepped outside. The dusty trapdoor closed with a squeal followed by a click as it automatically locked.

    The sun glared in Dubs eyes, and he squinted and hid his eyes with his hand. This was the first time he had seen daylight, and this was not a common sight among even the citizens of the empire. Only mercenaries ever went outside, so the existence of the sun wasn''t common knowledge.

    Lilith spoke out astounded, "What is that?! It must be a fire spell, right? How could there exist a person powerful enough to cast something so huge?"

    Ivan and Clark burst out in laughter, and wiping tears from his eyes, Clark spoke.

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    "That''s no magic. That is the sun, which is a giant ball of fire that exists millions of miles from us. Its a natural object."

    Lilith became even more surprised, hearing that it was something natural. "I suppose the surface is indeed a strange world. And look at the surroundings! I''ve never seen anything so green and luscious before!"

    Looking around, Dubs noticed that they were in the middle of a plain, that spanned as far as the eye could see. Grass spread out like a blanket in all directions, and aside from a few small hills, the area was flat.

    There were no roads to be seen, but Ivan seemed to know what he was doing, so Dubs didn''t fret over it.

    The trapdoor became transparent, and eventually vanished from Dubs'' eyes.

    "Is this some sort of concealment magic?" Dubs asked.

    "Yes, that''s right. Our HQ needs to remain hidden from the empire, and so we''ve taken as many precautions as possible to avoid our exposure, Including disconnecting the base from the city tunnels, and having the only entrance be from the surface." Ivan replied

    Ivan began to walk, glancing to the right and then to the left every few seconds. He was being very cautious, as if enemies could appear at any moment, however after a minute of scanning he picked up the pace and started lightly speed walking.

    Clark took the read guard, and held his crossbow in his right hand, loaded and ready to fire.

    The group''s footsteps seemed to echo across the plains, as they treaded silently. Dubs began to feel anxious, and remained silent so Ivan could concentrate.

    An hour of silent walking passed, and the scenery had remained more or less the same. A marshland appeared in the vast distance, and Ivan held out his hand to signal a halt.

    "In that marshland, a contact of the resistance resides. We will stop by there when we arrive to restock our supplies and rest for the night, however around the transition to the marshland there are typically creatures waiting to prey on travelers like us."

    Ivan began to cast a spell. A map appeared in front of him, and he called out [Scan Area].

    On the map, a radar like beam scanned the area, and a number of red dots appeared, all scattered around their location.

    "Clark, Prepare for battle! Recruits, stay behind me!" Ivan called out.

    Ivan unsheathed his blade and took a fighting pose. Clark took aim at the ground with his harpoon crossbow, and the ground began to rumble from underneath the party.

    Clark fired the harpoon at a spot in the dirt, and before Dubs could comprehend what happened, the ground had opened up, revealing an insectoid creature. It had the form of a centipede, however with only 6 legs on each side. On its face, which was peeking out from the dirt, were a pair of large pincers, similar to a stag beetle.

    Clark''s harpoon pierced the mouth of the creature and a splatter of guts and blood exploded from the creature when Clark pressed a button to retrieve the harpoon. A brown aura covered the harpoon, and Clark caught it in his hand as it flew back to him

    He quickly slid the harpoon back in the crossbow and with a spin turned a full 180 to attack another spot on the ground.

    Meanwhile, Ivan had crouched over, waiting for the enemies to strike. He held his shortsword with his left hand, and rested the blade in between his right index finger and thumb.

    Three of the creatures emerged around Ivan, simultaneously attacking. The ground shook and rumbled, but Ivan kept his balance and bent to his right side, where one was attacking him from.

    With a thrust of his right leg, his body flew towards the creature, while it was caught in the air. In the blink of an eye, the sword had stabbed in and out of the creatures throat, and the tip of the blade had returned to its original position between his fingers.

    The creature let out a squeal before dropping to the ground, and Ivan did a roll to realign himself towards the other two monsters.

    The other two began to squirm towards him, their legs twitching and wriggling. Ivan let go of the tip of his sword and tossed it into his right hand. He grabbed a dagger from under his trench coat with his left, and jumped into the air with his weapons crossed on his chest.

    Performing a flip, he gracefully slid the weapons across the necks of the creatures on his sides before he landed on one knee. Guts spurted from the creatures and they began to tremble and twitch until they drew their last breaths.

    "These guys are amazing," Dubs thought. "If I were to go up against either of them, I wouldn''t stand a chance. Isabelle said that I have a complete resistance to magic. Even assuming that is true, their physical abilities would be more than enough to finish me off. I had better improve my physical abilities quickly, as well as learn how to use magic."

    Clark finished off the second creature that had emerged, and wiped the guts from his harpoon with a cloth.

    "Good work Ivan, we should be in the clear now." Clark stated

    Ivan agreed and pressed forward into the swamp.

    "What were those creatures that we encountered, Ivan? How strong were they?" Dubs asked.

    "Those were Stagmites. They''re insectoids that have been radiated with magic energy, and their life forces are strengthened by magic of the earth class. A normal human would have no way of dealing with these monsters, as just being near them is enough to cause some radiation poisoning. Since you guys have gone through the experiments you should be fine."

    Ivan thought for a second

    "However, Lilith, if you were to get bitten by one, you would probably die. They inject a lethal amount of energy into their targets through their pincers. So take care to stay away from them."

    A shudder went down Lilith, but she nodded quietly and the four pressed onward.

    Ivan looked at her and reassuringly stated

    "We shouldn''t have any more distractions until we reach the checkpoint. Lets go."

 12 Chapter 12- Checkpoin

    The party entered the swamp, and the luscious emerald grass became a musty dark green moss.

    The ground became less stable, and Dubs feet made a squishing sound as he walked across the waterlogged surface.

    "The good news about the swamp is that the empire has never been able to build stable tunnels underneath it, so its a good location for us resistance members to hold out.", Ivan explained.

    The wetlands became more profound as the party continued through them, and clear basins of water and land bridges separating them appeared.

    Lilith seemed to be having trouble walking properly, so Dubs held out his arm for her to lean on.

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    She didn''t say anything, and shyly held onto it.

    "Um... your name is Dubs right? Who exactly are you?" Lilith asked

    "Ahaha. I wonder that myself." Dubs sarcastically responded.

    Lilith was confused but didn''t ask any more.

    "As far as I know, I''m no more than a test subject. I am the son of a traitor who had to pay for his fathers crimes, and I''ve abandoned the payment." Dubs coldly stated.

    "But you know, regardless of what my backstory is, none of that matters. What matters is what I do today, here and now. The same goes for you, right?"

    Lilith smiled a bit and nodded. The two continued walking through the marsh.

    "Well aren''t y''all getting cozy over there. Eyes up, were almost at the manor." Clark remarked

    Dubs looked around, but didn''t see anything out of the ordinary. He only saw the setting sun in the distance, and the orange tint of the sky.

    "Where exactly is this manor, Ivan? Are we going to reach it before it becomes dark?" Dubs asked

    Ivan laughed and condescendingly told Dubs, "What, you can''t see it? Ah right. You have no magical ability yet, just a whole bunch of ridiculous resistances."

    Ivan waved his hand and particles formed in his hands into the shape of a pair of glasses.

    "Put these on, Dubs. You''ll see"

    Ivan handed the glasses to Dubs

    Dubs placed them on reluctantly. "Is this guy trying to mock me? He wasn''t acting like this back at the HQ."

    Placing the glasses on, an enormous manor appeared in front of him. A black gate with pointed spearheads and a fence surrounded the manor, and the manor was three stories high. The brick walls contrasted the dark green surroundings.

    Even above the 3 stories of the manor loomed a circular tower with a white dome. It had no windows, unlike the lower floors.

    "Hm... I will warn the lot of you beforehand. The inhabitant of this manor is a bit of an ecstatic person", Ivan admitted.

    A crow with beady red eyes landed on a withered tree near the gate, and Dubs felt it staring at him. "Was that my imagination?", Dubs asked himself.

    He looked over at Ivan who appeared to be deep in thought. Ivan finished thinking and began to give orders.

    "Everyone, stand back. Dubs, I have a certain suspicion, and it would be best if you entered ahead of us."

    Dubs didn''t like the sound of this. Was he being used as bait in case that this was a trap? He would be resistant to any magical attacks, but what if archers were hiding somewhere? This was a bit too risky for Dubs to just go along with.

    "Ivan, I don''t think it would be wise for a rookie like me to go first." Dubs stated, annoyed.

    "No, I can assure you that you''ll be perfectly safe. I just have a suspicion about the person who lives here. She''s the type to play pranks even on her allies, to the point of injuring them. She can only use magic, though. I assure you, there will be no harm done to you.", Ivan persisted.

    "Looks like I don''t have a choice." Dubs sighed and touched the gate to open it.

    As Dubs touched the gate, a bolt of lightning began to engulf the gate, beginning at the two sides and making its way towards Dubs.

    Annoyed, Dubs continued holding onto the gate.

    The lightning caught up to Dubs, and began to repel itself from his body, as if there was a rubber stopper in the middle of an electric current.

    Dubs opened the gate, unfazed by the lightning that had him surrounded on two sides.

    "Come on guys. Better not touch the metal though. My body has been through electrical charges of much greater potential than this, both magical and physical." Dubs walked into the manor.

    Lilith''s face was twisted with fear, and she slowly approached the gate and walked through slowly, avoiding the metal.

    The other two followed. Ivan nudged Clark, and whispered. "I told you, didn''t I? That woman is always up to something. She knows that the empire will never find her here, and yet she still lays all these traps for us. If she wasn''t nuts I would give her a piece of my mind, but it won''t help in her case."

    Dubs walked through the yard, and a swarm of crows had gathered on the trees surrounding them. All of them had beady red eyes, and swift black feathers, and each appeared to be staring right at them.

    When Dubs got close to the stairway, he held his hand back. There might have been more traps at the doorway, so he stepped up first.

    When Dubs had tapped the stairs a bit with his foot until he was satisfied that there was no trap, he approached the door.

    All of a sudden, the ground below him began to mold into a slimy green substance. Bubbles emerged, and Dubs began to sink lower in the substance, however his body repelled the liquid like a magnet, and so he sunk to the ground.

    He could hear sizzling as drops of the substance flew out and hit the surrounding grass. The grass was consumed almost as soon as the substance had touched it.

    "Stand back everyone. That''s acid." Ivan stated.

    "Dubs, sorry but I''m going to have to leave it to you to get in."

    Dubs was extremely annoyed at this point, but there was nothing that could be done. He climbed out of the acid and reached for the door handle.

    The door flew open, hitting Dubs and sending him flying to the side.

    "Ehehe! What have we here today? Is that Ivan out there?? Where are you, oh Ivan?? What freak have you brought me this time that he hasn''t so much as blinked an eye at any of my traps?"

    A female voice, high pitched and clearly outlandish rang through Dubs'' ears. "Who is this woman? She isn''t in her right mind. I''m the one who went under experimentation, shouldn''t I be the one going nuts here?"

    She peeked her head around the door, and her messy bright red hair flipped around.

    Her eyes gleamed with excitement as she stared at Dubs, and she began to monologue at him.

    "Hey, hey. You there. You''re an experiment right? Right? Ehehe. I love your type. You all are so intriguing. Will you let me run some test on you? Ill reward you if you want. Just a little bit, kay?"

    A rock came flying at her head and stopped midair. The woman had held out her hand to stop it, and looked over at Ivan, who had his arm in the air, looked pretty angry.

    The woman glared at him, and they began a fierce staring contest. The rock dropped from midair, and hit the ground with a thud, and the woman''s eyes became red. "Ivan, don''t tell me you''ve brought me such a wonderful subject and plan to prevent me from having a look at him."

    "That''s exactly what I plan to do, Reagan. I came all the way to visit, why don''t you treat my comrades with some respect, eh? We''ve given you a place in the resistance so that you can continue your experiments, but we''ve already stipulated strictly that you aren''t to experiment on humans. You don''t want me to take this up with HQ, right?", Ivan lectured.

    The woman began to purse her lip as if she was pouting. "Fine, fine. You''re always so mean to me Ivan. I just wanted to run some tests, just this once."

    "And I said that''s not allowed. End of conversation. Now, are you gonna let us inside?" Ivan retorted

    The woman swung around and waved her arms up and down. The acidic goop disappeared, and the electrical charged dissipated.

    "You''re no fun. No matter. Dubs, lets get to know each other, alright?" Reagan spoke with a gleam in her eyes.

    "Yeah.." Dubs replied. The four of them walked inside to see a traditional fireplace and some old style paintings.

    "Ah, Its just like back home!" Lilith exclaimed, but remembering her former home she looked down with a depressed emotion.

    There was a leather couch, and Reagan jumped onto it and crossed her legs. She wore a brown leather Jacket and black pants, with a white t-shirt.

    "Do what you want, just stay away from the tower." She demanded. "Guest rooms are on the second floor."

    Clark headed straight for the kitchen and began to raid the fridge. Ivan made himself at home on a reclining chair, while Dubs and Lilith stood together at the entrance. Dubs shot her a glance and asked,

    "Shall we go check out the rooms?"

    "Yes, that sounds like a good idea. Lets go." Lilith replied

    Dubs was wierded out by Reagan, but he pressed on. He grabbed Lilith''s hand as they walked up the stairs, and they arrived at the top.

    Regular bedrooms were spread across a hallway, all of them identical. Nothing out of the ordinary was to be seen.

    Lilith, who''s hand Dubs held firmly, began speaking quietly to him.

    "Hey.. you''ll be there for me if I need help right?" She turned away, her face red.

    Dubs smiled, and even though he hadn''t felt much emotion before, he thought "She looks cute."

    He put his hand on her shoulder, and stated

    "What did I tell you before. Everything is gonna be alright."

    She hugged him, and tears began to flow down her face. She held tightly to his shirt and mumbled, crying. "Thank you. I still haven''t fully accepted all this yet."

    Dubs put his arm around her, and let her cry.

    She wiped her face, and thanked him again, and they both choose a room, and headed to it.

    Dubs lied down in the bed, staring at the ceiling. What on earth was going on?

 13 Chapter 13- Awakening

    Dubs stared at the wooden beams that covered the ceiling. "I don''t really have a purpose anymore in this world. I need to get stronger to survive, but I don''t particularly care about revenge on those who enslaved me."

    Dubs eyes gleamed as an idea popped into his mind. "Aha! I''ve got it! I''ll become a scientist and begin my own research on magic. In doing this, I will become stronger and have a goal to work towards."

    Dubs nodded, content with his solution.

    "Well, I guess its time to wrap things up for the day. I should eat and get to bed before the sun sets.", he thought.

    Dubs opened the door and a waft of scents permeated throughout his surroundings. Various meat and vegetables, and the sweet aroma of a freshly baked cake filled his nose. Dubs walked down the stairs and the scents became more and more potent.

    Clark had a pair of baking mitts on and was moving pots and dishes over to the round marble table. "Come have a seat Dubs, help yourself." Clark insisted.

    Dubs waltzed over to the table and sat next to Lilith. Ivan sat across from him, next to Reagan who was twirling her hair with her finger.

    "You cook, Clark?" Dubs asked.

    "Of course! How could I call myself an engineer if I didn''t even know how to make food?", Clark responded

    Clark laid out the final dish on the table, and a feast was presented before Dubs and the party. Reagan began to grab food here and there and started to eat, and shortly after the rest did the same.

    "Now that were all gathered here," Ivan stated, "I should go over our plans for tomorrow."

    Dubs continued gulping down heaps of food, and Ivan continued.

    "Tomorrow we will cross the swamp, and enter the forest area that surrounds Lardis. It is possible that we will run into monsters again, however if you stay by me and Clark there should be no issue."

    Dubs and Lilith agreed and Ivan continued his meal, and they ate in silence for the next few minutes.

    A cold shiver went down Dubs'' spine, and when he finished eating, he felt the urge to get back to his room and go to sleep.

    "I''ll be turning in for tonight. I will see everyone tomorrow." Dubs told everyone as he walked back up the stairs.

    "Something is wrong. I feel that I need to get to sleep right now. I was always left to go to sleep before 7 pm when I was living under experimentation. Perhaps its just my biorhythm kicking in.", Dubs considered.

    "Either way, I''d better just get to bed." Dubs entered his room and shut the door. Silently the door closed and made a click.

    Dubs laid in bed and closed his eyes, and fell into deep sleep.

    Downstairs, Ivan had kept the rest of the party members at the table, including Reagan.

    "Its time to explain the real reason why we''ve come here.", Ivan explained as he pulled out a stack of parchment documents from under his coat.

    He plopped them on the table in front of Reagan.

    "Here is the data I was able to obtain on Dubs from when I was stationed inside the empire. We already know about the tests he went through- but there is one point of concern on the data. Take a look at that final note."

    Reagan glanced at it, and Clark and Lilith came around the table to look over her shoulder.

    The note read: "Unpredictable at night. Soldiers who trained at those times were all lost. Cause remains unknown, and subject doesn''t appear to have any memories of night. Further investigation is too risky."

    "Hoho! So this is why you came to me, Ivan? Don''t worry a bit. I''ll get to the bottom of this, but you''ll let me run some tests to do so of course, right?" Reagan giddily asked.

    "I have no choice. We need to find out the root of these events before he causes trouble for the resistance. I don''t want to betray the trust of a comrade, but as of right now he isn''t stable, as far as we know. I leave it to you."

    Lilith bit her lip, and wanted to say something but didn''t. She felt that it was wrong to perform these experiments on Dubs without his permission, but it was just as Ivan said. If there truly was something going on with him at night, they would need to determine the cause and stop it from happening.

    Reagan walked up the stairs on her own, and the other three remained downstairs.

    "We had bettered stay down here in case something happens. In a worst case scenario, we may have to get going for the night and abandon this place."

    Clark nodded sadly, disappointed that he might have to abandon his new comrade, but he understood the situation. "This is all for the sake of the resistance. Threats must be eliminated."

    Reagan pried open the door to Dubs room and poked her head in.

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    "Du-ubs! I''ve gotten permission to run some tests on you! Come to the lab with me, won''t you?" Reagan persuaded.

    Dubs opened his eyes, and his hazel irises pulsated. They began to twist and turn about in all directions, until they decided on a path and rolled back into his head. Dubs eyes turned around a full 180 degrees, to reveal another pair of bright blue irises.

    Dubs grinned wildly, and began to laugh hysterically with a grizzled voice. "AHAHAH!!!! Dubs!! The lady is calling for you Dubs, can''t you hear her!?! AH WAIT! I''m Dubs!!! AHAHAHAH!!!! Hey lady, what do you want with me?? More experiments? Lets go, right now!! Ill show you something good!"

    Reagan also began to smile uncontrollably. "Yes, yes... I had a feeling you were like this. Let us go, my subject. It is time to figure out who you are."

    Dubs jumped out of his bed and began to wildly run about. "Where is the lab lady? Is this one strong enough to contain me, I wonder?? The shackles they put me in last time weren''t a high enough level enchantment to contain my power. Lets try it out!! Lets play a game to see if your equipment can stop me from destroying your lab and everyone else within the radius."

    Reagan grinned. "I accept your challenge. You won''t mind if I put you under the prototypes then, right? They''re a little... unpredictable.. ehehe."

    "No problem lady! Lets get going then." Dubs frantically climbed the stairs to the tower and started looking around the lab, touching all the equipment. He picked up a contraption that looked like a brainwave scanner. "What does this do??? And this one?? I''ve never seen this!! Hey, lady! You''re not like the previous doctors. Your equipment is much more complex. I''m starting to like things around here."

    He went from piece to piece of equipment, from potion brewing equipment to crystallization refractors. Finally he set himself upon the lab table. Reagan walked over and grabbed a set of hand braces that seemed to be electronic. "These are the latest prototype. They will prevent you from releasing your internal energy by redirecting it within yourself. For a normal person, this would be extremely harmful, as this is the same as launching a magic attack on ones self. However, if its you I think you''ll survive."

    Dubs hastily grabbed them and locked them onto his hands. "Cannot wait to try this!!!! Turn em on lady!" He demanded. Reagan whipped out a remote and pressed a button, and the braces began to glow.

    "Here goes!!" Dubs screamed, as a whirl of wind began to surround him. The wind appeared as a tornado, violently twisting and turning about Dubs body. Initially it aimed outwards, away from Dubs but the braces redirected the flow back inwards towards him. The centripetal force exerted from Dubs body, caused by his resistance to magic, prevented the wind energy from being directed back into Dubs'' body, and so the two opposing forces equaled by creating a whirlwind that surrounded Dubs.

    Astounded, Reagan urged him to continue. "Keep going, this is amazing! How much more power can you bring out?"

    The wind became stronger until the table Dubs lay on began to crumble into Dust. Dubs fell through the table, and eventually through the floor into his room on the floor below. The wind tore through his bed, and he ended up on the first floor in the living room.

    "AHAHAH!!! This is so much fun!!!!" Dubs shouted.

    The other three, who had been waiting in the kitchen, jumped back in fear. "What on earth is that!?!" Lilith screamed, and Ivan and Clark had already put up a fighting pose. "Whats wrong guys, scared of a little wind!?" Dubs taunted them.

    "This guy has lost it! What on earth happened to him? I thought he couldn''t use any magic." Ivan shouted in disbelief.

    Rushing down the stairs, Reagan came in to view the scene. "He can''t control any magic! Hehehe! Hes just letting his energy flow wild, and letting his resistance protect him from harm! What an amazing display!"

    "Ahhh! That felt good!" Dubs gasped and the wind energy began to die down. The floor below him had been shredded and the dirt foundations beneath him had been spewed all over the living room.

    "Don''t worry too much about me, resistance members. I''m just another personality of your new comrade Dubs. I wont hurt y''all if you stay out of my way, and I can even benefit your cause if you continue assisting me. What do you say? Don''t y''all want me to help you fight against the nobility? Or are you going to abandon a poor experiment like me because I was too much for the big bad resistance to handle?"

    Ivan wiped his sweat and gave out a laugh. "I had a feeling something like this would happen. Alright, second personality of Dubs. I''ll help you out, and let your other personality train under me. In return, just promise not to make trouble for us. Is that a deal?"

    Dubs gave a smile and exclaimed. "We''ve got a deal. Its about time I get out of here. Ill see you tomorrow night..."

    Dubs eyes rolled back again 180 degrees and his hazel eyes emerged from the back of his head.

    Closing them, the three heard Dubs begin to snore, as if he had been fast asleep the entire time.

    "Well, It looks like our lives just got a whole lot more interesting." Clark remarked

 14 Chapter 14- Arrival

    Dubs awoke in an unfamiliar bed. He gazed around him, noticing that the orientation of the room had changed.

    "Where am I? This is not the room I fell asleep in.", Dubs pondered.

    Dubs reached for his side and felt the cold metal of the dagger, and he rubbed his fingers across the engravings.

    "It doesn''t seem as if I''ve been robbed or kidnapped, but this room seems to be oddly similar to the previous one I slept in. Why is the window on the opposite side of the room though?"

    Dubs slid out of bed and peeked out of the door. The same hallway as before presented itself before him, and it was dimly lit by the first few beams of the sun in the early morning.

    The door to the room he previously laid in remained wide open, and inside the room was a horrifying sight.

    The bed was removed, and there was a gaping hole in the floor. Dubs realized that dirt and grime covered his body and clothes, and that the hole in the floor did not seem to be something that was smoothly cut.

    There were splinters of wood surrounding the hole, as if someone had forcefully torn the floor from its base.

    "It seems like I''ve done it again. I didn''t pay much attention to this when I was trapped in the lab, but now that i''m outside the lab I''m going to have to get a better control on things. How am I supposed to stop these occurrences though?" Dubs wondered

    During his time in the labs, he often awoke to see a scene of destruction surrounding him. The first time this had occurred was when Dubs was 8 years old- three years into his initial experimentation past the incubation phase.

    At first, Dubs was terrified by these occurrences, but as time passed on he had accepted them to be a regular event that was out of his control. Since Dubs had never needed to maintain good relations with the people experimenting on him, he never bothered to stop it from happening.

    Now that Dubs had joined the resistance, it would harm his reputation among them if he couldn''t control his other side. He deduced that he should try to get a better handle on it, but couldn''t figure out how to do so.

    "Well, thinking too much about this isn''t going to do me any good. I''ll just leave it in the back of my mind in case a way to solve this problem comes up. The best thing to do for now would be to lock myself up in my sleep to prevent anything from happening. "

    This would prove to be an arduous task as well, as Dubs would not have an easy time constructing a space that would be able to contain his other self, however he would become a scientist and begin to research magic to work towards this purpose.

    "At the very least, I now have a goal to work towards. I should go and apologize to the others, and figure out what they intend to do from here on out.", Dubs decided.

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    Walking down the stairs Dubs heard the clanking of dishes and some light footsteps. He saw the three party members having breakfast in the kitchen, and Clark was once again handling the cooking.

    Lilith looked up fearfully, and seemed to be tormented by Dubs presence.

    Ivan gave him a cold stare but slowly walked closer to Dubs

    In the room to the right, these was a gaping hole in the floor that dug into the foundation of the manor. Dirt and grime was spewed across the living room in all directions, and Dubs put his hand behind his head, scratching himself, and gave a short smile.

    "Heh heh. Sorry about whatever mess I caused last night. It didn''t occur to me that my other self would cause such a mess for you guys. I hope nobody got hurt. Were you enough to deal with him?"

    Dubs asked Ivan

    Ivan relaxed himself and began to pace back and forth. "Well, he certainly was a handful, and he wanted to destroy everything. He didn''t harm anyone, and while he was nuts I didn''t sense any killing intent towards us. It seems your subconscious has enough control over him so that he will not harm any of the people who will assist you."

    "I see..." Dubs began to think once again. "This is the first time I''ve ever had this happen among people who weren''t out to attack me. I guess as crazy as my other self is, he still works in his own self interest, and it wouldn''t benefit him if I were to die, or make enemies with the resistance. We may be on the same page then. "

    "Well, I think you gave Lilith quite the scare, but in the resistance we''re accustomed to being a step away from death at all times. Rest easy, we will help you to deal with him.", Ivan reassured Dubs.

    "And he might even make for a useful ally, if we can get him on our side."

    Dubs walked down the stairs and bowed to thank Ivan. "I''ll do what I can to minimize the damage he causes, and I thank you for assisting me in this."

    "Raise your head, Dubs. Were resistance members. We may have a hierarchy, but we don''t belittle our lower level members. Every one of us is willing to sacrifice for the sake of the resistance, and no member here holds any more worth than another.", Ivan proudly proclaimed

    Dubs raised his head and walked over to the table. Lilith, who was shaking from fear drew herself back. "I.. I''m sorry Dubs. I don''t know what I saw last night, but it was beyond my imagination. I can''t bring myself to be comfortable around you..." Lilith shyly admitted.

    Dubs nodded and spoke. "I understand how you feel. I too was terrified when I first awoke to see that the entire lab had been destroyed, and I wondered what kind of monster could have done it. When I found out it was myself, I didn''t even know what to think anymore. Eventually, I stopped concerning myself with him, but now that I have comrades lives on the line I will do everything I can to control him. Rest easy though for now, as my other self will only emerge when at night."

    Lilith, unconvincingly mumbled "mhm" and Dubs began to eat his breakfast.

    It looked like this was not something that could be solved so easily.

    After the team had finished eating, Reagan came downstairs. "Look at you, all nice and ready to set out, Dubs! I had a whole lot of fun gathering data on you last night. Do you really have to leave so soon? I wouldn''t mind keeping you here for a little while longer." Reagan eagerly offered.

    Ivan stopped her before Dubs could respond. "No, we have duties to attend to back in Lardis. As beneficial as it may be for him to stay here to gather data, I won''t have time to travel back here when you''ve finished up your experiments. Since Dubs is not able to control any magic, he obviously cannot travel to Lardis alone, however when I have trained him sufficiently if he wishes I will send him here to try to deal with his other self in an environment that is sufficiently stable. Make preparations for that day, and try to build a lab that his other self wont destroy in the meantime, alright?"

    Reagan put on a dissapointed expression at first, and agreed. "Fiiiine. I''ll make preparations in the meantime. Goodbye Dubs, I cant wait for you to come back!"

    Reagan gave Dubs a hug and Dubs stayed perfectly still. He didn''t trust this woman, but he agreed that she might be able to help him overcome this challenge.

    Dubs slowly brought his arms to hug her and then let go, ready to depart.

    Clark and Lilith stood up from their seats and headed towards the exit.

    Ivan gave Reagan a stare and demanded "Return the crows."

    Reagan let out an annoyed sigh, and with a wave of her hand a flock of the red eyed crows flew in through the windows, causing a ruckus withing the house. Each one had a different colored aura surrounding its feet, and as they came close to Reagan they merged into her body.

    "You''re no fun as always Ivan.", Reagan complained

    "Ivan turned towards Dubs and Lilith. "Those crows are her surveillance crew, and they are the ones who planted the traps that surround the manor. We won''t have to deal with those on the way out."

    Dubs took off the glasses that had allowed him to see the manor and gave them back to Ivan, who put them away within his jacket. The manor remained visible, as he was still within it.

    The four of them exited the door and waved goodbye to Reagan. After exiting the gate, the manor vanished before Dubs eyes.

    Ivan addressed Dubs once more. "When you learn to control your magic you will be able to direct it to your eyes so that you can see through the barriers and stealth techniques that are typically used. I''ll teach you these things in due time, but for now we head back to the base. Lets set out."

    Ivan took the lead once again and the three followed in suit. After a few hours of sledging through the swamp they came upon a forest region.

    Oak trees spread across the horizon, and there seemed to be only a few gaps between them to walk.

    "It will get a little bumpy from here, but we are soon to arrive at the entrance of Lardis." Ivan claimed.

    Mushrooms sprouted from the roots of the trees of all different colors. Dubs and the party climbed over the thick roots and marched their way through the forest slowly.

    Brushing through a patch of bushes, a stone tower appeared in front of Dubs, with a metal door and a few guards standing by.

    "Alright then. Now you two, stay quiet and play along with what I say. We can''t afford to attract any attention here." Ivan stated.

    Dubs and Lilith nodded and Ivan began to lead the party towards the guards.

 15 Chapter 15- Lardis

    Ivan waltzed up to the platoon of guards who re positioned themselves and stood up properly as they heard someone coming.

    "Who goes there? State your name and affiliation!" One of the guards shouted, taking his spear in hand.

    "Ivan Perwick, professional mercenary. Returning from a mission with my comrades." Ivan calmly answered.

    The guard waltzed up and down the party, glaring at Ivan. Dubs held his breath as he waited for the security to check them.

    "May I see your ID before I allow you in?" The guard demanded.

    "Uh oh," Dubs thought. This could get ugly. If the guard demanded to see the ID''s of Lilith and him, they would be unable to produce them.

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    Dubs heard a whisper in the back of his head.

    "If things get ugly out there we can switch out. Leave this to me...", Dubs other self insisted.

    Dubs was taken aback by this voice, and began to frantically look around. When he realized that the focus of the guards had shifted over to him, Dubs calmed himself and spoke clearly.

    "Sorry, I thought I heard something nearby. Please continue.", Dubs told the guard.

    The guard has a suspicious look on his face, but continued his inspection. Ivan shot Dubs a glare but took out his ID and handed it over to the guard who thoroughly investigated it.

    "Alright, there are no problems with this one. However, Ivan, who are these children with you?", The guard inquired.

    "These are newly recruited mercenaries. We haven''t had time to obtain their identification yet as there was an urgent request for assistance outside the gates, and it wasn''t something I could have handled on my own. Can you overlook this one time?" Ivan pleaded.

    The guard sighed and rolled his eyes. "I''ll be watching you. If something like this happens again don''t expect me to overlook it."

    Ivan put his hands together and bowed. "Thank you, officer! I won''t forget this kindness. If you''re in need of a job feel free to contact the mercenary guild in Lardis and request for me. I''ll do it for free!" Ivan gratefully exclaimed.

    "Yeah, yeah, get moving mercenaries.". The guard retorted. The guards began to open the gate and made way for their entrance into the city.

    After climbing down the spiral staircase, they entered the dimly lit city of Lardis. Walking along the brick roads, Ivan turned towards Dubs to address him.

    "What was that all about back there? You almost blew our cover!", Ivan scolded.

    "To be honest, I''m not so sure myself. I heard a voice talking to me and I was a little shaken. I think my other self is trying to contact me directly.", Dubs admitted.

    The three others eyes turned wide when they heard this and all three of them began bombarding Dubs with questions.

    "Has this ever happened before?", Lilith inquired

    "What did he say?", Clark asked.

    "Did you feel anything when you heard the voice?", Ivan questioned.

    Dubs pushed the three back and took a deep breath. "One at a time, one at a time! No, this hasn''t ever happened before... to an extent. There have been times where I have an intuition or an inclination to do something, but it has never been as explicit as the voice that I heard today. I felt a dark presence when the voice spoke, and he asked if I wanted to switch out to let him ''take care of this'', when the guards were investigating out identification.", Dubs explained.

    The three of them began to think all at once. Clark began to speak.

    "This would mean that he doesn''t only come out at night. Perhaps he can only come out if you allow him to during the day, but at night he is free to control you?", he suggested.

    "That could be the case.", Ivan agreed.

    Dubs turned their focus forward. "Perhaps that is so, however we should focus on getting back to our objective. We shouldn''t waste any more time around here."

    The three nodded and the party began to march forward through the crowds of people.

    Entering a circular plaza, there were stalls and shops bustling with life. People were bargaining back and forth about prices of goods, and platoons of soldiers marched through the area. On the right side, a shop with a wooden sign that had two crossed swords appeared, and Ivan pointed towards it.

    "That''s our objective. The Lardis mercenary guild is the location where mercenaries obtain jobs to clear up the surrounding surface, and where customers come to post jobs. Of course, mercenaries aren''t limited only to surface jobs. The customers can bring in a variety of requests so long as the payment is reasonable enough to be accepted by the mercenaries.", Ivan stated.

    Entering the building, they viewed the scene of a tavern. Groups of armed men chugged beer and sang drunken songs, while others gambled and celebrated at the expense of another.

    Others still were alone, particularly the men who seemed to be dangerous. A young lady with braided brown hair and freckles ran back and forth managing the bar and pouring drinks for the customers.

    Ivan walked up to the bar and waved to her. The woman quickly finished pouring a mans drink and rushed up to Ivan.

    The woman spoke sweetly in a high pitched Irish accent

    "Ivan! You''re finally back from your journey! Its been all too hectic around here without you to manage things. There have been 2 drunken fights in the last night! Will you be staying around for long?" The woman desperately plead.

    Ivan gave her a reassuring expression. "Don''t worry, I have been assigned a new task here for a while. Fianna, these are the new recruits i''m going to be training up. The one with the green hat is Dubs, and the girl is Lilith."

    Dubs and Lilith both waved and Fianna greeted them. "Welcome to the mercenary guild. Are these ones going to be back room mercenaries or front room mercenaries?", Fianna asked Ivan.

    A sinister grin appeared on Ivan''s face. "Back room mercenaries.", he replied. Fianna smiled and turned towards them. "Truly, I welcome y''all to the mercenary guild. Ivan, I will catch up with you later, good luck with their training."

    Ivan led Dubs and the party behind the tavern where a trapdoor was located. "This is the backroom."Ivan glanced around him to ensure nobody was listening.

    "The backroom is where the resistance members of the mercenary guild reside. The mercenary guild is a resistance controlled faction, but we accept non resistance members to avoid suspicion, under the impression that the backroom is merely an upper echelon among the mercenaries." Ivan softly explained.

    Dubs and Lilith nodded, and Ivan unlocked the trap door. The party headed down another set of stairs to be greeted by a colder atmosphere in the basement.

    The room they first entered was dark, and there were a few tables and chairs laid out. Two men were quietly sitting at opposing sides of the room, concentrated on some documents in front of them. One of the men was middle aged. The man was a dwarf, and he stroked his dark brown beard as the large man considered his options.

    The other seemed to be a bit younger, but he was sleek and looked similar to Ivan, with a darker shade of grey hair. He was an Elven man, with long pointed ears. His eyes seemed to pierce the documents he was focused on.

    The two looked over at Ivan when he came down into the room and stood up, bowing. "Captain Ivan! Welcome back! We hope you have successfully completed your mission." The two men said in unison.

    The bearded mans voice was deep and manly, and the second one''s voice was slick and sinister.

    "At ease, Lieutenants. I''ve brought two recruits back from the HQ, and obtained permission from Commander Isabelle to train them under my sector. George! I will be entrusting Lilith''s training to you for the time being, and her specialization will be in Light and Earth magic.", Ivan ordered towards the bearded man.

    "Peter, I entrust Dubs to you. I have already provided you the data on his condition beforehand, but I have learned some new things over this mission that I must explain to you before you begin any training for him. For now, both of you show them to their quarters and then give them a tour around the base, and explain their schedules to them. When you have completed this, both of you return to me for further instruction. Dubs, Lilith. Go with your relative instructor and they will explain everything to you. Your training will begin tomorrow!"

 16 Chapter 16- Insanity

    Dubs walked down the hallway alongside Peter, who stayed silent while they walked. He had a cold aura, and seemed to be unsociable.

    Lilith and George walked behind them. George began to discuss matters with Lilith

    "So I am to train you in light and earth magic? An interesting combination. I myself am pertinent in both earth and fire magic, as I was a blacksmith before I came to the resistance. One of my colleagues will assist you in your light magic training. Hopefully with time you will become an adept healer!"

    Lilith patiently listened as George went on to talk about his wife and son, who he seemed to earnestly miss. A hint of longing resounded in his voice, as if he hadn''t seen them for an extended period of time.

    When they came upon an intersection, Peter began to speak.

    "Here are the three areas that the barracks are split among. To the left is the dining hall, and to the right are the training grounds. Forward we have the sleeping quarters."

    Lilith and Dubs nodded, showing that they understood and the four continued forward into the sleeping quarters area. A number of doors appeared on their sides, and Ivan continued his explanation.

    "The female dorms are on the right side, and the male on the left."

    After walking a bit more, George stopped Lilith.

    "Here we are. This one is your dorm, number 27." George stated. He pulled out a key from his pocket and handed it to Lilith. Dubs and Peter continued moving, and George began to explain some things to Lilith before he let her go into her room and he began to head back down the hall to where they came from.

    Peter and Dubs came upon his own room, and Peter halted Dubs.

    "Here is your own room, number 38." Peter also handed Dubs his key, and continued speaking.

    "It''s 3:00 right now. Dinner will be served at 5, so be sure to show up to the dining hall by then. Your training will begin tomorrow at 6 am, so be sure to get plenty of rest. We''ve been gathering up a number of new recruits over the past few days, so you''ll be in a class of about 5 students training under me, however listen here. You''re a special case. You''ve been through who knows what, and something strange went on with your body and statistics. Don''t expect to be trained regularly like the other kids."

    Dubs nodded. "Understood."

    "And one more thing- I don''t trust you at all." Ivan remarked, before turning around and lurking back into the darkness that enclosed the hallway.

    Dubs unlocked the redwood door to his dorm with a click. When he touched the door, he felt a breeze of energy that engulfed it.

    "Is this a barrier? I hope so. Perhaps they have taken measures to counteract my other self already. How prudent of them! I wonder how they even knew about this in the first place, when even I myself found out recently..." Dubs wondered

    Entering the room, Dubs saw a bed to the left and a dresser with a mirror to the right. Past the dresser was a door to the bathroom. Dubs did not have any possessions to unpack aside from his fathers dagger, and so he laid down on the bed and rested.

    The bed was hard and uncomfortable, but beggars can''t be choosers. It was certainly a much greater improvement over the years of torture he had endured, while laying on nothing but a concrete slab.

    "I am starting to find a place in this world. Where will joining this resistance take me? Only time will tell.", Dubs thought.

    Time passed, and Dubs sat in his bed staring blankly. All of a sudden, he heard the voice of his other self.

    "How''s it going Dubs? I''m bored in here. Let me out will ya? I won''t cause a fuss. I just need to get some fresh air, that''s all.", The voice echoed.

    Dubs, slightly freaked out but not as much as before, responded to the voice.

    "I don''t understand who you are exactly, but I think we should set our priorities straight. Right now, the resistance is the best way for me to get stronger and to avoid pursuit from the nobles. If I die, you will most likely die as well. It''s in both of our best interests to stay here until we become stronger."

    The voice rasped in Dubs mind. "Of course my interests would be the same as yours, Dubs. I am you. Why would I want something that could hurt you?"

    Dubs continued speaking. "What do you mean by that? Who are you really?"

    "I just told you, I am you. I am the tortured experiment who continued to live and survive despite all odds for years on end, only gaining more and more magical potential the more they worked on me. Dubs, together we can become strong. Train yourself, and you will be able to harness your magical abilities like I can- no, even greater! The key is control. The only thing I lack right now is control over my powers! Not that I mind... but killing everyone around me every time I want to destroy an area wouldn''t benefit you- I understand that." The voice replied.

    "So do you plan on stopping your rampaging?" Dubs asked

    "Mmmmmmm..... No can do Dubs. Rampaging is a part of me. If I go too long without doing so, stress will build up inside me to the point where I will begin damaging your body. We wouldn''t want that, would we? However, there is a solution. You go on missions every once in a while, and find some enemies for me to take my stress out on. I can benefit your resistance, and release my stress in one go. What do you say?"

    Dubs grinned. "Sounds like fun. Lets do it."

    Looking at the time, Dubs realized how long he had been laying in his bed. It was 4:45, and dinner would be served shortly. He shook himself and rushed over to the sink, and began to splash water on his face. "HAHAHA. What am I doing!? Talking to myself here in my room?! I must be nuts!"

    Dubs'' face changed back to normal. "What just happened?" He thought. "Oh well. Lets head back to get some food."

    Walking out to the dining hall, he entered to see quite a few people present. Ivan and the two Lieutenants were sitting together with a couple other leather coats. A burly orcish woman and a short goblin man sat next to them, and they chatted seriously, most likely discussing future tactics and plans.

    Dubs looked over to see Lilith getting along with a few other young recruits, and walked over to sit next to them.

    "Yo! I''m Dubs. Nice to meet y''all." Dubs stated boldly.

    There were 3 people sitting with Lilith. A cheery blonde elf sat next to her, and across from her sat a dwarven male and a human male.

    "Nice to meet you! I''m Enferia, a rookie to the resistance." The elf declared.

    "I am Drodus, also a rookie to the resistance." The dwarf stated.

    "I am Tirian, former noble of the Praus family. I am also a rookie to the resistance." The human said elegantly.

    Dubs began to ponder. "I guess this noble was in a situation similar to Lilith. I have no idea why the other two might be here though."

    Dubs took a seat and the four began to discuss their reasons for being there.

    Tirian was the first to speak. "My noble father gave in to human greed an sacrificed me to the empire as an experiment! Can you believe the audacity! How can he continue his legacy after sacrificing the eldest son to the empire? Of course, I am the strongest by far of the three sons, and the one who was most likely to survive the tortures they planned to put me through, but even so! My brothers are not fit to take on the position of family leader! I will rise against my father and his betrayal of honor!", he boasted.

    "I.. see.." Dubs expressionlessly stated. "And you?" Dubs asked Drodus. "Years ago, the small dwarven village of Margith was attacked by the empire. The dwarves who resided there were taken captive, and who knows where they are now. I have come to aid in the takeover of this empire, and to save my lost brothers!" Drodus exclaimed,

    "Indeed. and you?" Dubs asked the elf. "I am here for similar a reason. the empire has encroached on the elven villages little by little, and people in my villages have been dissapearing over the past few years. I am here to find out what has happened to these people, and to rid the underground of the corrupted rule." Enferia stated.

    Dubs nodded. "You all have your own reasons and convictions for being here. Let us work together in an effort to become stronger, and one day take down the corruption of the empire!" Dubs lifted his glass for a toast and the five all clanked their drinks together.

    Dubs other self let out a laugh, and Dubs stated out loud.

    "AHAHA!! Such noble words for a test subject, wouldn''t you say Dubs?"

    Dubs shut his mouth with his hands, and Lilith turned pale.

    The other three, confused and wierded out looked at Dubs in confusion.

    The five sat in silence for a few moments, and Tirian broke it by speaking.

    "And you... Sir Dubs?", Tirian asked. slightly disturbed. "What is your reason for being here? Lady Lilith has expressed to us that her situation is quite similar to my own, however what are your ambitions?"

    Dubs began to explain. "yes well, I suppose I had better confess. I have been a test subject for a number of years- since I was born as a matter of fact. I was recently rescued by Ivan, and I''ve come here to become stronger and to help overthrow the nobility that put me under that torture for so many years."

    Dubs paused and considered his next words carefully.

    "What you just heard was... another personality of mine that emerged from the experiments. You need not worry though, he shares one will with me and will also assist in the efforts of the resistance." Dubs claimed.

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    Lilith was clearly terrified, but did her best to hide her fear. She was the only one who knew of the destructive power that Dubs other self wielded, and she stayed quiet about it out of fear of him.

    "I... see... I''m sorry Dubs, I didn''t know there was someone who had suffered so much because of the empire." Drodus remarked.

    "Its.. its alright! We will all do our best to help you out Dubs!" Enferia exclaimed.

    "I thank you all for your kind words." Dubs stated. His facial expression changed. "AHAHA!! Don''t worry everyone, I won''t hurt y''all! I''m just here along for the ride! Lets all work hard together!!" Dubs expression changed back to before.

    "Did I just say something?" Dubs asked.

    Everyone looked down and focused on their food, finishing up in silence.

 17 Chapter 17- Ostracized

    Dubs and the other rookies finished up their meal. After an awkward series of interruptions from Dubs alternate personality, they all eventually became used to it and didn''t pay it too much mind.

    The only one who remained shaken was Lilith, after seeing the destruction this personality of Dubs had caused.

    Dubs bid the other rookies farewell and began to head back to his room to get some rest before the next morning.

    As Dubs walked, he began to speak to his alternate personality. "Did you have to freak everyone out like that?" He asked, annoyed.

    "Oooh Dubs. It looks like you really are going nuts. Talking to yourself?" The voice mocked.

    "Ah be quiet and answer the question." Dubs responded.

    The voice began to speak ominously.

    "The fact that I can take over your body a little bit even before the sun has set means our personalities are merging into one. Eventually we will become one person again, and you won''t be able to suppress me."

    Dubs was startled by this, but calmed himself after thinking about it. "Well, as long as I''m still myself it doesn''t make much of a difference. As long as you don''t go nuts there won''t be any problems."

    The inner voice giggled menacingly and replied "Indeed..."

    Dubs returned to his room and flopped into bed. "What a day this has been."

    Before he knew it, Dubs eyes had drooped shut and he was out cold.

    Opening his eyes, once more Dubs pupils turned back into his head, revealing the cyan eyes of his second personality.

    "Hehehe. I don''t think I should cause too much of a ruckus here tonight, but lets at least test out how strong this barrier is to release a little stress."

    Dubs waved his hand upwards and a flame began to spew out from his hand, violently raging in all directions.

    The crackling fire began to roast the inside of the room, raising the temperature to well beyond 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

    Dubs aimed his hand at the bed and the flames engulfed it, however a thin magical barrier appeared to prevent anything from happening.

    "Hm... I see. So the barrier enchantment is at this level. If I raise my power any more than this the bed will be destroyed, and as much as I would love to do so, I''d rather not destroy my own place to sleep. I''ll call it quits for tonight. Soon enough i''ll be able to release my power on some interesting enemies..."

    Dubs face began to wrinkle with malice. "And then I''ll burn them all to a crisp!!! AHAHA!! That sounds like so much fun!! I cannot wait. Hurry up Dubs, get stronger so I can slaughter those people!!"

    Dubs face returned to normal. "For now lets get back to sleep. The very fact that I can reasonably analyze this situation so well means that me and Dubs personalities have already begun seeping into one another. Be patient, Dubs. We will get our satisfaction soon enough...."

    With that, Dubs laid back in bed and fell asleep.

    Waking up, Dubs looked around. He saw some minor burn marks around the wood surrounding him, and the smell of ash and smoke filled his lungs.

    "Did my other self do something again last night? I hope nobody else got involved. It seems that the barriers stood up to test, so there shouldn''t be an issue from here on out."

    Checking the time, Dubs realized that he had to get out in a hurry. It was 5:40 am, and he would have to be in the training hall to start by 6.

    Walking down the hallway with a spring in his step, Dubs heard the sounds of whispering trainees get louder as he approached the intersection. Turning left into the training hallway, he came across a number of rooms.

    "Which one am I supposed to go into?" Dubs wondered, before noticing that each room had the teachers name on it.

    "Ah, I should be looking for Peters class." Dubs noticed the second door on the right was his destination, and he stepped in to see a few familiar faces.

    The time was now 5:55. The room lead into a large open area, completely surrounded by concrete walls. There were a few dummies on the far side of the room, and a running track laid on the foundation.

    The gymnasium like classroom was something Dubs had never seen before, but standing by the front were the three rookies Dubs had met yesterday, and another human male. This one had short cut black hair, that was slicked back.

    The boy was standing off to the side, seeming to flirt with Enferia. He was moving his hands back and forth as if telling a grand tale, and the elven girl laughed at his stories.

    The other two, Drodus and Tirian stood to the side having some idle conversation. Dubs approached them and began to speak.

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    "Good morning, Drodus, Tirian.", Dubs stated.

    The two replied "Good morning", sleepily. It seemed that these guys were not used to getting up so early either.

    A shout from across the room reached Dubs ears. "Hey, Dubs! What do you think your doing?", Peter remarked.

    Dubs looked over to see Peter, visibly irritated. "Whats the matter, Sir?", Dubs asked,

    "First off! Before we do anything, everyone here know that you are to address me as Lieutenant Peter, and you are to address Ivan as Captain Ivan. Do I make myself clear!?" Peter asked.

    The four others stood up straight and replied in unison

    "Yes, Lieutenant Peter!"

    Dubs was clearly out of place, but he tried his best to play along.

    "Secondly, you are never to talk back to a superior officer such as myself in the way Dubs just did. Do I make myself clear!?" Peter exclaimed.

    Once again, the squad replied in unison, and this time Dubs was able to reply along with them.

    "Yes, Lieutenant Peter!"

    Peter began to inspect the soldiers up and down, correcting their postures.

    "And finally, if you don''t arrive ten minutes early, then you''re late! Dubs, I''m going to have to ask you to run 10 laps around the track while we relax and have some breakfast as a punishment for being late!" Peter mockingly ordered.

    "Rookies, follow me to the dining hall! Dubs, we have magical surveillance set up around this area, so don''t even think about skipping on your laps. Finish them up, and then meet us in the dining hall for breakfast. Training begins after we eat."

    Dubs grit his teeth, but soon realized that he had no place to be angry. He had joined a resistance, and the military setup was a given. On top of this, this humiliation was nothing compared to the years of torture he had underwent. Dubs began his running around the track, and the others left the gymnasium.

    "Hey, you want me to beat that guy up for you? His level isn''t even close to the power I can produce if you let me take over. What do you say?", Dubs alternate personality suggested.

    Dubs continued running with no sign of fatigue. The torture he had undergone had strengthened his muscles and his cardio, so his physical body was in peak condition. Even considering that physical attacks were the only way that one could hurt Dubs, he was still top class in physical skill so one would have a hard time doing this.

    "No, calm down. I will deal with this for a while, until I am at least able to get as much training out of this instructor as I can. When I have no use for him anymore, I''ll let you do as you please. Perhaps an ''accident'' will occur on a future mission." Dubs replied.

    "AHAHA!! I love this side of you, Dubs. Cool and collected, rational at decision making. Yet, deep down you share my desire to destroy your enemies. You might even be worse that I am, using your enemies before you rid yourself of them.", Dubs alternate personality snickered.

    Dubs smiled. "Perhaps merging with you won''t be so bad. Heh."

    Dubs finished his laps and made his way over to the dining hall.

 18 Chapter 18- Determining levels of Control

    Dubs entered the dining hall to see a number of squads eating together. Lilith and George were eating and laughing with a couple other recruits. Two elven males who looked exactly alike- both blonde with long hair and pointed ears, wearing green archer uniforms with bows strapped across their backs- sat on each side of her.

    There was also a dwarven female, she was short and unattractive but seemed to be having just as good of a time with her squadmates. She wore smithing rags, and had warts covering her definitively large nose. Her brown hair was braided and ran down a few feet.

    Also, a goblin female was a member of the group. She wasn''t as you would imagine most goblins to be. Aside from her lightly green tinted skin, she appeared almost human, with only a few differences in appearance. She too wore nothing but rags, similar to Lilith, along with some golden rings on her ears.

    It seemed that there were no uniforms and very little clothing available to the resistance. "Perhaps as we gain more members we will have a greater ability to produce for ourselves clothing, weapons, armor, and other resources.", Dubs considered.

    He looked over to see his squadmates, eating quietly next to Peter. Not a single one said a word, and as Dubs approached Peter stood up from his seat.

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    "Alright squad, breakfast is over. We will begin our training now and we won''t be eating till dinner, so I hope you''ve had your fill." Peter remarked.

    Turning around he faced Dubs and patted him on the shoulder. "Tough luck Dubs.", Peter sarcastically stated. "Looks like you missed the breakfast window. Lets get to training. If you behave yourself you might be able to eat dinner later."

    Dubs remembered back to the experiments. This was nothing compared to the mockery the empires knights had put him through when they tested their magic. Remembering back to this, he forgot all about his anger towards Peter, and cheerily replied.

    "Yes, Lieutenant Peter!"

    Peter, looking almost dissapointed that Dubs had not retaliated out of anger, continued to advance and lead the group back to the training grounds.

    As Dubs walked, his other self began speaking to him. "I could take care of that guy at any point you know. Just say the word.", he tempted.

    Dubs smiled and replied in his thoughts. "I know. But did you see the look on his face when I didn''t retaliate? That was golden. If all I have to do to piss him off is comply with his orders and refrain from complaining, this will be an easier task than expected."

    "Ahaha! As expected of you, Dubs. You truly are always one step ahead of me. I like your thinking. Keep doing what you''re doing and we really will go places." The voice exclaimed.

    Dubs felt the dark aura within him become stronger, and realized that the merging process was occurring. "It seems that the more we agree on things, the more we merge together. Soon we truly will be one personality.", Dubs thought.

    "Exactomundo Dubs! When that happens, we''ll be unstoppable! With your wit and my power, we will climb the rankings of this world and nobody will be able to contend with us."

    Dubs agreed and continued walking.

    "Alright, this is my limit. I''m going to sleep. I''ll talk to you again when I''ve recovered some energy." The voice groggily said.

    "Understood." Dubs replied.

    Arriving at the training grounds, Peter had the rookies line up so that they could demonstrate their abilities.

    "Alright everyone! Line up and I will go down the line one at a time. When I get to you, I would like you to practice your magical control. Simply gather up a sphere of energy into your palms- it doesn''t matter what type of energy, whatever you are comfortable with."

    The other four quickly formed a line. The slick haired boy was first, followed by Enferia, Tirian, and Drodus. Dubs took a spot behind them all.

    Peter walked up to the slick haired boy and addressed him. "Alright Samuel. Show me what you''ve got."

    Samuel faced his hands towards each other and slowly particles began to rise up from below into a spherical shape. The murky particles looked like dirt, and they swirled around in a ball.

    Peter rubbed his chin. "Hmm... interesting. Well done! You have a high level of magical control and a good affinity for earth magic. Among the earth magic class there are 3 different classes of spells. Acidic, Terrestrial, and Biological. Terrestrial spells are the ones that require only specialization in earth class, however acidic require one to be adept in both earth and water magic. Biological spells, on the other hand, require speicalization in earth and light magic, with certain exceptions."

    Peter continued his lecture. "As soldiers training to be mages, there is one spell that every one of you here must work towards being able to cast. It only requires a basic understanding of the classes of magic that is requires, however it requires one to be able to use earth magic, light magic, and ice magic- a certain subclass of water magic. If you can master this spell, then you will have a great advantage in your long term pursuits as you research and practice to become stronger."

    Peter looked around, and began pacing back and forth. "This spell is the cryogenic stasis spell. It allows you to freeze your cells, while maintaining the required functions and nutrients required for them to stay alive, through the combination of light and earth magic. This was the original goal of the research of the surfacers, however it is now commonly used among anyone who becomes adept in magic."

    "If you manage to master this spell, your lifespan will become indefinite. So long as you can maintain the spell passively, you will cease to age. This is not an easy task, but once one learns to use the spell without having to concentrate energy towards it, it will be extremely beneficial. Even if you manage to master this spell however, do not allow yourself to become overconfident. In this dangerous world, age is not the only thing that can kill- and the majority of people who master this spell have died due to taking on enemies much stronger than themselves."

    Peter finished his lecture and moved on to Enferia. He gave her the go ahead, and she placed her arms together and began concentrating. An elliptical ball of white light began to swirl around in between her hands, slowly becoming more and more spherical.

    She was able to make the ball mostly spherical, however the elliptical shape still remained noticeable. Peter stopped her and began to talk. "It seems that you are best affiliated in light magic. You have a good ability to improve from a bad situation, however your control isn''t perfect. If you work on that, you should be able to become very strong!"

    Enferia nodded and exlclaimed "Yes, Lieutenant!"

    Moving onto Tirian, Peter began his examination. Tirian also began to create a sphere of magic- this one was a deep blue, and watery. Waves rippled across the ball as Tirian concentrated on it.

    "It looks like we have a very promising bunch here in my squad!" Peter happily pronounced. "Your control is good, and the water element is a necessary component to the cryogenic stasis spell. Once you have practiced enough with this one, you may begin to study the other classes."

    Moving on to Drodus, Peter looked at him seriously. "Give it your best shot, boy. Dwarves have never been too adept with magic, but if you practice and work hard, you will surely catch up to the rest."

    Drodus began to stare intently at his hands, and for a few moments nothing happened. After a bit, slowly some flickering red particles, along with other clear particles flowed together. They formed a spiky ball, and the length of each spike oscillated between long and short as if there was some sort of magnetic pull switching the direction where they were being attracted to. The ball looked like a marble, clear with streaks of red swirling around throughout it.

    Peter began to think. "Hmm... as I expected, your control isn''t great, however as a dwarf to be able to resonate with two classes of magic right off the bat is astounding! Unfortunately, the fire and air classes are not needed for the cryogenic stasis spell, however there are plenty of other uses for them. Train hard within the classes you are adept with, and later we can focus on building you up in other classes.

    Drodus nodded, with a serious face as if to say "I will work hard to overcome the disparity in skill between me and my squadmates."

    Finally, Peter moved on to Dubs. Peter looked at Dubs and he disinterestedly stated "Alright, lets get this over with."

    Dubs put his hands together and began to focus on gathering magic.

 19 Chapter 19- Disappointmen

    Dubs placed his hands facing each other in a circular position.

    "Is there some sort of trick to this? Are the magic particles supposed to just collect in my hands?" Dubs thought.

    Nothing happened. Dubs sat bewildered as the air between his hands remained unchanged.

    "Whats going on here? Perhaps I need to concentrate more to gather the particles. Let me try to envision them gathering within my hands."

    Dubs began to imagine particles of all different colors forming in between his hands. His eyes were closed shut, and his brows furred. He heard the footsteps of Peter walking closer to him.

    Opening his eyes, Dubs saw nothing in between his hands, and Peter let out a chuckle.

    Peters face straightened after a short laugh, and he gazed at Dubs.

    "It looks like our test subject here has failed to produce any results." Peter remarked.

    Dubs glanced at Peter, though he looked away confused at what was happening.

    "Perhaps it was true that I have no magical ability after all. This could prove to be an issue if I want to climb the rankings and become powerful. What about my other self though? He was able to easily release bursts of magic. It seems like I am only able to deflect and absorb magic, however I cannot release or gather it.", Dubs considered.

    Looking back at his palms, Dubs remained calm and addressed Peter.

    "Forgive me, Lieutenant Peter! It appears that I do not yet have the ability to control magic.", Dubs reported.

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    Peter gave a smirk and walked away, and coldly whispered "Disappointing..."

    Dubs didn''t pay too much mind to Peters cold treatment of him. "I can deal with him later, however I''ve come upon a large problem. I will have to communicate with my other self to see if I can reconcile this limitation."

    Peter walked back to the center and began speaking.

    "And with that, we have determined where you all stand, and what paths your studies and training will be focused on. With the exception of Dubs, for the time being you all are to focus on improving your skills in the areas in which you are specialized in. Everyone, go on your own initiatives to train yourselves in these skills. As for you Dubs, you had better figure out how to use magic before the first mission comes. I won''t be responsible for babysitting you when that time comes."

    The entire squad let out a shout

    "Yes, Lieutenant!"

    The squad members dispersed among the gym, and Dubs walked over to a corner where he could be alone to speak with his other self.

    "You awake yet? Do you have any idea why I can''t use magic?" Dubs asked

    "Uuuuuuh..." A gargled voice rang through Dubs head. "Alright alright I''m waking up Dubs. What do you want?"

    "Why can''t I gather magic like the other squadmates?" Dubs questioned.

    "Well that much should be obvious. You lack magical control.", the voice responded.

    "What do you mean by that?" Dubs prodded.

    "Alright I''m awake now. Since helping you now will help me to release some stress later I''ll work with ya. Here''s the deal- when you went under experimentation, you were originally a single personality, but you got split into two people- me and you. With the split that occurred, your abilities were also split between us. I gained the ability to release magic, and you gained the ability to resist and absorb or repel it. I also gained the ability to quantitatively analyze, while you maintained the rational ability to decide. I could list off a ton more qualities that got split between me and you, but there''s a pattern."

    Dubs nodded. Interested, he stated "Go on."

    "Each one of the abilities that got split between me and you are counterparts to one another. Without both the abilities to absorb and release magic, you cannot gather magic. Without both the ability to analyze the situation and rationally decide, you cannot make an informed decision. Our abilities overall are hindered by our split personality, and it requires much more effort for us to do what other people would consider to be easy."

    Dubs was shocked. "How could this be?", he thought. "To think that I am starting off my quest for power with such a handicap is a large setback. I wonder if there is a way to correct it?"

    Dubs asked his other self. "Is there anything we can do to regain our abilities to function?"

    "Heh heh.", Dubs other self snickered. "Of cooourse there is, my dear Dubs. All we have to do is become one again. And you know what the best part is?"

    Dubs grinned at hearing this. "What?", He asked.

    "After being split into two for so long, our individual components for the abilities we lost have increased beyond that of a regular human. Needless to say, once we merge with each other and are able to function as one, our power in comparison to others will skyrocket even further."

    Both Dubs and his other self began to laugh hysterically. Their tones lined up as if they were really one person, and when they finished laughing, his other self got Dubs'' attention.

    "Ooooooh... it looks like our synchronization with each other has finally reached 1%! Now that we''ve hit this landmark, we should have each obtained a small amount of each others abilities. Try to gather those particles once more!"

    "Wait a minute..." Dubs pondered. "How do you know we''ve reached 1% synchronization? I felt an increase in our synchronization, but how do you know the amount?."

    The voice responded. "Simple, Dubs. Simple. I gained our ability to quantitatively analyze everything. After having a purely quantitative ability to perceive the world, I have honed my ability to transform all information into numerical data. Every change that goes on around us, I perceive in terms of numbers. Whether it is length, force, time, energy- any measurable quantity, I only see the values.."

    Dubs nodded, and took this into account. "What about me, then?"

    "You, on the other hand, perceive everything qualitatively. You are able to feel the changes in the atmosphere- in peoples intents, and in the objects and auras around you. You lost the ability to associate any information numerically, but gained heightened senses as a result.", The voice replied.

    "You perceive things like a hunter, and I perceive them like a computer. When our minds link, with both quantitative and qualitative ability to perceive, there will be no piece of information that escapes us."

    Dubs began to smile and once more put his hands together. A single red particle began making orbits around a central focus point in between Dubs hands. A green particle followed, along with an orange, a white, a black, a clear, and a blue particle.

    It looked like an atomic model where the electrons revolved around the nucleus of an atom.

    "Haha! You''ve done it Dubs! Our synchronization has allowed us to use a small amount of magic! Keep at it, and we''ll surely grow stronger."

    Dubs agreed and continued practicing,

    Hearing footsteps coming close to him, the haughty voice of a young male resounded in Dubs'' ears.

    "Whats going on, failed experiment? Trying to gather up some magic to prove yourself useful? If I were you I would just go into hiding somewhere and quit your lofty ambitions here."

    Samuel appeared in front of him, and he flipped his hair from left to right. His hands were in his jacket pockets, and he wore a condescending facial expression.

    Dubs lost his concentration and the particles he had gathered dispersed back into the air. Regaining his composure, he stood up and faced Samuel.

    "I wouldn''t be insulting a failed experiment if I were you. Chaos follows us, you know.", Dubs answered.

    "You sure know how to talk back, for someone who talks to himself." Samuel retorted. Putting his arm around Dubs, his face twisted with enjoyment. "You better keep to yourself pal. I''m the prodigy here, and I have no intention of letting anyone who goes against me survive in the resistance. You get me?"

    Dubs heard his other self speak to him. "You wanna know the numbers on this guy? Lemme tell you so you know how strong you are compared to him."

    Dubs replied to his other self, ignoring Samuel. "Sure, what do you got for me?"

    Samuel became confused at Dubs reply. "You must really be going nuts. I don''t even know what you''re trying to tell me, but if you''re picking a fight I wont back down." He stated aggressively.

    Dubs other self whispered to him. "His physical attack strength is 3.51 times as strong as yours, but his physical defense and vitality is 5.23 times less than yours. His reflex speed is 1.2 times that of yours. After running the numbers, if you were to fight him physically, you''d come out on top. What do you say, Dubs? Wanna challenge this guy to a fight? Magic won''t be an issue due to your resistances."

    Dubs smirked, but decided not to fight. "I have to keep up my reputation for now. We can fight later when we won''t get caught." Dubs addressed this statement at his other self, but Samuel clearly believed that Dubs was speaking to him.

    "Heh. I guess you''re not wrong there. You better not chicken out on me when that time comes, though." Samuel took his arm off Dubs and shoved him away. Dubs fell backwards, but his leg firmly planted itself as he was falling to prevent him from losing his balance further.

    "Haha! What a jerk! I hope you don''t mind that I took over your leg for a second there Dubs, I didn''t want him to get the satisfaction of witnessing you falling over.", Dubs other self rasped.

    Dubs smiled and began to walk back towards where the other 3 students were training themselves.

    "Time to check up on how everyone else is looking.", Dubs remarked.

 20 Chapter 20- Samuel

    Samuel walked back over to the opposing area of the training grounds, with an annoyed look on his face.

    "Who does that guy think he is? He''s nothing more than a failed experiment. I''ll show that half surfacer who is on top here.", Samuel thought.

    Samuel remembered back to 4 years prior, before he had joined the resistance.

    A blonde woman laid in bed, her skin pale as snow. Hey eyes sagged lifelessly, as she laid in the bed. Her body was as motionless as a statue.

    A couple of knocks were heard before the wooden door slid open. A young man, with thick black hair and metal armor waltzed in.

    Placing his helmet on the nightstand, the man pulled up a stool and sat next to the woman. Grabbing her hand, a tear flowed from his eyes.

    The man held her hand to his face and he then placed it back on the bed next to the woman.

    "Mother, there is something I need to tell you." The man stated.

    The woman''s eyes drifted towards the boy. "What is it, my son?"

    The man looked down, ashamed. "Mother, I can no longer stay in this horrid place. After years of working as a knight for the empire, I have seen tragedy occur one after another. I have seen towns overtaken to produce slaves and test subjects. Racism against nonhumans is very common among the nobility."

    The man stroked the woman''s hair. "I have even seen humans who are deemed to be low class be abused for these reasons. I can no longer stay among the knights of the empire, for fear that I may give in to their practices."

    The mother looked lovingly at her son. "Do what you believe to be right. That is all I ask.", she gently whispered.

    The boy held back emotions as his face furled with them. Reaching into his pocket, he grabbed out a brown sack.

    "I have spent years amassing this money so that I may one day leave this place. Samuel can use this money to assist and take care of you, until he is old enough to provide for you himself. I am not abandoning you, mother." the boy stated, flustered.

    The woman gave him a smile before closing her eyes and falling asleep.

    The boy left in silence.

    Night fell, and a 12 year old Samuel entered his mothers room. "Mother! I have returned from school. Has Edward come home yet? If not, I will go to the market to get us some dinner.", Samuel asked.

    Looking over to her son with a sad face, the mother beckoned for Samuel to come closer. Walking over to his mother, Samuel sat down and listened.

    "My son, your brother has left on a quest for righteousness." Samuel''s mother pushed the sack of money towards him. "He has left this for us to survive on. Use it wisely so that we may live until you begin to work."

    Samuel''s eyes went wide with shock, and he stood up in anger. "First my father, and now my brother? Do they have no sense of responsibility! How can they abandon you in your sickly condition like this, mother?", Samuel demanded.

    Samuel''s anger was only met with a kind stare from his mother. "Your father and your brother both left to do what they believed was right. We have enough for ourselves, and should be thankful for what we have.", she replied.

    A year passed, and Samuel quit his schooling to begin work in the fields. The money his brother provided was enough to last a few years, but Samuel was disgusted by his brother, and stubbornly tried to avoid using the money his brother had left for them.

    "Regardless of how righteous his reason is, I will not forgive my brother or my father for abandoning my sickly mother. If they still live, I will find and confront them one day so that they may repent and beg my mothers forgiveness.", Samuel resolved.

    Returning home one day from work, Samuel saw the doors of his home flung open. Two guards were posted outside his doors, and Samuel ran up to them.

    "What is going on here? Why have you come to this home?!", Samuel cried.

    The masked guard looked down at Samuel and let out a "hmph"

    "This isn''t the business of any child. Edward Charleston, the head of this household, has been deemed a cooperator with the surface guild and his family has been sentenced to become slaves as punishment for this offence."

    Samuel began to run into the household, but he was stopped at the spears of the guards. One guard gave Samuel a chop with the back of their spear, and Samuel blacked out before he could react.

    "I''m trying to save you from the life of a slave, kid. Don''t mess things up for yourself.", the guard retorted.

    Samuel woke up in a green field. "Where am I?! Where is my mother!?", he screamed. Looking behind him, Samuel saw the guard.

    "Go, kid. The surface is a dangerous place, but you will no longer be welcome underground. Your mother will most likely become some nobles concubine. If you wish to stay alive, leave here. I won''t bother to be this kind again." The guard trodded off back into the castle gates, and Samuel remained kneeling on the ground, unable to comprehend what had just happened.

    "How could this be? How can my mother have been arrested? This is the fault of my brother! I must survive in order to take my revenge on him.", Samuel resolved.

    "I will never forgive the empire, and I will never forgive the surfacers for corrupting my family!", Samuel shouted in desperation.

    Pounding the ground, Samuel then stood up and began to walk into the nearby forest.

    "I must first learn to survive out here."

    Samuel tripped over a number of branches and bushes before coming across a bush that was covered in brown crystals.

    The leaves of the bush were green, but outlined with a red streak along the veins. All other life immediately surrounding the bush had died off, and a patch of vegetation-less dirt surrounded it.

    The brown crystals gleamed like Topazes, and Samuel began to feel woozy as he came closer to them.

    "What on earth could this be? I''ve never seen anything like this before..."

    Samuel collapsed next to the bush, and awoke once more in a dark laboratory.

    Samuel sat up on the concrete lab table, and looked around him. Surrounded by a number of arrays and magical devices, Samuel was overloaded by his current situation. A white robed figure with a covered face approached him.

    "You were found in the woods with severe radiation burns from the earth crystal plant.", Lady Isabelle stated.

    Samuel continued to look around confused, and noticed that his body was covered with brown blisters and boils.

    "I have treated you to the extent that I can. The rest is up to you. Get some rest, child.", Lady Isabelle remarked, as she exited the room.

    From this moment on, Samuel spent his time healing his radiation wounds for multiple years. Unbeknownst to him, over the course of these few years his mind and body became enabled to use magic, and be became especially adept with earth magic, as this was the radiation he was exposed to.

    After resting for a few years and recovering, Samuel was then sent to Lardis to begin his training as a mage. All the while, his desire for revenge against his brother furthered, and his hatred for both the surfacers and the empire was continuously stoked.

    Unknowing of what became of his mother, he assumed her dead. She was a sickly woman, who couldn''t even get out of bed. After being forcefully taken away and used as a concubine, her chance of survival approached zero.

    Samuel became a delinquent, filled with rage.

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    A few days prior, Samuel overheard a conversation between Ivan and Peter regarding the past of Dubs. After discovering that Dubs'' father was a surfacer, Samuel cringed with hatred.

    "I will not allow a surfacer to live such a carefree life here in the resistance. This is the new home I have taken up, and I will show him that his kind is not welcome here.", Samuel decided.

    "I have become a prodigy in earth magic. I need only to prove that I exceed his abilities, and he will bend his knee to the pecking order."

    After the aptitude test, Samuel realized just how unskilled Dubs was in magical control. Even among non radiated humans, most of them could gather at least a tiny percentage of their magical energy. Dubs however, could not, which made him below even the level of a regular person.

    Samuel walked away from his encounter with Dubs, reminiscing. "Just you wait. In due time it will become obvious what the difference between us is."

    Samuel went off on his own to train, as Dubs approached the others to check up on how their training was going.

 21 Chapter 21- Statistics

    Dubs approached the other 3, who seemed to all be focused on improving their control over magic.

    "How is everyone doing? Getting the hang of things?", Dubs asked.

    Tirian, who had become used to controlling his sphere of water, turned towards Dubs. Placing his hand on Dubs shoulder, he encouraged him.

    "It is alright if you lack immediate skill with magic, Dubs! I''m sure that with training you will be able to overcome any initial disposition you are faced with."

    Enferia and Drodus, who had also been refining their control over their respective elements, looked at Dubs and nodded.

    "We are a squad, and we believe in you Dubs", Enferia stated.

    Dubs smiled at them, even though he knew their words were shallow. Dubs knew that they all considered him to be an outcast, and that his other self had freaked them out. Still, his other self was a part of him, as Dubs had learned recently.

    "Will I cease to be a split personality when we merge?", Dubs pondered.

    Drodus continued his training on control. Tirian and Enferia had been trying to assist him since they had both already mastered the technique.

    Drodus put his hands together once more and another red and clear ball formed. The ball was significantly rounder than it had initially been, even though there were still some smaller protrusions. The fact that Drodus had improved so much over such a small time period showed great promise.

    Dubs other self began to whisper to him. "Hey Dubs? You wanna know how strong these people are?"

    Dubs thought for a second and nodded. It would be good to see where he stood compared to his other classmates.

    "The noble has a physical attack strength of 1.34 times your own, and a physical defense and vitality of 0.167 times your own. Reflex speed is 0.93 times your own. Magical resistance to water is 7%, and control over water element is 3%."

    Dubs nodded. It seemed that most males had a greater physical attack strength than him, but most people had significantly less defense and vitality that he did. This was most likely due to the rigorous torture Dubs had endured over the years, combined with the fact that he had never cared to fight back.

    Dubs other self continued his analysis. "The dwarf had a physical attack strength at 2.13, and a defense of 0.475. Agility is 0.67. Fire resistance is at 8% and air resistance is at 5%, while control of fire element is at 2% and control of air element is at 0.5%."

    The dwarf had a surprisingly higher vitality than the rest of the males, but his agility suffered. His affinity with fire magic wasn''t bad, and he also had some affinity with some air magic, which would allow him to easily begin training in multiple classes of magic.

    Finally, Dubs other self analyzed Enferia. "The elf has a physical attack strength of 0.47, and a defense/vitality of 0.12. Agility is 1.54, and resistance to light magic is at 6.5%. Control of light magic has recently increased from 4% to 5%"

    As an elf, Enferia was the one who was the most prone to have an increase in her magical abilities. While her physical stats lacked, she would be a strong supporting party member in the long run.

    The voice explained to Dubs further. "From this point on, I will compare statistics with respect to your current strength. When you get stronger, the statistics I refer to your strength with will increase. Resistances and affinities are fixed percentages however, therefore there is no need to have a reference to compare them to."

    Dubs nodded. He knew that his current resistances were at 100% for all types of magic, and that his control for all types of magic was extremely low. If he considered his health to be at 100 points, Samuel had 20 health, Drodus had 48, Tirian had 17, and Enferia had 12.

    Dubs asked his other self. "What are my current levels of control over each magic type?"

    Dubs other self responded, "For each type of magic, your control is at approximately 0.025%"

    "So Low!", Dubs thought. "I suppose we will have to merge more before I can compete with my squadmates."

    "Heh heh. Duuubs? Aren''t you forgetting something?? Your resistances are off the chart. Your defense and vitality are also excessive for someone in training. Right now, nobody else at this level could take you down. Buuuuuut.... your only attacks right now are physical. Even so, you''ve never swung a sword in your life. So what do you say we speed up the merging process?", Dubs other self giddily explained.

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    "How would we do that?", Dubs inquired.

    Dubs felt a dark presence creep over him. "We go on a rampage together. Sounds like fun, right?"

    Dubs paused for a second. "I don''t think that is a bad idea... however we shouldn''t do it while were here. Perhaps when we are sent on a mission I will consider it."

    The voice was slowly becoming more and more deranged. "Aaaaah.... you''re no fun Dubs.. I wanted to slaughter some of the people here... Peter or Samuel would surely satisfy my appetite."

    Dubs face became stern. "No, we must be patient when it comes to that sort of thing. If we take anyone out on a whim like this it will have consequences."

    Dubs face became slightly twisted with malicious intent. "However, if we take our time and do things properly, then there is a high chance of an ''accident'' happening to them in the future..."

    Dubs face went back to normal. "What was I just saying? No matter. I should focus right now on two things. First, I should try to improve my magical control, and second, I should try to improve my skills with a sword. Perhaps tomorrow I will begin training with the dagger Ivan gave to me."

    Dubs other self seemed to have become less deranged, and whispered one more piece of information to Dubs. "Ah there is one last thing. Even when you achieve 100% control over the magic of a certain class, this doesn''t mean you can do whatever you want withing that class. Each spell requires a certain level of control, and can only be practiced (and eventually mastered) when that level of control has been reached. Since every spell is different, just because you have 100% magic control doesn''t mean you know every single spell. You must individually practice and become skilled at each one."

    "Furthermore, each spell will cost a certain amount of energy. Each person has a maximum limit of energy called their mana. This increases as you become more skilled at magical control. If you have 100% magical control in every class, then your mana is temporarily maximized and can only be further increased through specific crystals or item enchantments."

    Dubs noted this information. "I assume I do not currently know any spells. Do any of the others in my squad know any spells? Also, what does my current amount of mana look like?"

    The voice responded "Right now, nobody in your squad has learned any spells- this may change quickly however with the next few days of training. Peter probably plans on advancing everyone ahead of you quickly, so we had better keep up with his shenanigans."

    "Your current mana, regrettably, is at 1.5. I didn''t explain this before, as magical abilities wont effect you in a fight, but right now Samuel has an earth resistance of 10% and a control over earth magic of 5%. His mana right now is up to 50, as is Enferia''s. Tirian is at 30 right now, and Drodus is at 25."

    Dubs cringed. "I really am inferior to the others when it comes to control and attack power. No matter, I will soon surpass all of them!"

    The voice laughed. "That''s the spirit, Dubs!"

    Dubs placed his hands together and began gathering particles of all different types of magic.

 22 Chapter 22- Quality is more Important than Quantity

    Hours passed, and Dubs continuously attempted to gain control over the magical particles he had gathered.

    Unable to gather any more than the 6 particles he had initially gathered, he instead began trying to manipulate their orbitals around the central point

    Little by little, he was able to shift the courses of each different particle. He eventually became so good at it that he was able to completely freeze the particle in space, and even reverse its direction if he wanted to.

    "Hoh? I''m impressed, Dubs. You may not be able to control a large amount of particles yet, but you have complete control over the few you can gather after just a small amount of practice.", Dubs other self proclaimed.

    Dubs silently nodded, and continued practicing.

    "The interesting part is the fact that you can control each element evenly. As you heard from Peter when he was evaluating Drodus, it is rare for a given person to be able to control even 2 classes of magic. To control all 6 is beyond imagination!", Dubs other self exclaimed.

    Dubs frowned in disagreement, and stated "No, that will only make me a jack of all trades, and a master of none. I must strive to master at least one of the classes. If possible, I should try to master all of them!"

    "Always so serious Dubs. Never willing to give yourself any credit. That''s fine by me, it will motivate you to work harder. Don''t disappoint me, Dubs..." The voice became quieter and quieter until it no longer spoke.

    Dubs continued to practice for the rest of the day. After a few hours had passed, he had trained to the point where he could freely move the particles around the room at range.

    Standing 30 feet away, Dubs approached the straw test dummies. After hours of practice, he only needed one hand to gather the 6 particles. With the upwards flick of his hand, they appeared in their orbitals and Dubs sent them all spiraling towards the dummy.

    The particles formed a circle, and Dubs extended the 5 fingers on his hand to form an open palm. The radius of the circular path the particles rotated about increased at a constant rate, until Dubs retracted his fingers.

    The rotating circle of particles translated over to above the head of the dummy, and Dubs lowered his hand. The ring descended on the dummy like a necklace being placed on someones head, and Dubs lifted his hand back to the original position.

    Dubs then closed his fingers into the shape of a fist, and the radius of the swirling circle decreased, slowly approaching the neck of the dummy, as if trying to strangle it.

    When the particles reached the neck of the dummy, they began to saw away at the wooden neck like a chainsaw, until they all converged on the central point.

    The head of the dummy was sent flying, and hit the back wall with a "pshh" as the straw fluffed and then fell to the ground. The wooden neck hit the ground with a "clank!", and Dubs smiled.

    Dubs eyes turned slightly bloodthirsty, and he began giggling to himself in silent.

    When Dubs had finished his laughing fit, Drodus approached him quietly.

    Drodus had seen Dubs laughing like this a few times now, and was no longer as phased by it. Instead, he simply waited patiently for Dubs to finish before he went near him.

    "Dubs... what on earth was that? How did you sent that dummy''s head flying just now? I couldn''t even see anything. Were you using air magic, so that the particles were clear, or some sort of stealth technique that left an afterimage?"

    Dubs eyes remained bloodshot as they darted over towards Drodus. In an instant, Dubs had put his hand around Drodus and began speaking like a madman,

    "Drodus, my good friend. There are some things that you don''t need to know. Just know that I am training hard, and reaping the benefits of my training.", Dubs crackled.

    Coming to his senses, Dubs eyes once again became normal, and his memory became hazy. His other self had not taken over him- if that were the case then his eyes would have rolled back into his head.

    "Ah! It seems I''ve figured out how to control a small amount of magic!" Dubs peacefully exclaimed, taking his arm off Drodus, who''s face was filled with fear.

    "Take a look, my friend!"

    Dubs then held up his hand and the six particles flew around in circles, and Drodus calmed himself.

    Drodus began to think to himself. "I don''t know whats going on with Dubs, but I don''t feel that he is a bad person. He probably is just bad at communication. However, I cant believe it! These magical particles are so small that I can''t even see them from a distance, and yet he used them to decapitate the head of that dummy, from range too!"

    Drodus, surprised, congratulated Dubs. "Great job, Dubs! You probably have already surpassed me in attack power, despite the fact that I am able to control a ball of magic many times greater than what you can control!"

    Dubs flicked his hand down and the particles dissipated.

    Drodus walked away, and continued his own practices.

    The day was nearing its end, and Peter began to call up all the recruits.

    "Alright, everyone! Training is over for the day. From here on out, here is how things will work. You all are soldiers of the resistance, under the guise of mercenaries in the guild. It is your own duty to make yourself stronger, so train at your own discretion. When you feel that you have trained sufficiently in basic skills and no longer know what you should focus on, you will report to me for advising. Understood?", Peter asked.

    "Yes, Lieutenant!" The squad replied, lined up.

    "You are all dismissed!", Peter relayed.

    The squad headed out towards the dining hall. After a long day of training, the other four made small talk in the hallway, and Dubs kept his distance.

    "I feel that we all did well today and improved our skills!", Enferia proclaimed.

    "I feel the same way. Soon enough we will be a formidable squad. When do you think we be able to take on our first mission?" Tirian asked.

    "Hopefully within a week. I cant wait to test out my skills.", Samuel boasted.

    Dubs followed at a distance and got some food when he came to the dining hall. Beef stew with potatoes was being served, and Dubs sat alone and began to eat in peace.

    The stew was mediocre at best, but compared to the injected nutrients he experienced during his days as a test subject, this was like a taste of heaven itself.

    The four members of his squad were sitting at a different table, and Dubs other self began to speak to him.

    "It''s only natural that you would be inclined to be away from them. You are vitally different. Nobody here understands what you''ve gone through."

    Dubs nodded in agreement, but didn''t appear to be hateful or angry. "I must take care of myself. Reliance on comrades is nothing less than weakness. I have no intention of making friends, for that would only mean the duty to risk myself in order to protect them." Dubs coldly whispered.

    "Oooh scary." The voice replied. "I agree with you there. The less people you become attached to, the less consequences there are if I disturb them. HAHA!"

    Dubs continued slowly chewing his stew, when all of a sudden another plate appeared next to his. Looking up, he saw Lilith, wearing a nice suit of leather armor. Her black hair had been combed and well groomed, and she regained the elegance of a noble.

    She sat next to Dubs quietly, avoiding eye contact. The two sat and ate in silence.

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    "Was there something you needed?", Dubs asked.

    Lilith twirled her hair and replied softly. "I... are you alright? How has this first day of training been? Have you kept things under control?"

    Dubs laughed loudly. "Ahhh there is no need to worry about me! I''m doing great so far with my progress in training. Everything is going according to plan. And yourself? I see that you''ve gotten some new gear. What have you been up to today?"

    Lilith let out a sigh of relief seeing that Dubs could be so cheerful, even when being isolated and unstable. She perked herself up and answered.

    "I have been doing basic physical training all day. It has been rough, but I will persevere in making myself stronger. My affinity lies in light magic, so soon enough I will begin to train in healing skills."

    Dubs nodded. "Very good! If I am in a pinch, I hope that one day I will be able to rely on you to heal me."

    Dubs inner self laughed hysterically inside his mind. "Pfffftt!! All that talk about being independent and the second you talk to someone you''re already contradicting yourself." Dubs waved for his inner voice to shut up.

    "At any rate, I have been working on my magical control today. Tomorrow I will begin physical training. I hope to see you again." Dubs trailed off after finishing his meal and returned to his dorm.

    He began to speak to his other self once he was alone again. "In time I will master light magic and healing abilities, should the need for them arise. For now, I suppose it wouldn''t hurt to place a little bit of trust in my comrades. My first priority, however, is to not get hurt in the first place."

    Dubs other self let out a sigh but agreed. "Alright, you''re not wrong there."

    Dubs returned to his room and began lying in his bed. He took his fathers dagger and began to twirl it around, getting used to the weight and size. "Tomorrow I figure you out.", he ominously mumbled.

    Now that Dubs had gained some control over magical skills, he could feel a vast amount of darkness energy within the dagger. Without a doubt, it had been used to kill many people, and powerful dark magic users at that.

    Placing the dagger down, Dubs began to close his eyes. Right before he fell asleep, his inner self rasped a final statement.

    "Always remember though, Dubs. If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself."

 23 Chapter 23- Shadow fighting

    Dubs awoke in the early morning and forced himself out of bed. After a quick shower, he got ready and headed out to the training grounds.

    Technically speaking, as of right now it was not required for him to get up so early to train, but Dubs was intent on becoming as strong as possible as soon as he could, so he got up early to train all day long.

    Entering the training grounds, Dubs realized that this morning he was the first person to arrive.

    "Haha. I get lectured and punished for arriving a few minutes early yesterday, and today not a single person has arrived before me. Peter certainly isn''t what I would call a consistent teacher." Dubs retorted.

    "No matter. I need only to focus on myself. Lets get started."

    Dubs walked through the dark gymnasium,illuminated by lanterns along the walls. Coming to the end of it, past the dummies, there were a series of training rooms specifically meant for one to test their own power.

    The rooms were made of the sturdiest metal that the resistance had access to, and protected also by magical barriers. The metal itself had many resistive properties, however it was extremely heavy and thus could only be used as armor by the strongest of warriors.

    Dubs entered the safe-like room and shut the large metal door, closing the hatch. Inside, it looked like a room from straight out of a mental asylum, the walls and flooring covered with a mattress like material- obviously one that was also resistant to magic and protected by barriers.

    Dubs had a slight amount of trouble walking at first on the fluffy material, and wobbled into the center of the room. Regaining his balance, he found a foothold and managed to walk properly.

    Dubs unsheathed his dagger, and held it awkwardly in both hands. Any warrior would be disgusted by how unnaturally he was posing with the dagger, and how inefficient the following moves would be.

    Dubs began to thrust forward with the dagger, but he lost his footing and tripped.

    "AHAHA What a klutz!", Dubs other self mocked.

    Dubs got up slowly and his face became annoyed.

    "As if you could do any better!", Dubs shouted.

    The voice snickered and began to boast.

    "Oh? Well why don''t we find out then?"

    Dubs, confused, muttered "Huh? You don''t even have a body! Don''t even consider taking over mine. Whatever you''re planning, if you take over my body and do all the work for me then I won''t become any stronger myself."

    "Then let me show you something interesting. Ever since we''ve been able to communicate like this, our synchronization has slowly increased little by little. Just last night we reached the 2% threshold. Now take a look at this..." The voice ominously stated.

    Dubs felt a tingle in his head, and it began moving downwards in his body to his feet. His shadow then began to squirm as it became a 3 dimensional blob, which then formed into the shape of himself.

    The shadow figure stretched his arms and began looking around.

    "Ahhhhh!!!! It feels so good to be outside again!" The shadow figure exclaimed.

    "....". Dubs stared at the figure confused. "Eh? EHH!?"

    The shadow figure grinned. "As our specialization is dark magic, I can now control the shape and figure of your shadow. However, this is no more than a projection- you could even think of it as a hallucination. I have merely transmitted my consciousness inside your shadow, and because I am one with you, you are aware of my existence here. Anyone else would not be able to see me."

    Dubs slowly nodded in disbelief, however soon came over it. "I''ve seen a lot weirder things than this over the past few days. I''m sure I will continue to see even stranger things.", he thought.

    The figure also had the same clothes as Dubs, and the figure took out the dagger on his side. Holding it firmly in his right hand, placing his left in a fist near his chest, he positioned himself.

    "This is how you hold a dagger. One handed, ready for quick thrusts or slices. When you attack an enemy, your best advantage will be stealth and speed. If you can attack someone from behind quickly, your dagger and be in and out of their neck before they even know you existed." Dubs other self explained.

    Dubs positioned his dagger and his left hand similar to the way his other self had taught him. His other self turned around, showing Dubs his back, and pointed to his own neck.

    "This form is nothing but a hologram, so you wont be able to physically harm me, however I can solidify the shadow material so that you can gain experience as if slashing a real person. For now, try to slit my throat.", Dubs other self beckoned.

    Dubs was reluctant at first, but re-positioned himself and began to run towards his other self. Taking the dagger and thrusting it from the side above the shoulder of his other self, he went in for a slash to the neck.

    Dubs hand was caught by the hand of his other self. "Pathetic. I could hear you running at me from a mile away. Do you expect to catch anyone off guard with that? Try again."

    Dubs stepped back and began to lightly tread on the fluffy material, making as little noise as possible. His other self had closed his eyes and even began to whistle loudly, as if to say "I don''t even need to be on my guard to know where you are."

    Going for a different approach, this time Dubs decided to go for a stab to the back. If his other self believed the attack would come to the neck, perhaps he could land an attack this way.

    Dubs planted his foot quietly and began a thrusting motion. Using his entire body to propel himself forward, he aimed for the lower back of the shadow figure.

    A second before the dagger hit, a hand appeared in front of it. The dagger hit the hand of his other self with a "Clang!" and Dubs felt vibrations throughout his body. With the impact Dubs let go of the dagger, causing it to fly to the side.

    Dubs other self began to burst out in laughter again. "AHAHA! Duuubs! I like how you tried to attack me in a deceitful way, truly that was wonderful. Bravo! However, there are a number of flaws in your plan."

    "The first flaw is that I could feel your emotions and your intent raging from yourself. I didn''t even need to see or hear you to know where you were and how you were attacking.", his other self explained.

    "The second thing is that when you improve your magical skills, you should try to learn a sound masking technique so that the entirety of sound produced by you is eliminated."

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    "Third, is that in order to increase the power of attacks you must learn how to channel magical energy within your weapon. You could also enchant it, but that will be much more difficult in the long run, as that requires enough skill to permanently infuse energy into an object. "

    "The final thing is that you have to increase your physical statistics. If you had been faster and had more physical power, perhaps you would have been able to reach my back before I had blocked. Also, if you had a better balance perhaps you would have been able to hold onto the dagger despite the shock you experienced.", Dubs other self critiqued.

    Dubs was a bit overwhelmed by all the mistakes he made and the areas he needed to improve in. How long would he have to train for to increase all these abilities to such an extent?

    "Even so, your movements and form are not bad. For now, pick one of the 4 areas to train in. I would suggest the physical training first, as that one can be accomplished through sheer perseverance." Dubs other self advised.

    Agreeing, Dubs gathered his dagger and left the room. Upon exiting, he came face to face with Peter.

    Peter stared him down. Dubs saw the other four squadmates, spread throughout the gym all training individually.

    "What exactly was going on in there? Why could I sense so much evil intent coming from that room?" Peter asked.

    Dubs put his hand behind his head and began to speak. "Yes, Lieutenant Peter. I was doing some training to test my physical abilities. If you sensed any evil intent, it must have been my raging emotions from the intense training."

    Peter stared at Dubs, suspicious, but let him off the hook.

    "He must have sensed my presence since I was no longer masked by your body when I existed within your shadow. I''ll be more careful from now on, but it shouldn''t be a problem. After all, our specialization is within stealth magic."

    Dubs made an awkward face. "Are you telling me that you just told me to conceal my emotions when you weren''t even concealing your own?"

    "What? I was testing you to see if you could sense it. That''s another thing you should work on improving." His other self replied.

    Dubs rolled his eyes and began to run around the track, switching off between jogging and sprinting. He spent the rest of the day improving both his running speed and his stamina, and by the end of the day he was exhausted and drenched in sweat.

    Limping his way to the dining hall for dinner, Dubs other self laughed again. "Looks like you forgot to eat breakfast again today Dubs. Better eat up now while you can."

    Dubs laughed as well.

    "It seems like I did."

 24 Chapter 24- Honed Skills

    Following the events of the previous day, Dubs headed back once more to the dining hall. Upon arriving and acquiring some food, Clark approached Dubs.

    "Hey, Dubs! It''s been a while since we''ve seen each other." Clark sat down next to Dubs with a tray loaded with all types of meats and desserts.

    Dubs looked over and suppressed his other self''s desire to take over and speak. "I need to keep things under control in order to form reasonable relations with those surrounding me.", he thought.

    Clark began eating and started pointing around with his fork as if trying to tell Dubs something, but he couldn''t because his mouth was too full.

    After a gulp and a swig of the cheap beer the resistance had access to, Clark began to discuss with Dubs.

    "The resistance has been considering what to do with you long term. We plan on letting you stay here for a short amount of time to train, but once you''ve become trained enough to survive on the outside were going to send you over to Reagan.", he explained.

    "She may be a little nuts, similar to yourself, but she has a great amount of advanced technology and knowledge that we couldn''t hope to obtain in our small sector here. With that, you can feel free to research magic as you please, and get a better understanding of your own condition."

    Clark continued shoving the food down and finished his plate. "Be patient and train yourself up for now. I will let you know when the time comes for you to leave this place."

    Dubs agreed and finished up his food before retiring to his room.

    "So I will be leaving once my training is finished, eh? We had better try to finish this training as soon as possible then.", Dubs contemplated.

    His other self spoke to him. "Hmm... I hope I''ll be able to hold out before then without lashing out at someone...". His voice trailed off with a laugh.

    Dubs had already considered this, and decided that he would simply rid the earth of either Samuel or Peter should his other self need to release pent up stress.

    The ideal scenario, however, would be if Dubs could vent stress through sheer training, and allow his other self to hang on until he left to the surface.

    Dubs went to sleep confident that he would be able to continue becoming stronger.

    A week passed. Days upon days of training befell on Dubs. He trained in running, weightlifting, and even sword fighting with his other self.

    Dubs once again found himself in the resistive training room, squaring off with the shadow figure. They faced each other, both daggers drawn. Like a mirror image, the shadow of Dubs almost perfectly replicated himself.

    Their faces wreaked of blood lust and thirst for battle. There was a fire present in their eyes that could not be extinguished with mere words. It was the preceding of an exchange of emotions through blades.

    The two figures dashed off from their positions, sprinting towards each other like two cheetahs. Both Dubs and his other self swerved their daggers about themselves and their opponent gracefully, like a well performed dance routine.

    Dodging by a hairs length, the two continuously attacked each other. The strikes were quicker than the normal eye could see, and if a normal human were to be subjected to even a single one of these strikes, they would be lying on the floor in a bloody mess before they even knew they were being targeted.

    The two focused intensely on the battle. The thrill of battle permeated throughout the air, but the balance was ever delicate. Even a single distraction would lead to defeat.

    The two furiously continued their attacks, trying to maneuver themselves in such a way so that they could both dodge the incoming attack and launch an unexpected counter.

    The reflexes of both parties would not allow for such a situation, however, as even when Dubs shadow figure had dodged an attack to the gut by molding himself to form a short blob, which dodged underneath the dagger, and then squirmed underneath Dubs'' legs and performed a surprise attack from the backside, Dubs then performed a back flip into the air to avoid the situation.

    With incredible agility, speed, and power, the two continued their evenly matched exchange for another 20 minutes.

    Dubs let out a smirk and while continuously attacking with his right hand, began to control a single magical particle with his right. He kept this out of view of his other self, and guided it underneath the ground to perform a surprise attack.

    When his other self had dodged in such a way that he would land in the area where Dubs had hidden the trap, Dubs let the particle emerge, causing his shadow to reform himself to avoid the magic damage. In the reformation, he took the form of a donut, and the particle flew in between the hole.

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    Dubs took advantage of this molding and attacked the area where the donut was forming. As if perfectly on cue, the shadowy material that his other form used as a body took form at the exact same time that Dubs'' dagger was thrusting within that area. Once again the dagger hit the shadowy material with a clang, but Dubs did not lose his composure over the shock.

    Instead, Dubs kept his guard up and dodged one final attack from his other self by the skin of his teeth.

    The two stopped and stared at each other silently for a moment before they both bursted out in laughter. Anyone looking onto the scene would have seen a schizophrenic madman laughing among himself while focusing on an imaginary figure, but to Dubs this was everyday life.

    "AHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!! What a thrill!! I cannot believe you managed to improve yourself to this level in such a small amount of time, Dubs!", his other voice croaked.

    "It is your win for this match. Congratulations, you have finally beaten me on a physical level. All that is left is to hone your magical skills and you will be able to defeat me.", the voice complimented.

    Dubs smiled and fell to the ground, exhausted. Even after his rigorous physical training, fighting his other self was something that required complete concentration and perfection in every area. A single mistake would lead to his defeat.

    Not only that, but ever since Dubs had improved his fighting ability, his other self would come at him with increasing levels of killing intent. At this point, if his other self had landed an attack, there would be no pulled punches. If the attack happened to be fatal, Dubs would have died on the spot.

    This was how it had to be however, in order for Dubs to improve to this level so quickly. If there are no consequences for ones actions, they begin to think that failure is acceptable as an option.

    Dubs was well aware that failure was not an option, and that the only way to survive in this cruel world was to produce results.

    "You really have become a completely different person. Despite the raging emotions we both were emitting during the fight, you had them fully concealed, so that I couldn''t tell the intent of each strike until it was almost completed. I wasn''t able to detect any giveaways to your attacks through sound either, as you''ve mastered the ability to move silently. Along with that, you can now sense my own intentions, and are able to react in time as a result."

    Dubs smiled, laying down on the soft mattress material. Closing his eyes, he spread out his arms and relaxed.

    "Not only those things, but your physical stats show that you are a no longer weak by any means. Your strength has increased to 12.36, agility has gone up to 10.94, and Perception has increased to 15.52. Your vitality has only increased to around 150 health points, however this still is no small increase. With this amount of exponential growth, you are already stronger than the strongest knight of the empire!", Dubs other self exclaimed.

    Dubs was quite shocked by this. "What do you mean?", he demanded. "Surely the strongest warriors of the empire exceed this level. Do you jest?"

    Dubs other voice spoke seriously. "No, I am telling you what I have seen. Among all the knights who used you at a training dummy, the strongest among them had around 6 of each statistic- agility, strength, and perception. The ones who were allowed to use you for training were in the upper echelon of all empire warriors, so if there was anyone stronger I would be informed."

    What a discovery this was! There were still the surfacers, who surely far exceeded Dubs'' current strength, but to think that the empire was this weak!

    Dubs other self spoke once more. "Your physical training can be set aside for now. You should still continue to train your body for a couple hours each day to continue your statistical increases, however your focus now should shift over to controlling and mastering different magic types and spells."

    Dubs agreed, and headed outside where he caught the other squadmates training on their own.

    Enferia rushed up to Dubs cheerfully and asked "Dubs, we have decided to go on a mission together as a band of mercenaries! Would you like to come along?"

 25 Chapter 25- The frontdoor mercenaries

    Dubs smiled at Lilith at the sight of an opportunity. Going on a mission would mean that he would be able to compare his newfound abilities with his squadmates, and with the enemies they faced.

    Also, they would be paid for whatever mission they completed. Their reputation as mercenaries would increase, and they would become more well known among the front room mercenaries.

    "Thank you for inviting me, I will come along.", Dubs replied to Enferia.

    Enferia smiled and began making hand gestures as she explained the details. "First we will go to the front room to select a mission to perform. Most mercenaries are unable to perform magic. The "back room" is actually a facade within the mercenary guild that is publicly claimed to be a mercenary sector of magic users."

    This was true- as all the members of the back room were indeed magic users, however the reason for this was because all the people hired by the resistance were those who had already experienced some form of magic radiation.

    The resistance had approached those who went through such things, and in order to keep secrecy, had silenced anyone who threatened to disclose the information about the resistances existence.

    This was rare, as most who had gone through magical radiation that the resistance approached were those who had their backgrounds thoroughly investigated. Dubs, for example, was used as a human test subject, and it was unlikely that he would hold any loyalty to the empire.

    The only people who experienced magical radiation were either those who were test subjects, or those who experienced it on the surface. As a result, it was not difficult to figure out if these people were loyal to the empire or not.

    Enferia continued talking. "Once we have selected a mission, we will head out immediately. Is that alright with you?", she asked.

    "I have no issue. Lets head out.", Dubs agreed.

    The team all gathered, including Samuel who gave Dubs a distrustful glare. Drodus'' hands were covered in blisters from practicing. Tirian seemed to be in good condition, as did Samuel and Enferia.

    Samuel took the lead and the others followed him out through the hallways to the room where the entrance stairwell was. Ivan was caught doing paperwork at the table, and concentrated on the details in front of him.

    As soon as the five waltzed into the room, Ivan looked up from his papers and began to speak.

    "Are you all going on your first mission as a squad?", he questioned.

    "Yes, we have all trained over this past week and are all able to use magic, with the exception of Dubs.", Samuel swiftly remarked.

    Ivan turned back to his paperwork. "If Dubs is with you all there shouldn''t be an issue."

    Samuel stumbled back, surprised by Ivan''s response. Peter had the same hatred towards Dubs as Samuel did, because Dubs was a surfacer, and Samuel had assumed that the Captain held the same sentiments.

    Samuel marched forward silently, his pride somewhat broken, and lead the squad up the stairs.

    "What could Captain Ivan have meant by that? If Dubs is with us there shouldn''t be an issue? It should be the other way around. I am the genius who holds the power to lead this squad.", Samuel pondered.

    Exiting the trapdoor, they emerged to the backroom and went out front to the billboard. Samuel scoured the job list, and Drodus shyly spoke.

    "We may have all mastered magical abilities, but I don''t think we should become overconfident. Lets take on a simple job to gain experience. Once we have determined our relative position, we can attempt harder jobs."

    Samuel cringed, and was about to remark otherwise, but before he could say anything Tirian and Enferia began to agree.

    Dubs shrugged, as he didn''t particularly care how difficult the mission was. After all, the purpose was to see how much stronger the surfacers were than him, and how much further he would have to progress in order to take them on.

    Samuel reluctantly agreed, humbling himself to peer pressure, yet he gritted his teeth at Dubs'' carefreeness. "How can he be so confident in himself? He cannot even compare to Drodus, the least skilled among us."

    "Alright, lets take a look at the types of jobs. It seems that there are scouting jobs, jobs where we would guard a caravan from attacks, and jobs where we hunt monsters on the surface. Each job has a duration and a difficulty level depending on how dangerous the area of operation is, ranging from 1 to 5.", Samuel informed the squad.

    Tirian pointed to a certain parchment on the board. "What about this one? Escorting a caravan from Lardis to the neighboring city of Ariola. This mission is a level 1 difficulty, as we wont be going on the surface, and only remaining in the tunnels. There is a low probability of thieves along the pathways, and the payment is only 30 copper coins, but we should give it a shot.", he suggested.

    Samuel considered the option and agreed. "Alright, we will take this mission. First we must head to the inn the clients are staying to discuss that we''ve taken the job, and find out when we will be heading out."

    The party agreed, and began to head out before they were stopped by a middle aged man. The thin blonde man was probably in his late 20s. "Hold up just a minute rookies. I''ve never seen your faces in here before. Don''t you think you should pay your elders a little respect before leaving so hastily?"

    Samuel stood up pridefully, puffing out his chest. "Finally my time to show Dubs my strength. Even without using magic, my physical strength is most likely far beyond his.", he thought.

    "Ah, really sir? What kind of respect exactly do you expect us to pay?" Samuel sarcastically stated.

    The man became visually irritated by Samuel''s arrogant reaction, and began to monologue.

    "Listen here, brat. It looks like you need to learn some manners before you join the ranks of the mercenaries. I''ll give you three options. Either you pay me back for your rudeness just now- 3 silvers should cover it, or you and your buddies kneel down to me and beg for my forgiveness." The man retorted.

    The scene had now attracted the attention of the other members of the guild. Some laughs were heard from the other tables.

    "Pfft. Looks like Harold is at it again with the rookies." One remarked.

    "Should we stop him?", "Nah, he hasn''t gone too far. The kids will get whats coming to them.". Some others conversed.

    Tirian, Drodus, and Enferia all had looks of fear on their faces. Even if they had magic, they didn''t believe they could so easily beat an experienced mercenary- especially if the others jumped in. Furthermore, they didn''t want to cause trouble for Ivan.

    Dubs, on the other hand, had a blank look on his face. He could care less as to what trouble Samuel got into, so long as he wasn''t dragged into it. On top of that, there wasn''t a single person here who could take Dubs in a fight if it came to it, not that Dubs wanted to defend Samuel.

    "Looks like things are getting interesting from here." Dubs other self stated.

    Dubs couldn''t respond, as he was in public, and was unable to communicate to his other self through thought alone. He would have to speak what he wanted to tell his other self, which would make him sound like a lunatic talking to himself.

    Samuel smiled and responded to the threat. "What is the third option, good sir?"

    "A rebellious one eh? This should be fun. The third option is we take this outside and I give you a beatdown. Your friends have been rather polite, so I''ll even let them off the hook if you pick this option.", The man responded.

    Samuel shoved the man out of the way and exited the door. "Follow me out if you dare then.", he stated.

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    The man became enraged as the rest of the tavern blew up in laughter. "Did you see that? Harold just got mocked by a rookie! Surely he wont take that sitting down?"

    Harold raced out the door towards Samuel. "Now you''ve gone and pissed me off kiddo. I was gonna leave you with some light bruises, but it looks like imma have to break some bones today."

    Samuel, waiting for him outside replied to his statement. "If you can break my bones, that is."

    Dubs and the others had stayed inside, and Enferia put her hand on her face. "Why does he have to be so hot tempered..." Enferia stood up and bowed to the other mercenaries. "I am very sorry for the trouble my comrade has caused! Please forgive him!"

    One of the regulars, a balding man who appeared to be in his 40''s, raised his mug of beer in reply. "Don''t sweat it, miss! Harold is always trying to get a little out of the newbies, it ain''t yall''s fault. Just make sure to have a drink with us after your mission is complete!"

    The rest of the tavern bursted out in laughter at this and the mood lightened. Tirian put his hand on Enferia''s shoulder and she raised herself. Aside from Dubs, the three also joined in on the laughter.

    Dubs however, kept a straight face, unamused.

    As this played out, Samuel lifted his fists and prepared to fight. Harold too took a fighting stance, and they rushed at each other.

 26 Chapter 26- Al

    Harold threw his fist towards Samuel''s head. Samuel dodged without hesitation to the left side of Harold, and with a quick step in planted his feet and erupted with an uppercut that was aimed at Harold''s stomach.

    Harold fell backwards, gagging for breath. He held his mouth and threw up a small amount. Samuel didn''t relent, and remained on the attack

    With a quick one-two, Samuel hit some lighter blows to the head of Harold. Harold fell down to the ground, squirming. He put his hand up, and his bruised eyes pleaded for mercy.

    His fat lips shook with fear, and Harold managed to slip the words out "Pwease sthap. Im bewy sowwy.". Tears formed in Harold''s eyes and Samuel spit at him before walking off.

    "I can''t believe a guy at this level would even try to pick a fight with me...", Samuel thought.

    Harold crawled back inside to the guild, bruised and beaten all over his face. The bar went silent for a few moments, and slowly picked back up to the regular pace.

    The woman who was tending the bar, Fianna, called Dubs and the other three over to the bar. The four headed over and she began to explain to them.

    "Take these.", she said as she handed them 5 badges that had two crossed swords on them, the crest of the mercenary guild. "These are your mercenary ID''s. If you go on a mission above the surface, you will need to present these to the guards to come back into the town. Also use them whenever you need to show proof that you all are mercenaries, when taking jobs."

    The four all bowed and thanked Fianna, before leaving the bar.

    Dubs and the rest of the party then left to go outside. It was night, and the lights of the underground city sparkled along the streets.

    Enferia walked over to Samuel and slapped him.

    "I can''t believe you! What if the other mercenaries had ganged up on us? What would we have done then?", she asked frantically.

    Samuel gave her a confused look. "I merely eliminated the possibility of events like this occurring in the future. I don''t see the problem here."

    Enferia, clearly flustered looked down. "That may be true, but you need to be more careful from now on. Just because you''re strong doesn''t mean you can just beat up anyone who crosses your path."

    "Ah, but that is how it works.", Samuel claimed. "The strong will always have power over the weak. That is the rule of the world."

    Dubs began to laugh, and tried to hide it.

    "Is there something funny, Dubs? The last time I checked, you''re the weakest member of the squad. Perhaps you are in denial of this, and still wish to defy me as the leader?", Samuel demanded.

    Dubs straightened his face. "Oh, I''m sorry, squad leader Samuel. I just happened to think of a funny memory just now, and couldn''t help but laugh at it. Please don''t mind me."

    In reality, Dubs inner self was cracking up inside of him, filling Dubs'' mind with maniacal laughter. The very notion that Samuel was the strongest member of the squad was something that his other self couldn''t help but laugh at.

    Samuel looked away, disappointed that he wouldn''t have an excuse to put Dubs in his place. "If I start a fight with Dubs right now, I''ll look bad in front of Enferia.", Samuel thought.

    "Ah, by the way,", Drodus stated. "Here is your mercenary ID.". Drodus handed the ID over to Samuel.

    "Thank you. Alright, lets move out! We are heading toward the roasted boar inn, a couple plazas down. We will discuss the details of the contract with the client, and most likely we will head out on the mission tomorrow. Be on your guard though, as if they wish to head out tonight then we will do so.", Samuel exclaimed.

    The party traversed through the crowded brick laid roads, over a few plazas. They passed a number of shops along the way, and Dubs began to think about his future.

    "Hm... it seems that because magic is not commonly used among the people of the empire, there are no magical goods for sale. I will have to do my own research to become more adept with magic."

    They had passed by weapons and armor shops, and blacksmiths, as well as general item shops and bakeries.

    "Even so, I don''t have any money as of right now. Assuming we complete this job properly, we will gain 30 copper coins. If we split the pay evenly, this would be 6 copper coins each."

    Dubs knew where to go in order to obtain magical information and items, however. Reagan''s laboratory had all the technology he needed to do proper research.

    "When I have finished my training here, heading there would certainly benefit me.", Dubs thought.

    "I can''t wait till we get there, Dubs.", his other self menacingly stated. "I can''t even begin to think up all the experiments we can perform when were there. Plus, Reagan is my type."

    Dubs thought about this for a second. If his other self liked Reagan, then surely he did as well, as they were two personalities of the same person.

    "Hm. Yeah, she is kinda cute. Especially the crazy side of her.", Dubs admitted.

    His other self laughed and Dubs realized that he was lagging behind his squad so that he could talk to his other self. He caught back up quickly, and realized they had arrived at the roasted boar inn.

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    "Here we are." Tirian stated.

    The five walked into the inn, and were greeted by a suited man, with brown hair that was split like a snakes tongue on either side. He wore white gloves, and stood behind the reception desk.

    A hallway that lead to the inn''s rooms was on the left side, and next to it was a stairwell.

    "Welcome to our fine establishment. Will you all be staying with us tonight?", the man politely asked.

    "No, we are mercenaries here to contact a client for a request." Samuel said as he lifted up his mercenary ID. "The client is staying in this hotel, perhaps you can point them out to us."

    The man looked somewhat disappointed that he wouldn''t gain the party''s business, but took out the hotel register and began to scan through it.

    "What is the name of your client, then?", he inquired.

    "Aria Santor." Samuel replied, reading off the job request.

    The man scoured his finger down the list and stopped it halfway down. "Ah, he we are! Aria Santor, room 213 on the second floor."

    Enferia thanked the man and the party went up the stairs to the left side.

    Upon finding the room, Enferia knocked on the door. The voice of an old woman called out, shouting "I''m coming!". The door opened and a short wrinkled woman presented herself.

    "Who are you people? Are you the mercenaries I hired?", the old woman questioned.

    Enferia nodded. "Yes, we are here to take on the job request."

    The woman nodded and invited the party in. "Please have a seat.", she said as she brought out some tea for them. There was a nice leather couch that surrounded a coffee table on 3 sides that the party spread themselves across.

    The party sipped their tea and the woman sat at a reclining leather chair across them.

    "I am a traveling merchant, my son keeps up a shop over in Ariola. I go around obtaining various stock, and I am on the way back to the town tomorrow. If it is alright with you, then we shall leave early in the morning- 6 am."

    The party agreed on the terms.

    "And I understand the payment of 30 coppers for a group of 5 mercenaries may be a bit on the low side, but this mission should not be very dangerous. As an added bonus, my son will give you all a discount at the shop should you all ever be in the area."

    Enferia thanked the woman, and the rest nodded in agreement.

    The party then left, and traveled back to the mercenary guild to get some rest for the night.

    Upon arriving back, the bar became silent as Samuel strutted his way through.

    "Ooh, what a scary guy.", one person whispered.

    Entering the back room, they all were encountered by Ivan.

    "I heard you had a bit of a scuffle, Samuel. I understand that the mercenary was trying to extort money out of you, but just be a bit more cautious next time. Alright?", Ivan scolded.

    Samuel nodded and saluted. "Yes, captain!"

    The five went to the dining hall to get something to eat, before returning to their rooms.

    When Dubs had gotten to his room, he took the initiative to speak to his other self.

    "Say, I know we may be one person, but I feel that I should give you a name. What do you think?", Dubs asked.

    "HAHA! You''re a funny guy Dubs. How about this- call me Alt. I''m an alternate version of yourself, after all.", Dubs other self responded.

    Dubs smiled. "Alt, eh? I like it."

    Dubs then fell asleep, and before he knew it it was time to get up.

 27 Chapter 27- Bandits

    Dubs awoke at 4:30 am, showered, and headed out to the dining hall to meet up with his squadmates.

    "What''s the plan, Dubs?", Alt asked.

    Dubs walked through the hallway quietly and whispered to Alt, "If possible, I will take a position furthest back. In the case of an attack, I don''t plan on revealing my strength. I will rely on you to take enemies out from range with your shadow form, but you will have to assist me by scouting things out."

    Alt was pleased upon hearing this. If they ran into thieves or any other enemies, Alt would be able to release some pent up stress on them. Alt''s condition however, was beginning to stabilize. After a long week of training with Dubs, an opponent who was now almost up to Alt''s level, he experienced a challenge for the first time.

    All the other knights who came at night to use Dubs as a training dummy ended up encountering Alt in his shadow form, and he had never met a single enemy who was even able to sense his presence, much less land a blow.

    Alt''s thirst for battle could never be quenched due to this, as even the strongest foes of the empire couldn''t match up to him, which was why having Dubs as a partner now allowed him to become much more stable.

    As a matter of fact, over the past week of training the synchronization between Dubs and Alt had reached 8%. Both Dubs and Alt became much more like-minded as a result, but they remained two separate minds.

    Dubs began to wonder if they actually would end up merging into one, or if at 100% synchronization they would rather remain two people who had very similar if not identical personalities.

    Arriving at the dining hall, Dubs ate some breakfast and one by one his squadmates arrived, taking a seat next to them. By 5:30, all 5 of the members were gathered, ready to go on the mission.

    The resistance was poorly funded, and was unable to provide rookies with new weapons. This was one reason why magic was so important, as most rookies didn''t have the funds to arm themselves.

    This was the case for all the members of the party aside from Dubs, as Ivan had retrieved his fathers dagger for him.

    When the party had finished, they headed off and met in front of the roasted boar inn. Upon seeing Aria loading up her wagon, Enferia waved over to her.

    "Good morning! Would you like some help loading up the supplies?", she offered.

    "No, I just finished up with the last of the supplies. Are you all prepared to head out?", Aria asked.

    The party confirmed that they were ready and took positions.

    "Does anyone here know how to drive a wagon? I can do it myself if needed, but I would prefer to watch over the goods if possible.", Aria stated.

    Tirian raised his hand. "As a former noble, it was required for me to learn horse riding and carriage driving.", he proudly stated. Despite the fact that he had been betrayed by his family, and joined the resistance as a result of this, he still took pride in his lineage and his past.

    Tirian took the reins and Enferia took the passenger seat next to him. Aria got into the back of the wagon, and Dubs took the rear guard.

    Drodus walked over to the left side, and Samuel took the right.

    "Alright, everyone is in proper formation. Lets move out!", Tirian ordered, whipping the reins lightly.

    The horses trodded through the empty night streets, which remained dark even during day due to being underground.

    Eventually, they arrived at a transport tunnel to the city of Ariola. The cargo of the wagon was inspected, and the five had to show their mercenary ID''s as proof that they were allowed to travel between cities.

    After a thorough inspection, the guards let the wagon pass, and they entered the unlit tunnels.

    Enferia began to chant and meditate in the elven language, and after a few minutes she stated [minor light], and a small ball of light magic hovered above the carriage which illuminated the surroundings.

    The party moved forward, and Alt took up a shadow form. He began to converse with Dubs shortly.

    "Looks like the empire takes their security pretty seriously, eh? Funny that the mercenaries they trust so much are harboring a rebel faction.", Alt noted.

    Alt''s shadow then sunk into the ground as if he had become liquid soaking into the soil, and spreading out across the area. Dubs couldn''t even respond before Alt had left, but Alt could still communicate with Dubs his whereabouts and through thoughts.

    "Surroundings are clear so far..." Alt stated, as the party continued walking.

    "Can you hear me from so far away, or can I just hear you?", Dubs inquired.

    "I can hear your voice so long as you speak out loud, regardless of our physical distance. Similarly, you can hear my voice, not that anyone else can.", Alt responded.

    After an hour of walking without event, Alt began to giggle and exclaimed "Hehehe... looks like I''ve found some prey... I''m going to take a quick stab at these guys over here..."

    Dubs assumed Alt had found some thieves, and left Alt to take care of them. He sensed the presence of 7, which dropped one by one until only two remained.

    "That was boring... not a single one of them put up a fight. I left the two who were separated from their group so we can test your other squadmates...", Alt announced to Dubs.

    Dubs readied himself, and began to try to feel out their locations. Both of them were to the left, waiting along the path to pounce on any unlucky targets who came their way.

    "If this many bandits are here, they must have taken up residence within the tunnels long ago, living off traveling merchants. There would be no way they would be able to easily make it past the guards so many times.", Dubs thought.

    As the wagon approached the bandits, the party heard two high pitched male voices. "Get im!" "Alright!", and two human males dressed in some well tailored leather armor charged at the wagon.

    One wielded a samurai katana, and the other held a trident weapon. Charging towards Drodus, the horses began to freak out and started bobbing up and down uncontrollable, screeching.

    Tirian and Enferia were too concentrated on the horses to react to the attackers, and Samuel was on the other side of the carriage. It would be too late to do anything by the time he came around.

    Drodus held up his hands and on the ground in front of him, and stated [blanket of flames], and a patch of fire formed. Chanting in the dwarven language, he finished off with [oxygen enhancement]. With the raising of his hand, some wind gently fueled the flames, enlarging their effect.

    "Interesting!", Dubs thought. "Drodus has combined his abilities in fire and air to fuel a fire spell with oxygen, increasing its attack power!"

    The two bandits smiled and one screamed out, "Magic users eh!? As if some petty fire like this will stop us from making it over there!"

    The two ran straight through the fire, and were about to exit, mostly unscathed, with some scorch marks on their feet. The long reach of their weapons were about to reach Drodus, when Dubs heard Alts voice in his head.

    "And now its time for some meddling..."

    All of a sudden the flames that the two bandits were trailing their way through erupted in a huge bath of fire, and the bandits flesh roasted as they screamed out in agony.

    Drodus fell back in shock, unsure of what had just happened, but let out a sigh of relief.

    Samuel had run over at this point to witness the scene, and the rest of the party was left speechless.

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    "I cannot believe you had this much power in you Drodus! Well done!", Tirian stated.

    "I... no, I didn''t... I thought I was dead for sure...", Drodus replied, stuttering.

    Dubs heard Alt laughing inside his head. "Look at their faces!! AHAHA! They think that kid did that! Priceless!"

    Dubs also let out a chuckle from behind the cart and proceeded over to the group. "Is everyone alright?", he asked.

    Drodus nodded, and the rest of the party became at ease. Samuel went back to his position, and Dubs walked over to the corpses of the two thieves, searching their bodies.

    Their armor had been ruined, but Dubs did manage to grab a pouch of coins that had only been seared. Dubs threw the pouch over to Tirian, who pocketed the funds for the party. Alt then came over in his shadow form, and engulfed the weapons.

    Dubs was surprised by this and looked at Alt. "You can do that?"

    Alt smiled and explained. "This body is made of the element of darkness. Similar to a black hole, inside this area leads to another dimension, where I can store items. I''ve been slowly collecting all the useful things off the thieves and storing them here."

    Dubs was pleased. He had gained some reasonable equipment and items to sell, as well as plenty of money from the bandits.

    After the looting had finished the party moved on.

    "We are more than halfway to the city, I hope we will not encounter any more bandits!", Aria stated.

 28 Chapter 28- Payment and Rewards

    Drodus continued walking along the dark path, staring at his hands.

    "Did I really do that?"

    Tirian and Enferia looked a bit saddened that they were unable to assist Drodus when he was in need, but since nobody got hurt they weren''t too concerned, and shortly perked back up.

    Samuel, on the other hand had a look of disdain. "Not only was I too late, but I even let that dwarf steal the show from me! I never imagined that the dwarf would have grown so much in these few days of training!", he remarked.

    Of course, everyone was under the impression that Drodus had improved the amount of magical energy he could control to a very high level, high enough to scorch a group of bandits in a few seconds.

    This was not the case, because Alt was actually the one who enhanced Drodus'' spell.

    Dubs began to think quietly. "This works out quite well for me. I would prefer that everyone is under the impression that I am weak until I become strong enough not to even concern myself with hiding my strength."

    The party walked for another hour or so, and eventually made it to the city of Ariola.

    Upon arrival, they once more had to present identification to the city guards, which was not an issue. The city resembled Lardis almost exactly. Stone buildings laid across the streets, and the only light sources were the lanterns.

    Aria hobbled over to the drivers seat and tapped on Tirian''s shoulder. "I can take things from here. I will guide us to my son''s shop.", she told him.

    Swapping out, the party traveled down a series of twists and turns in the streets, finally arriving at a small shop with an item bag as a crest, in a thin alleyway.

    It seemed like an odd location, as the alleyway seemed to be a tightly packed residential area, however this would also mean there was less competition for the shopkeeper, and more customers.

    An ideal spot for business.

    The cart stopped and Aria got down. "I''m sorry that you all had to deal with those thieves on the way here. I expected it to be a simple travel, but it appears I was wrong, however it is fortunate that I took the caution to hire you all in the first place!"

    Samuel put a smug look on his face and stated "Of course! It is our job to protect our client and their cargo. If you need anything in the future, leave it to us."

    Aria thanked the party once more, and they all began to unload the supplies on the wagon into the shop.

    Upon entering the shop, a man who appeared to be in his 30''s with short black hair was haggling with a customer, an older man with a long grey beard.

    The shopkeeper wore a green sweater vest, and tan pants. The old man wore a white button up shirt and black tuxedo pants.

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    "No, good sir! I cannot sell that product for any less than 3 silvers!", the shopkeeper exclaimed.

    The old man frowned. "I wouldn''t even pay 2 silvers for that used piece of junk. Good day to you!"

    The man stormed off, clearly disappointed that he didn''t obtain the deal he wanted.

    Dubs considered this. "It seems people in this world are willing to argue over the simplest matters such as the price of an item.". Dubs had kept his distance from people during his time in the resistance, and Alt was basically his only "friend", if you could call him that.

    Dubs didn''t trust anyone but himself, particularly because the only people he encountered before coming to the resistance were all selfishly lusting for power.

    Even Ivan and Isabelle, Dubs had no trust for. He was merely cooperating with the resistance because he could gain from it.

    However, after seeing this scene Dubs continued to lose his trust for people. "It seems like everywhere I turn, people are always trying to benefit themselves, even at the expense of others. There are a few exceptions, perhaps. My squadmates do not seem to have taken advantage of others yet, Samuel aside.", Dubs pondered.

    "However, it is possible they are simply hiding that side of themselves."

    Dubs decided not to think too much on it, and simply to continue doing his job here.

    After finishing the unloading, Aria introduced the shopkeeper to the squad of mercenaries.

    "This is my son, Millis. Millis, as part of the payment for taking on the job to escort our wagon, I offered them a discount."

    Millis tried to hide his displeasure at hearing this. "Well then, I thank you all for your assistance. I take that a 5% discount will do?", he offered.

    Aria kicked her sons foot. "Why you! Always trying to cheat our customers. 10% at the least!"

    Millis sighed and agreed, "Understood. 10% discount for the party of mercenaries."

    "And I promised them 30 coppers of pay.", Aria noted.

    Millis cringed at this but took out the money bag and forked over the 30 coppers.

    Aria apologized for her sons rudeness, and the party split the payment.

    Samuel received the bag and began passing out the coppers.

    After giving 6 each to Enferia, Tirian, and Drodus, they all walked off in turn to browse the shop to see if there was anything they would like to purchase.

    Samuel came to Dubs and handed him 4 coppers. "You did the least amount of work on this mission, please understand Dubs. As the leader, I deserve the greatest cut of the payment."

    Dubs held back a laugh and agreed. After the haul that Alt had obtained, Samuel taking 2 copper coins from his payment was like making a dent in a stone fortress.

    Dubs exited the shop temporarily to go find an inn to stay at. After walking down the alleyway, he entered into a complicated grid and had Alt search the area.

    "Alt. Take a look from above us, what do you see?", Dubs asked.

    Alt''s shadow figure flew up and pointed to the left of Dubs. "There''s an inn over there. Follow me."

    The shadow figure flew over and Dubs followed, coming upon a cheap looking inn. "This will do just fine for now.", Dubs stated as he entered the inn.

    Dubs entered and approached the woman at the reception desk. She had black long wavy hair, and pale skin. "Welcome!", she exclaimed.

    Dubs began to ask her a few questions. "I am from a foreign land, and I am unsure how the currency system here works. Could you explain it to me?"

    The lady nodded and began to speak. "Yes, so to stay at this inn for a night with food would cost you 2 coppers. 20 coppers is worth a silver coin, and 20 silvers is worth a gold coin, which is the highest unit of currency, worth 400 coppers."

    Dubs nodded. "I see, thank you! I will be staying for 2 nights.", he said as he forked over the 4 copper coins.

    The woman gave Dubs a room key and pointed his room out down the hall. After entering it, Dubs began to speak with Alt.

    "So? Would you like to tell me what went on when you were fighting those thieves?", Dubs questioned.

    Alt began to mold himself as a cavity formed in his stomach, and a large chest began to protrude from it, plopping onto the ground.

    "Here is the haul. I merely took down all the enemies in the area, spare those ones who attacked Drodus. They were extremely weak, not even a speck of significant combat ability.", Alt explained.

    Dubs opened the chest to find multiple suits of armor, mostly leather, but a couple were metal. Dubs picked a leather suit that had a light feel to it and put it on.

    Along with the armor, he equipped a pair of gloves and some boots. He then scavenged the rest of the chest to find a multitude of weapons.

    A mace, the katana and the trident, as well as some axes and a club laid in the chest. At the bottom was a sack of coins, which Dubs picked up and poured out into his hand.

    3 silver coins and 12 copper coins flowed out, and Dubs began laughing. "Samuel tried to anger me over a couple copper coins, and yet he missed out on this haul! What an idiot."

    Alt started laughing too, and they both collected themselves. "That guy seems to be going out of his way to piss me off, but if I keep my cool he only becomes more enraged. I will keep going at this pace for now, pretending as if he is stronger than me. When the time to fight back comes, I will fight.", Dubs stated.

    Dubs had alt put the chest back into the storage dimension, and then search the area for surrounding shops. They then headed off to the marketplace to do some shopping.

 29 Chapter 29- Robbery

    Upon arrival at the marketplace, Dubs and Alt scoured the stalls, which had all sorts of different trinkets and items.

    Dubs had not been accustomed to using currency, and first decided to scout around to figure out the value of money in this world, and which items were valued higher than others.

    Coming upon a wooden shack that was selling sticks of meat and vegetables, the sizzling flavors engulfed the air around Dubs.

    "Get a kabob cheap, only 1 copper coin!", the shopkeeper advertised.

    "I suppose food costs a very low price, seeing as copper coins are the lowest unit of currency.", Dubs thought, as he bought one for himself and one for Alt.

    Alt took the kabob, and the scene following would have been horrifying to anyone who could see it. Alt consumed the kabob rapidly, biting off both the meat and the stick simultaneously. If his body was not made of the shadow material, his lips would have been splintered and torn.

    Dubs laughed. "What are you doing, Alt? Don''t you know how to eat properly."

    Alt continued stuffing his mouth with the kabob and laughed, and the two walked off.

    When they reached a larger shop that was inside a building, with a sword and shield as a crest, they entered.

    A bright young man with long blonde hair wore a green apron with a white workers uniform.

    "Welcome to my weapons shop! Is there anything I can help you with?", the shopkeeper asked.

    There were all sorts of weapons laid across the shelves, and even some shields. Most were a grey or black tint, but some had vibrant colors- rarer ores that were much more costly.

    "Yes," Dubs responded. "I have a stock of weapons I would like to sell."

    The shopkeeper looked at Dubs in confusion. "I... see. Where exactly would this stock of weapons be?", he asked, dumbfoundedly.

    Alt began to mold himself once more, and spitting out of his stomach came the weapons. The shopkeeper looked somewhat disturbed, and fearfully began to speak.

    The shopkeeper couldn''t see Alt, so he only viewed a series of weapons appear to emerge from the air.

    "Um... could it be that you are one of the magical knights, sir?"

    Dubs scowled at the man. "Looks like this won''t be so easy.", he thought. "I can''t allow any rumors to begin spreading about my existence until it is time to come out in the open."

    Dubs stepped swiftly over to the shopkeeper, and his dagger was placed around the mans throat in an instant. Before the man could realize what had happened, Dubs began to whisper in his ear.

    "It appears that you''ve seen too much. I''ll let you keep your life on the condition that you keep quiet about everything that you''ve seen here, and purchase all of my stock... for a fair price of course."

    Dubs glanced over at Alt, who smiled and began emptying the entirety of the stock into the shop.

    "3 suits of leather armor, 2 iron suits, and 6 iron weapons. What would you say is a fair price for this?", Dubs asked, pressing his dagger closer to the shopkeepers throat.

    "Un... understood sir! I will give you 10 Silver coins for that stock!"

    Dubs looked over to Alt and nudged for him to look around the shop. After taking a look at the prices of the weapons, Alt put his eyebrows up in suspicion.

    "These higher grade colored weapons sell for 2 golds a piece, and the black ones sell for around 5 silvers. The iron ones only sell for 10 coppers a piece, but if this man is making so much profit off the other weapons we certainly can''t be giving him the precious stock we worked so hard for so easily...", Alt taunted.

    Dubs smiled. "Looks like your offer wasn''t generous enough, good sir!". Pressing the dagger into the mans neck so a slight amount of blood began to flow, Dubs got closer. "Let''s try this again."

    The man''s face continuously twisted with fear. "I cannot believe this! I''ve offered you twice the selling price... what more could you want? 4 times?"

    All of a sudden, the door began to slide open, but Alt held out his hand and it slammed back shut, locking it. "It looks like we have some customers. Lets finish things here, Dubs.", Alt stated.

    Dubs care freely took the dagger away from the mans throat, and motioned for Alt to heal the man and replace the items.

    "We will take 4 times the rate, 20 silvers.", Dubs stated as he nonchalantly waltzed to the door to open it.

    Alt quickly began to channel the energy around the room, and the cut on the mans throat was healed. The Weapons flew over to their respective shelves, and the coins from the purse on the shopkeepers side flew out and into the pocket of Dubs.

    Dubs unlocked and opened the door, revealing a young boy. He had a bowl cut and brown hair, and was only around 4 feet tall.

    "Sorry for locking you out, boyo! I had some important personal business to take care of. Go get a kabob for your patience." Dubs flipped the boy a copper coin, and calmly walked off.

    The boy was left with a dumb look on his face. "That guy was super cool!", he shouted after staring at Dubs until he had left the boys view.

    Alt began to speak to Dubs. "Looks like our merging is progressing quite quickly. I was able to control so much of the magic in the air so easily just now, while multitasking. It also seems like I''m becoming slightly more sane, and you''re becoming slightly more insane. Haha!"

    Dubs smiled. "Being insane isn''t so bad, my other self! I can feel the magical power growing in me."

    Heading back to the shop where they originally met at, Dubs felt fearless. After being able to handle a complicated situation so simply just by relying on Alt''s ability to multitask, he felt that world domination wasn''t just a dream.

    The merging process, after this event, had reached 12%.

    Arriving at the original shop, Dubs counted up his money, worth now a total of 470 copper coins.

    "This guy seemed like a cheapskate, but I can get more money whenever I need it. I will browse the shop and purchase anything I feel could be useful.", Dubs stated.

    Dubs entered the shop and began to look around. The rest of the party was there, and they had all finished their shopping. Enferia had bought a new looking pair of gloves, and Drodus had purchased a shoddy looking club for melee combat.

    Samuel and Tirian had both decided not to purchase anything, probably both sensing that they would be ripped off.

    Dubs considered that he couldn''t openly shop here, as that would reveal to the party that he obtained income elsewhere.

    Looking around, he found a set of experimental tools. Upon seeing them, Dubs began to remember his curiosity.

    "Ah, that''s right. I should try to begin running experiments as soon as possible once I''ve finished magical training. I should get back to Lardis then by tomorrow.", Dubs thought.

    Samuel called the party around. "Alright, now that we are all gathered, I think its best that we each take care of our own lodging. We will meet in front of this shop tomorrow morning, 6 am to head back to Lardis."

    The party agreed, and they all went their separate ways. Dubs decided not to buy anything for now, as he didn''t know what he should get. "I will wait until I am staying with Reagan and running experiments before determining what is useful and what isn''t.", Dubs thought.

    After leaving to the inn with Alt, Dubs rested for the night, and morning quickly came after.

    Dubs considered going off on his own, and letting the squad return back, but he reasoned that if they died it would create problems for him.

    "Others are always creating problems for us, eh?", Alt stated.

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    "You worry too much, the more problems a person causes the more we can use them. If I can tolerate the issues someone makes, then I will reap the benefits later. I could always go off on my own if I wanted to avoid problems, but I wouldn''t gain anything that way.", Dubs replied.

    Alt remained quiet and Dubs met up early morning with the other 4. Morning or evening didn''t make a difference in the apparent time,however, as it was always dark.

    After all meeting up, Samuel once more took the lead of the squad, and Dubs stood towards the back, slightly away from everyone.

    "Move out!", Samuel shouted, and the party began to head back to Lardis.

 30 Chapter 30- Cleansing

    The party waved goodbye to Aria and her son, and they outwardly acted grateful for the assistance they had received. Dubs knew that the son was putting on a show, and that he was glad to be rid of the mercenaries who were receiving discounted prices, but gave a fake wave back anyways.

    "You are on the naughty list...", Dubs thought.

    The trip back to Lardis was long and tedious, however this time around it was uneventful. No thieves or other entities attacked the group, and they were able to progress through the tunnels safely all the way back to the city.

    Upon arrival in the city, Dubs split off from the party and went looking around to see if there were any shops of interest in Lardis, but after looking for a while, Dubs determined that he didn''t know enough yet about how useful any materials or items would be to risk purchasing something.

    "Money isn''t too much of an issue, but I have no idea whether or not the shopkeepers are trying to get me to buy useless goods.", Dubs thought.

    After returning back to the mercenary guild, Dubs walked through the tavern to see the familiar faces of mercenaries who were there before the party had left.

    The balding man was relaxing with his feet kicked back, and Harold was drunk in the corner. Clearly he had not recuperated from the beatdown Samuel had given him.

    "Ay! Welcome back rookie. How did the first mission go?", the balding man asked.

    Dubs took a seat across from the man and began to speak. "Nothing out of the ordinary. A simple escort, there were some thieves along the way but they proved to not be an issue."

    The man sat up straight. "Hoh? You had to deal with some thieves on your first mission eh? For a veteran like me, that wouldn''t be an issue but I''m surprised a group of rookies would be able to handle them so easily.", the man stated, impressed.

    Dubs gave off a shrug and humbly suggested "We had five people to deal with only two thieves, and they weren''t very experienced thieves at that. Our luck was good."

    The man laughed and Dubs took his leave, heading back down into the resistance HQ.

    Coming upon Ivan, Ivan pulled Dubs aside for a report.

    "I''m getting some odd mission reports from the other party members. They seem to be telling me that Drodus displayed a magical capacity unlike anything they have seen before. Do you have an explanation for this?"

    Alt came out of Dubs into his shadow form, and before Dubs could respond, he realized that he himself was inside the shadow form.

    "What is this!? Whats going on?", Dubs shouted.

    "Relax, Dubs. I merely switched out with you. You''re in the shadow body right now, and I am in the regular body. It will be easier to explain to Ivan this way."

    Ivan stared at Dubs body, who Alt was in, and somewhat had an idea of what was going on. Even though he could not sense the shadow body that Dubs was currently inhabiting, he could tell that Dubs and Alt had switched and that they were conversing with one another.

    "I assume you are the other one?", Ivan asked.

    Alt smiled, and responded.

    "I am Alt, the alternate personality of Dubs. Over the past week of training we have managed to make significant progress, and I am even able to create and maintain a physical form separate from the body that I am currently inhabiting. Dubs is currently in this ''shadow form'' of mine, and only me and Dubs can view it."

    Ivan listened patiently, and urged Alt to continue.

    "In my new shadow form, I am able to release energy and control magic much better than before. While things aren''t completely stable, I am beginning to get a grasp on my energy. Dubs, on the other hand, should be able to control a bit more energy than he did previously.", Alt explained.

    "During the mission, we were attacked by thieves. Drodus cast a flame blanket spell, but it was only powerful enough to singe the toes of the enemies we were facing. I merely enhanced the spell with my own energy, and this put the credit of taking down the thieves onto Drodus."

    Dubs switched back with Alt, and Dubs also began to speak to Ivan.

    "Ivan, I wish for you to keep the power I have a secret among the members of the resistance. If word gets out about me, things will surely become restless around here. I wish to at least take the time to train until that happens.", Dubs asked.

    Ivan smiled and replied. "There is no need to worry. I''ve been monitoring your progress, and you have physical training down to a level that I can barely even comprehend. You most likely have already surpassed me, so I will give you one week before sending you away. Train your magical control, and increase your mana capacity. By the time you leave here, you should be able to at least cast some basic spells of each type.", Ivan ordered.

    "You will then leave to head to Reagan''s home, and there you will begin your research to become a real mage. You have the control and ability to do so, but you will need to research each spell individually. Reagan has a variety of lab equipment and study material for you, so I would advise you to finish up here and leave as soon as possible. Do not worry about doing missions yet for the resistance, for now simply focus on your studies. I will come to you when something important comes up."

    Ivan finished his explanation, and Dubs agreed. "I will do my best, captain.", Dubs responded, before leaving back to the dining hall for dinner.

    Upon arriving at the dining hall, Dubs face wrinkled once more and he began to giggle to himself.

    "Killing those thieves back on that mission was... very enjoyable. I can''t wait until I go to live on the outside where the enemies might be able to put up a fight... ehehe.... and as for the experiments... there are... many things I would like to try...", Dubs snickered.

    His face went back to normal, and this time he remembered what he had just been saying. Instead of being disturbed however, he felt indifferent to the blood lust that was subconsciously motivating him.

    Sitting down to eat with his squad, Dubs and the party raised their glasses to toast for their first successful mission together. "Cheers!"

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    The party talked and laughed for an hour or two, and even though Samuel and Dubs sat away from each other and didn''t speak to each other, they silently accepted that they would not quarrel for the sake of their mutual party members.

    Tirian told stories of back when he was a noble. "And then, the Duke said to me, ''Good sir, if you didn''t purchase 20 gaggles of geese, surely you didn''t purchase 40!'', and I replied to him, ''of course not good sir! I purchased 60!''"

    The table bursted out in laughter, and Dubs started to feel some compassion for his squadmates. Despite the bloodlust and insanity that formed a large part of his personality between him and Alt, it was times like these that made him realize the value of the little things in life.

    "I will become stronger, and enjoy when the time comes to crush my enemies, but I will also do so to protect my comrades.", Dubs thought.

    Dubs headed back to his room for the night to get a good rest before he would have to train up his magic. "Perhaps when I have established myself as a scientist, I will invite those three to be lab assistants. It will always be useful to have more helping hands..."

    Alt butted in. "But Samuel will be long gone before that happens, am I wrong?"

    Dubs sinisterly grinned. "No, you are right. By the time I have established myself as a scientist, both Peter and Samuel will be long gone, as they do not seem to understand how to respect other people. I will cleanse this land of the people who do not respect those below them, and I will do it through science and magic."

    Alt began to snicker. "Ehehe. I like the sound of that. We can kill two birds with one stone that way, eliminate enemies, and protect those who are righteous. One day we will be at the top of this world, and we will be able to define what is righteous."

    Dubs smiled and once more started to laugh maniacally with Alt.

    After going to his room and sleeping, he woke the next day and jumped out of bed, ready to improve his magical abilities.

    "The time to train ourselves is now. Lets go, Alt."

 31 Chapter 31- Exposed Plo

    Dubs once again found himself in the training rooms with Alt, practicing his control.

    Upon arrival, Dubs immediately began to channel some energy into his hands, and to his surprise, a much larger number of magical particles began to gather in his hands.

    6 balls of magic formed in Dubs hands, each ball a different type of magical energy. If they were connected, the lines connecting the centers of the balls would form a hexagon that was rotating about its center.

    Each of the balls was not a whole ball in of itself, but rather a nucleus with particles orbiting it, forming a sphere. 5 particles orbited the central, larger particle of each type of magic.

    Dubs controlled all 6 of the spheres simultaneously, and they lined up forming a ''rainbow'', beginning with the white light magic, followed by the flaming red fire magic.

    The air magic particles were no longer clear, but rather a yellowish color, and they sparked like electricity.

    Following this was a mix of green and grey particles, the green ones which resembled chloroplasts, and the grey ones which resembled a fine granite.

    After this was the sphere of water, which looked like a number of raindrops swirling about, except that they were as blue as the ocean.

    Finishing off the ''rainbow'' was the final sphere. This one was significantly larger than the others. Each particle''s radius was approximately twice the size, however the radius of the overall orbital remained the same, therefore the density of the sphere was much greater.

    Alt snickered. "Looks like after synchronizing between the training and the mission, your control for each type of magic has increased sixfold!"

    "What are the numbers looking like right now?", Dubs pondered.

    Alt laughed. "By looking at the numbers alone, you would still look pathetic compared to your squadmates. Previously, you were at 0.025% mastery for each skill, and you''ve improved to 0.15% mastery for every skill, set aside dark magic, which you''ve improved to 0.3% mastery."

    Dubs looked down, a bit disappointed. He had made significant progress, but still couldn''t even compare to the skills of his squadmates, who began with skills around 20 times higher than what he had right now.

    Even so, this didn''t concern Dubs too much, because he had improved physically far beyond his squadmates, and combined with his resistance to magic, he was unbeatable when it came to a fight.

    Alt smiled. "Going by the numbers, you have a mana of 10.5. The reason your mana is only a few times lower than your squadmates is because of your mastery in all fields of magic. If you''re progressing in everything at once, of course the individual progress for each type is going to be slower."

    This made Dubs feel a bit more confident, but what Alt said afterward was what made the largest difference.

    "The thing is, there is once more statistic we haven''t taken into account. Mana and control determine how much magic you can handle at a time, but energy density is what determines how potent the magic you control is."

    Dubs turned towards Alt, eager to learn.

    "Do you remember when you took off that dummy''s head?", Alt asked Dubs.

    Dubs nodded, remembering back to the destruction his small ring of particles had caused to the dummy.

    "Now think back to the mission with Drodus- when he cast the flame blanket spell, it covered a large amount of ground, but only managed to singe the boots of the thieves who were walking through it until I increased the power. Do you know why that is?", Alt questioned.

    "Because the temperature of the flames wasn''t high enough?", Dubs guessed.

    "Basically. The energy density of the magic wasn''t very high. The higher the energy density, the faster the particles are moving in a small volume, and the more destructive they are when they make contact with another object.", Alt lectured.

    "On the contrary, if the energy density of the particles is put to an extreme low, while the volume density of the particles is maintained at a very high value, this creates an extremely hard substance that can be used like an armor or a barrier, since the particles are extremely resistant to movement."

    Dubs nodded, understanding. It was like in physics, how the greater the temperature of a gas, the greater the pressure would be exerted, and similarly, the colder the object was, the more solid it became, to the point where it would even exhibit properties that it didn''t exhibit before, such as conductivity.

    "I assume that is how you managed to create the body you inhabit?", Dubs asked Alt.

    Alt responded "Exactly. Your energy density is much greater than that of your squadmates, and as such your spells are much more deadly than theirs. Keep practicing and you will be able to control much more of these high energy particles."

    Dubs continued practicing for the rest of the day, with the help of Alt. Upon finishing for the day, he exited the training room and once more headed to the dining hall, where he saw his squadmates sitting together with Lilith and her squadmates.

    Dubs sat between Tirian and Drodus, and Tirian greeted him. "Dubs! Good timing, we were just introducing our squad to the other group that is training under George.", he stated loudly.

    Lilith waved at Dubs, who gave a light smile back at her. Samuel took the lead.

    "My name is Samuel. I have joined the resistance after my mother was sold into slavery due to the actions of my brother. I cannot forgive an empire that blames the innocent for the actions of those who are related to them!", Samuel pronounced.

    The group all nodded and mumbled in approval of Samuel''s goals, and Tirian took the next spotlight.

    "I am Tirian, a former son of a noble. I was sold into experimentation by my corrupted family! I am here to rid this country of human experimentation."

    A similar applause occurred, and Tirian sat.

    Lilith stood next, and stated "I am Lilith, and I am in the same situation. I am a noble who was sold into experimentation by my corrupted family, in exchange for power, and I cannot tolerate the experiments that are going on!"

    Lilith sat, and once again everyone agreed.

    Drodus stood, and began to speak. "I am Drodus, here to investigate the takeover of dwarven towns. I suspect that many dwarves have been taken into slavery."

    Enferia stood, and said something similar. "I am Enferia, and I too am here because I fear that many elves have been taken as slaves by the empire."

    The goblin female and the dwarven female both stood, and the dwarf spoke. "I am Rakaria, and this is Urbolg, and we both are here for similar reasons. We fear our races are being weeded out, and used as slaves, and if the empire is not stopped, then humans will rule over the other races of the underworld with an iron fist."

    The two sat, and the group once again nodded and clapped. Finally, the two elven twins stood.

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    "I am Poractias, and this is my brother Aractias, and our elven village was attacked a year ago. We were both taken captive, and put under harsh experiments before being rescued by the resistance. We also wish for the empire to cease their practices of slavery and human experimentation!"

    The crowd clapped once more, and the two took a seat. Everyone who was a member of the resistance had two things in common- the first was that in one way or another they had been exposed to magical radiation, usually through experimentation, but sometimes by traveling on the surface (such as Samuel), and being exposed to it there.

    The second thing they all had in common was the overall goal of these resistance members. All of them were set on taking down the empire in order to rid the underground world of the discrimination that the nonhuman races experienced, particularly to eradicate the slave trade and other forms of forced labor.

    The slave trade was not limited completely to nonhumans, as traitors or those who were linked with traitors would be disposed of promptly. This was the case for both Samuel''s mother, who had become a concubine, and for Dubs'' family, who had been killed for being suspected of hiding power from the empire.

    Aside from forced labor and prostitution, however, even more were sent to become human experiments, both humans and nonhuman races.

    Every member sitting at the table agreed that between slavery, forced prostitution, the death penalty to suspected traitors, and human experimentation, the empire was exercising the rights of an absolute dictatorship, and this was not to be tolerated.

    Dubs stood up and took his turn. "My name is Dubs."

    Dubs eyes turned bloodshot, and the veins on his face began popping out. A horrifying smile crawled across his face, and Dubs began to drool with bloodlust. Alt, who was behind Dubs in his shadow form, was mimicking this stance.

    Speaking like a madman, Dubs continued to speak. "I am here to rid this world of all the people who are rotting it to the core."

    Dubs face went back to normal, and he sat down, still giggling to himself like a madman, who was envisioning his grand scheme. His arms twitched, and he began speaking to Alt, in front of the others, as if he was talking to himself.

    "When we have finished our plot, the garbage at the top will beg for us to kill them. But we won''t, oh no. We will use them as human experiments- the same garbage who looked down upon the weak and used them for their own benefit."

    Alt laughed hysterically, and held up his hand. "AHAHA! Look at what you''ve done, Dubs! Now I''m going to have to erase their memories!"

    Particles from each of the brains of the members sitting around Dubs flowed into Alt''s hand, and were then replaced with different ones.

    Dubs, who had calmed down, realized what had just happened.

    "Looks like I really am going nuts, and there''s nothing I can do to stop it.", Dubs thought.

 32 Chapter 32- G Lis

    A week passed quickly, and Dubs trained harshly trying to maximize the energy he could output.

    Dubs did not know how to cast any spells, or how to use magic aside from controlling some particles and balls of energy. This was the first limitation he came upon as he trained.

    This wasn''t an issue for the time being, as Dubs was able to improve swiftly even without learning any spells, but if he wanted to use magic practically then he would have to master the science behind it.

    Dubs formed a large sphere of dark energy in his hand. The sphere began at a radius of over a foot, but contracted to become as small as a grape.

    The high concentration of the energy swirled about, and Alt began to speak.

    "Over the past week, your control for dark magic has increased to 2%, and control for all other types has increased to 1%. With this, your mana is up to 70. Our synchronization has also increased to 20%."

    This was an exponential amount of improvement. Dubs grinned as he let go of the ball of energy, and it slowly dispersed back into the surroundings.

    Dubs exited the training room, to meet Peter who gave him a distasteful look. "Ivan has been looking for you. Report to him immediately.", he ordered.

    Dubs saluted to Peter. "Yes, Lieutenant!", before running off giddily.

    "I must keep up the front of a youth who is eager to learn. This way, they will see my goals as that of a dreaming child- one who is trying to bite off more than he can chew.", Dubs thought.

    "Even if they find out my lofty goals, they will not think it to be something concocted by some mastermind who poses a threat, but rather a child who is spouting nonsense."

    With this, Dubs had begun to act much more cheerful in front of the others, Ivan aside. Particularly, he acted like this in front of the front room mercenaries, as they were the ones who knew the least of his background.

    If a front room mercenary sensed any real threat coming from Dubs, their first move would be to alert the guards, and this was the last thing Dubs wanted.

    Dubs walked through the damp hallway, and finally reached the HQ entrance where Ivan was reclining. Ivan''s eyes followed Dubs, and Dubs walked over and stood in front of the desk.

    "Captain Ivan, I heard you were looking for me.", Dubs stated.

    Ivan sat up and pulled out some paperwork. "I have finished working around the empire''s intel, and completed the necessary steps to have a mercenary sent out on a long term aboveground mission. It was very difficult to work around the empire, as you are well known among the elites, so I had to pull some strings to get this to go through.", Ivan explained.

    "But here you are. This is a passport that will allow you to exit the empire indefinitely on a long term mission. You are to leave immediately for Reagan''s home, and begin studying as a scientist there."

    Dubs took the wrinkled parchment, and curled it up, placing it into his pocket.

    "I understand. Are there any other orders for me before I leave?", Dubs inquired.

    "No. Say goodbye to your squadmates, and leave as soon as possible. I already understand how powerful you have become over these past few weeks, and I am at a loss for words. Right now, if you were to help us, we would have the power to take over the empire. The reason we cannot do that is because if we stage a coup and reveal our trump card, the surfacers will be sure to investigate the powerful figure that caused such an event- you. We cannot afford a war with the surfacers, so I will need you to go and research so that you can become more powerful than the surfacers.", Ivan responded.

    "I know I am asking a lot of you Dubs, but with the progress you have made it is surely within the realm of reason.", Ivan sincerely stated. "All I ask is that you continue progressing for now. I will contact you when the resistance is going to make a move."

    Dubs nodded. "I understand. I will be taking my leave then."

    As he walked down the hallway, Alt began to speak to Dubs. "Oooh! I can''t wait to see Reagan again! I wonder what experiments she has prepared for us?"

    Dubs laughed, and agreed. "Isn''t that funny? We are about to perform experiments, to prevent the corrupted leaders of the empire from performing similar experiments."

    "But the difference is that we will be punishing the wicked for their offenses against the weak...", Alt responded.

    Dubs nodded, and arrived at the dining hall, where he entered. All of the squad members were present, eating. Dubs walked over to them, and began to speak.

    "Everyone, I have an announcement to make.", Dubs stated.

    The 9 squad members turned to listen to Dubs, and the cafeteria went silent. Clark, who was pigging out on his own a table down, also listened.

    "I will be leaving on a long term mission today, and I will not return for a while. I am glad to have worked with you all, and I thank you all for your assistance in helping me to get stronger. I hope to see you all again when the resistance is making a larger move against the empire.", Dubs proclaimed.

    "You''re leaving, Dubs!?", Drodus exclaimed.

    "So soon! I wish you the best of Luck.", Tirian stated.

    The rest of the members all bid goodbye to Dubs. Samuel stayed silent, and he clearly had an infuriated look on his face.

    "How could someone like Dubs be sent on an important mission for the resistance before me? What does the captain see in him!? He is nothing more than a weakling who cannot use magic!", Samuel thought.

    The rest of the squad was also unaware of Dubs recent progress, and Enferia showed some concern for him. "Are you going to be alright on your own?", she questioned.

    Dubs held out his hand, and said "There is no need to worry about me."

    After telling everyone goodbye, Dubs thought once more. "Yes... I must rid the world of the disease that is plaguing it... for the sake of these kindhearted people."

    Upon leaving, Alt took his shadow form and Dubs walked up the stairs to the front room of the mercenary guild.

    Upon seeing the pub scene, Dubs waltzed out proudly, and his demeanor changed.

    "Hey, everyone! I''m leaving for a long term mission, so I won''t see y''all for a long time. By the time I get back here, I''ll be strong enough to take over the surfacers, so wait for me, ok?", Dubs haughtily stated.

    The balding man let out a low pitched laugh. "Yeah, right Dubs! You may be a little stronger than the average rookie but you''re getting in over your head!"

    "Just watch me, old man Gary. You''ll see my achievements soon enough!", Dubs replied.

    "Who are you calling an old man? You better come back here safely so I can straighten up that attitude of yours!", Gary bellowed.

    Dubs said goodbye to all the other regular mercenaries, and took his leave.

    Dubs took out a list, and began to read over it. The yellow parchment was crinkled, and at the top it read in black ink "G List"

    The G stood for "Garbage", and written on the list were a few names.

    ''Samuel, Peter, Harold, Millis, Dr. Phillips.''

    "Looks like my list will only grow with time. Worry not, Alt. We will rid this world of evil."

    Alt laughed and Dubs continued walking, on his way to the town exit.

    Upon reaching the exit, Dubs came across the guards. Their armor clanked as they blocked the exits with their polearms.

    "Halt! We need to see identification and purpose!", the guard exclaimed.

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    Dubs took out his mercenary ID and his mission passport, and the guards went over it and let him through.

    "Be careful out there on the surface, young mercenary.", the deep voice of the guard rumbled. "There are all sorts of danger up there, however i''m sure you know this well if you have been granted a pass on a long term mission on your own."

    Dubs nodded and thanked the guard, and went on his way up the cobblestone steps. Exiting the trapdoor, he waved his way past the entrance guards and emerged into the luscious forest.

    Alt began to fly around and scout the surroundings. "No enemies in sight. Hopefully we can have a little bit of a fun before we make it to Reagan''s place."

    Dubs turned west to cross the forest, and began to trek towards Reagan''s home.

 33 Chapter 33- The Mad Scientist Couple

    Dubs sliced his way through the vegetation, swiftly cutting down shrubs and bushes. The landscape gradually shifted from a thick forest to a tropical rain-forest. Above Dubs spanned a canopy of leaves, and various fruits and berries dotted the scene.

    Dubs increased his traveling speed so that he was sprinting at around 30 miles/hour. Passing upon tree after tree, Alt snickered.

    "Heh heh, it looks like we have trouble here. Should I take it out, or do you want to have a go?", Alt retorted.

    Dubs paused for a moment and considered. "I should probably test things out on my own, to compare my power to the creatures on the surface.", he responded.

    Alt looked disappointed, but agreed. "Alriiiight. I understand. Let me know if you need anything else."

    Dubs moved forward silently, and began to sense out his surroundings. Concentrating, he began to sense some earth radiation, slightly to the left of where he was headed.

    Feeling out the energy, a shape took form in his mind, and it formed a large plant like body. The bottom of the plant was round, with vines spiraling out in all directions, and it was connected to a number of large petals where its head would be.

    Dubs began to sprint towards the enemy, and when it came into sight he saw a green pool of acidic fluid surrounding the plant.

    The petals that made up its head were a bright pink, and they were lined with sharp fangs. If they closed up on unsuspecting prey, they would keep a tight grip.

    Inside the petals, it looked like Dubs was staring down someones throat. A mucus layer covered the sides of the fleshy walls, leading down into the acidic pit that was the stomach.

    On the outside, the vines rooted the plant into the external pool of acid, tangled like roots that dug deep into the ground.

    The plant began to throb and turned itself towards Dubs when he got close. "I suppose it can sense my presence.", Dubs thought.

    The plant spit a ball of acidic mucus at Dubs, and he narrowly dodged out of the way. The ball flew at an extremely high speed, much higher than even a leaping cheetah.

    The acid grazed Dubs arm, and the cloth began to sizzle as it corroded away. Dubs skin remained perfectly intact, as he was completely resistant to any form of attack, aside from physical.

    "AH! Look at what you''ve done! My perfectly good shirt is now torn because of you. Don''t expect to get out of this alive!", Dubs shouted.

    Alt began to laugh from the sky. "Getting mad at a plant, Dubs? Are you gonna be alright?"

    Dubs waved at Alt to be quiet and whipped out his dagger.

    Dubs jumped off a tree and changed his direction multiple times before leaping in towards the plant. After he came within a few meters, the plant began to lift its vines, shooting them towards Dubs like spears.

    Dubs dodged the slower vines with ease as he rushed up towards the plant. Jumping over the pool of acid, he stood on top of the mess of roots and stuck his dagger into the body of the plant.

    Dubs dragged his dagger through the plant in a circular motion, until he had rotated a full 360 degrees about the plant. Acidic juices spurted from the crevice Dubs had made, and the entire plant began to slide off the body.

    Falling into the pool of acid below, the plant began to squirm and wreath in pain. The red petals turned a yellow color before being dissolved, and Dubs whipped out a small test tube.

    Scooping up a sample of the acidic juices, Dubs looked at the sample and smiled. "We can use this for later experiments."

    Alt looked at Dubs with excitement, and the two continued to make their way through the forest.

    Upon exiting the forest, Dubs entered the swamp that Reagan resided in. Humidity filled the atmosphere, and Dubs began to form a layer of ice particles that rotated about him to keep himself cooled off.

    "Looks like we should be arriving soon.", Dubs stated.

    Alt continuously flew about, scouting in his shadow form. After some time had passed, Dubs began to see the outline of the manor.

    "Haha! Looks like I can see the manor now without having to wear those glasses.", Dubs exclaimed, feeling accomplished.

    Alt rolled his eyes. "If you had awakened to even a tiny bit of magical ability then you would have been able to see it before.", he remarked.

    Dubs ignored Alt''s comment and rushed over to the entrance. "I wonder what traps Reagan has prepared for us.... should we go in the front door? Perhaps find another way around?"

    Dubs looked like a kid at an ice cream shop trying to decide which flavor to get.

    "Ah lets go in through the top!", Dubs shouted as he jumped over the fence.

    A swirling set of clouds quickly formed above Dubs, and a tornado-like formation began to spin about Dubs. Like the eye of a hurricane, none of the wind came near Dubs, as the magical energy was all rejected by his resistive body.

    Dubs landed from his jump in the front yard, and the winds began to slow themselves to a stop.

    The door bursted open, and Reagan came out. Her crimson hair was as messy as always, and her eyes looked just as insane as ever.

    Dubs saw multiple crows perched on top of the trees and laughed. "I guess she saw me coming."

    "Duuuubs! My sweet little test subject has returned to me!" Reagan ran out towards Dubs. Her leather coat shone as she made her way towards him.

    Putting her arms around him, they hugged awkwardly and both began to chuckle. Dubs eyes became bloodshot and he began to spout off insanity.

    "I do hope we can get along quite well my dearest Reagan... what do you say we begin to discuss our future here?", Dubs forcefully asked.

    "Of course! Let us go inside then...", Reagan responded.

    The two of them walked inside, both twitching with excitement.

    Alt slowly followed. "Is it just me, or am I the only sane one here?"

    Dubs and Reagan sat at the table drinking some tea, and quietly stared at each other. They were both so filled with excitement that they were twitching and could hardly hold up their own teacups properly.

    "I have been looking forward to this day, Reagan. I wish to begin my studies here in your lab."

    Reagan beamed with delight at hearing this. "It has been soooo lonely here my dearest Dubs. I have counted the days until you arrive, waiting for a partner to run experiments with."

    The two silently cracked up, and finished their tea, after spilling a large amount of it.

    Somewhat coming to his senses, Dubs sat up straight. "Have you been able to fix the damages I caused the last time I was here? I apologize for any inconvenience I may have caused."

    Reagan nodded. "Do not worry a bit about that. Everything has been returned to normal. And your condition? Are you able to control the other self of yours that appears at night?", she questioned.

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    Dubs grinned. "Oh, much more than simply controlling him. We have been working together for the past few weeks, to the point where we have been merging into a single personality. Soon enough, he will be the sane one out of the two of us! AHA!"

    "Even more so than that, he can now control his magic, and is powerful beyond imagination. He has been working to train me to become as strong as he is."

    Reagan enthusiastically squealed at this. "Ehe! Shall we give your abilities a test soon then? I have been preparing a new lab facility underground... let me show it to you."

    Dubs nodded in agreement, and the two walked down the stairwell into the basement.

    Upon arriving down the stairs, Dubs saw all the machinery that was fit for a full laboratory. A chemical set of test tubes and distillation devices, various batteries and other electrical-looking gadgets, a table that curved inward spherically to refract energy on a central point, and many other tools.

    And of course, there was a room to the side that was reinforced by a strong aura. "This room! The magical reinforcement is much stronger than that of the resistance training rooms I was once confined to. How did you create such a strong barrier!?", Dubs questioned.

    "In due time, my dearest lab partner, in due time you will understand the complicated science behind all this. For now, let us test your abilities."

    The two entered the room and Reagan began waving her arms and chanting a spell. A flaming figure of energy appeared before the two, and Reagan looked at Dubs.

    "This is a fire elemental. Fire resistance for this elemental is estimated around 95%. Hit the elemental with a fire attack, so we can see just how much power you can concentrate."

    Dubs formed a whirling sphere of flame in his hand and sent it forwards, rupturing through the body of the flame elemental. The small sphere dug through the elemental like it was air, and the elemental shrieked in pain as the ball of concentrated fire overwhelmed it and tore it to pieces.

    Reagan smiled lovingly as she waved goodbye to the elemental. Her eyes then looked over to Dubs, and she looked at him with amazement and kindness.

    "Dubs?", she asked.

    Dubs looked over at her with arrogant eyes. "Yes?", he responded.

    "Never leave me.", she demanded, as her face twisted with pleasure.

 34 Chapter 34- Library

    Alt began to speak to Dubs with words of warning. "Dubs, you had better be careful around this woman. She isn''t normal."

    Dubs ignored the warnings, and Reagan began to give Dubs a tour of the lab.

    "Dubs, come over here!", she beckoned, as Dubs rushed over to the closet that Reagan was opening.

    Inside there were a set of lab coats and goggles, and Reagan grabbed a set and began to wrap it around Dubs.

    As if they were performing some intricate dance, they twirled about with finesse. When Dubs had put on the lab gear, Reagan looked at him with adoring eyes.

    "As expected, you certainly fit the description. You look wonderful in a lab coat, Dubs.", she complimented.

    Dubs stretched his arms and placed the goggles on.

    Reagan then lead Dubs around the room showing him the facilities.

    A table with a series of test tubes, beakers, and distilleries was the first stop on the tour.

    "Over here we have the alchemical area.", Reagan explained. "The main use of this area is for the creation of potions, however it can also be used to research materials, and their reactions with one another."

    Taking him over to another area, there was a large brick forge. Flames spurted out and surrounding it were hammers, weapons, and various metal ingots. Next to the forge was a stone kiln, for clay firing.

    "This is the blacksmith area, where we can create molds and then forge metal castings.", Reagan told Dubs.

    Moving onto the next area, they came across the table that had a circular mirror curved inwards, and was surrounded on 3 sides by mirrors that converged light to the center.

    "This is an energy concentration unit. It is used to infuse weapons with magical energy, or to store the energy within some other item. The energy could then either be released as a burst or left to stabilize.", Reagan stated.

    After having looked through the facility, Dubs whipped out the small tube of acid that he had obtained from the carnivorous plant.

    "I obtained this sample from a carnivorous plant in the tropical forest to the east. Perhaps we can test its reactive properties at some point."

    Reagan snatched the tube from Dubs'' hand as soon as he pulled it out and she began inspecting it, running her eye down the tube carefully.

    "Hehe! This is a rare substance to obtain, most people would have died trying to take on the plant that produces this acid.", Reagan exclaimed.

    She placed the tube in a lockbox of samples after labeling it, and lead Dubs over to another doorway.

    "Alrighty! It''s about time we began to figure out where to begin your new training, my precious test subject. This is the library, where I have managed to collect a large number of volumes concerning spellcasting, alchemy, enchanting, and magiphysics."

    Upon entering, there were about 6 bookshelves completely filled with books from top to bottom.

    "Jackpot!", Dubs stated.

    "Hehe, I knew you would be pleased. The spellcasting section is to the left, you probably want to start some research there. I will be running some tests on the sample you brought me."

    Dubs began to think. "Haha! This woman may be crazy, but that makes the two of us! Together, we will be able to use science to surpass not only the empire, but even the people of the surface... in due time I will be able to carry out my cleansing of the world, and begin anew..."

    Dubs decided to let Reagan in on his plan to take over the world.

    "Reagan, my darling, there is something I wish to speak to you about when the days experiments have completed. Is that alright with you?", he questioned sweetly.

    "Of course! Anything for you, Dubs.", she flashed him a quick smile and then got to work.

    Dubs began to look through the set of books that were in the spellcasting area, and found a series of volumes that seemed to be the most useful for the time being.

    "''Basic spellcasting, volumes 1-6''. Each volume goes over the basic spells for each class of magic, specifically the spells that require a magical control of less than 20%, and do not require any combination of two branches of magic.", Dubs thought.

    There were also some intermediate and advanced single branch spell books. The intermediate ones covered spells between 20 and 60% control, and the advanced books covered from 60-100% control.

    Finally, there were a large number of books that dealt with combined magic. By combining two classes of magic, one could use the elemental properties and the natural laws of magic to create interesting effects.

    Dubs recalled back to when Peter discussed the cryogenic stasis spell. This was a prime example of a combination of different magic classes.

    "For now, I should work on trying to master some basic spells. In time, I will begin to research materials, and the laws behind the magical energy that I am controlling. If I can figure out the driving catalyst behind these things, I can then use this to engineer weapons and other items to further my regime..."

    Dubs picked out the book titled ''Dark Magic, Basic Spellcasting.'', and he began to read through it.

    "Interesting. So darkness particles can be used in order to negate light particles, and vice versa. Because of this, if I were to learn the [shadow cloak] spell, I would be able to coat myself in a thin layer of darkness particles, which would render me invisible."

    Dubs looked at Alt. "I suppose that''s why he is invisible to everyone else. His current form is made of darkness particles, which are typically invisible unless they are revealed to the user of the magic. It is only because I am technically the same person as Alt that I can view his magic."

    Dubs continued his reading for the rest of the day and began to practice this new spell.

    Gathering a sphere of particles, Dubs maneuvered the sphere over to his foot. There was a repulsive force that rejected the particles from touching his skin, but Dubs then spread the sphere out across the surface like butter.

    He managed to engulf his entire foot in a layer of darkness energy, but could not spread the magic any further without dispersing it.

    "I suppose this is a result of my magical control being lower than expected. Even being adept in dark magic, I only have control over enough particles to cover a single foot!", Dubs thought.

    Dubs stood up, and the thin layer of particles remained on his foot. He took quiet steps forward, and as expected, the foot that was covered by the darkness magic didn''t make a sound as he stepped along, whereas the other foot made light footstep noises.

    "I see... not only do the darkness particles negate light, they negate any form of wavelike occurrences- including sound.", Dubs deduced.

    "I wonder..... "

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    Dubs began to laugh. "Hahaha! Have I made a discovery already behind the secret of my high resistance to radiation?"

    "I see! I see! My body must have a natural amount of darkness energy flowing within it... when a wave of energy comes near my body, an equal and opposite wavelength is exerted, which then cancels both effects. Magnificent! I must share this discovery with Reagan immediately!"

    "If this is true... then the magical resistances of those who are not at 100% resistance is similar to that of an electrical circuit that decreases the amplitude of a voltage being put across it... for example, when you input 5 Volts and get out 1 Volt. These resistances will never reach 100%, they will only be able to approach it. How did I manage to break the superposition barrier though?"

    Looking at the time, Dubs realized that the day was almost over. "I suppose it''s time to finish up here anyways. Alt! Lets head over for some dinner."

    Alt looked bored, and had been sleeping the majority of the time. He groggily woke up, and dragged along the shadow form body, following Dubs.

    Upon arrival back in the regular lab, Dubs caught the scent of the acid that he gave to Reagan. Looking over at the table, he saw a number of newly placed test tubes, all of them with a diluted solution of the acid inside.

    Each test tube however, had a slightly different experiment contained within. All of them, however, contained some form of body part.

    One contained a bit of muscular tissue from a heart- the species was unknown. Another contained some skin tissue. A third had a piece of bone tissue inside, all of them were soaking in the acid.

    "I see... Reagan is trying to determine the amount of time it will take for the fluid to dissolve different materials of similar surface areas... I will inquire later about the results... for now though, I should head upstairs to have some dinner."

    Walking up the stairs, Dubs dispersed the [shadow cloak] spell.

    "No point in trying to sneak up on Reagan. Even with stealth she is the type of woman to sense someone coming from a mile away."

    Dubs entered the dining room, where Reagan had placed out a large meal. Ham and Turkey with gravy and mashed potatoes were laid on the table, along with smoked carrots and creamed corn.

    The smell of the food flooded Dubs nose and he walked over to Reagan who had just noticed Dubs, and ran over towards him.

    Reagan ran over and grabbed Dubs by the hands, and dragged him over to the table, almost forcing him into his seat.

    "Look, Dubs! I''ve prepared all this food for you!"

    Reagan began to rub Dubs'' shoulders as she whispered into his ear. "I love you, Dubs. Hehehe!"

 35 Chapter 35- Donst look at another persons data

    A chill went down Dubs spine when Reagan whispered into his ear.

    "Eh?"

    "Ah. Is that so?", Dubs replied, unsure how to react.

    Only a moment of confusion remained however, as he quickly read the situation.

    "I suppose this is what romance is...", Dubs thought.

    Dubs had been locked up his entire life, and had no clue how to react. He decided to play along with her.

    "Alright then. In that case, I love you too.", Dubs replied.

    There was a hint of innocence in his voice, as he didn''t really understand what it meant to love a person, however he did feel a strong emotion towards protecting his comrades back when he was at the HQ in Lardis.

    "Ah, perhaps that is what love is! The desire to protect someone.", Dubs thought.

    "Reagan, I will do whatever it takes to become stronger and be able to protect you. I have accepted you as an insider in my personal circle, and there is something I wish to discuss with you."

    Reagan swirled around the table and took a seat, and rested her chin on her hand, staring at Dubs.

    "Hehe! What is it that you wanted to discuss, darling?", she asked.

    Dubs began to think about his plot to cleanse the world, and a look of thrill came upon his face.

    "Reagan, do you agree with me that those who use their power to prey on the weak are trash?", Dubs questioned.

    Reagan grinned, and responded "Of course, Dubs. That is why I am affiliated with the resistance after all... though there are some within the resistance that are not worthy of the influence they have..."

    "And do you agree with me that those people should be subject to the horrors that they subject others to?", Dubs continued.

    "Hehehe. I see where this is going. Are you saying you want to subject those who perform human experimentation to our own experiments here?", Reagan responded.

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    "You understand my intentions. I have bigger plans than that, however. Reagan, if I can train my magical abilities, and enhance society with the technology we produce in this lab, we will be able to produce a military force powerful enough to shake the foundations of this world."

    Reagan began to shift her head from resting on one arm to the other, thinking deeply. "It is possible to do. We would have to plan things out ahead of time, and do much research and engineering, though."

    Dubs began to speak more frantically. "That isn''t a problem! We have all the time we need, nobody is on our tracks right now. We can slowly build up our power and influence, and by the time anyone powerful enough to stop us notices it will already be too late!"

    "Hehe! This sounds like a fun goal. I will help you, Dubs. Let me get one thing clear though-"

    Reagan walked over to Dubs and wrapped her arms around his head, resting her head on top of his.

    "If you betray my trust there will be no going back.", she whispered, while covering his eyes.

    Dubs grabbed her hand and removed it from his eyes. "I wouldn''t even consider such a thing."

    Reagan made her way back to sit down again and giddily exclaimed. "Then that''s fine!". It was like she had become a different person for a moment.

    Dubs took a sip of wine and feasted on the ham. After finishing his dinner, he stood up.

    He walked over to Reagan, and gave her a hug. "Something like this?", he thought.

    Reagan quickly hugged him back and Dubs, who sounded completely sane at this point, stated "Thank you.", and he then walked back to the living room, where he fell asleep on the couch.

    The morning came, and Dubs woke up to see Reagan fast asleep on the couch next to him. "I guess I shouldn''t bother her."

    Alt had been biding his time in his shadow form, sitting in a recliner across from the two.

    "It sure has been a boring night. You''re lucky that a good amount of the insanity I once had has traveled over to you, or else I would have probably tried to cause some destruction last night.", Alt stated in a monotone voice.

    Dubs thought back to the experiment that Reagan had left out last night. "Did she end up obtaining the data after I went to sleep? I should go check. I hope she didn''t just forget about it."

    Dubs rushed downstairs to the lab, and saw the table with the test tubes. The flesh and bones that were inside of them had completely dissolved, and Dubs looked around the drawers to find a notepad.

    20% Barasylis acid solution, 80% water.

    Surface area of samples: 5-7 cm^2

    Cardiac flesh time of dissolving: 47 minutes

    Bone time of dissolving: 3 hrs 24 minutes

    Skin/muscle tissue time of dissolving: 36 minutes

    As expected, the bone took much longer to dissolve, and the tough cardiac tissue took longer than the skin tissue.

    "Even though the solution was highly diluted, it took a very long time for these small samples to completely dissolve. I wonder how much time this would be reduced by if a 100% concentration were used..."

    Dubs began to consider all the scientific applications of this acid

    "Most importantly, can I enhance the acidic properties through magic? If so, can I create a device that does this after I charge the device, like a battery, but with magical energy?"

    "Wait a minute.... how does one even actually gather magical energy? I can do so by sheer willpower manually, however what physical law allows me to do this? If it truly is a natural law where the magic is simply flowing along the path of least resistance, then I may be able to channel this energy mechanically..."

    Dubs was not far from the truth here, as the way magic worked was that when one is subject to magical radiation, they obtain a certain ''magical field'' that is produced by their own brainwaves.

    This magical field can be manipulated depending on how adept the magic user is. Magical particles will follow the path of the field (similar to a magnetic field), and flow to wherever it is directed. This is why magicians can cast spells, and manipulate energy.

    Dubs, who had been subject to radiation to extreme amounts had a magical field that surrounded his body completely, and was enhanced by each element type.

    Each magical field that is produced can only channel one element type of energy, however these fields can overlap creating an apparent field that channels multiple types of energy.

    Most magical fields created by humans could never be completely aligned. It was like if you had a line of 7 arrows, and while 5 of the 7 were pointing to the right, 2 of them might be pointing to the left. Any particles that landed on the arrows that were pointing to the left would get through the barrier, which was defending the person on the left.

    The magical field produced by Dubs had no such weaknesses. The reason his magic was so powerful- and the reason why the density of the magic was so high- was because all of the ''field lines'' he created were facing in a single direction.

    The reason he could not control many magic particles was because he could not create many field lines, as many of these field lines were being used up by his body''s natural defensive resistance.

    Now that Dubs and Alt were becoming synchronized, the ability to create more field lines was becoming more feasible for Dubs.

    Of course, Dubs only had a very vague grasp at these mechanics.

    "I will look into the channeling of magical energy through non-manual means. For now, I think I should go hunting outside for some resources to run some experiments on!", Dubs thought.

    Dubs first headed to the training room so that he could practice his magical control some more, and spent a few hours trying to fully cloak himself in the shadow material.

    "Are we gonna get to fight some creatures soon?", Alt asked impatiently.

    "I should practice here first. Don''t worry, Alt. Soon I will go out to hunt for some resources. At that time, without a doubt we will run into some enemies to fight!"

    Dubs continued practicing. By the end of the session, he was able to cloak his leg running all the way from his foot up to his knee.

    "This progress has been exponential! I could not even enclose half of this area yesterday. I suppose sleeping after practicing a spell really helps me to master it..."

    Dubs left the training room to catch Reagan in the lab, and she looked furious.

    Dubs slowly walked towards her, unsure as to why she looked so angry.

    "Is something wrong?", Dubs asked.

    Reagan waltzed up to Dubs and slapped him.

    Dubs stayed silent, unsure what was going on.

    "Dubs! Why was my notebook out here on the table!? Don''t tell me that you went through a woman''s things without her permission."

    "..."

    "I only took a look at the experimental data... what is the problem?", Dubs questioned.

    Reagan bit her cheek, and with a tsundere expression looked away and said "I was going to surprise you when I had come up with some significant results. Don''t check my data whenever you feel like it..."

    Dubs wasn''t sure why Reagan was acting like this, but one thought came across his mind.

    "Cute", he said out loud.

    Reagan looked away even further and Dubs started to walk off.

    "I''m going to obtain some more materials for research. I won''t pry into what your doing from now on, just let me know when you find something!"

    Dubs exited the lab and the door closed with a creak.

 36 Chapter 36- Natural Camouflage

    Setting out into the marshlands, Dubs breathed a sigh of relief.

    "It seems like that woman is quite paranoid. I will have to keep tabs on her, but I don''t think she will pose a threat to me.", he thought.

    Alt, who was walking alongside Dubs with shadowy streaks of energy radiating outwards, responded.

    "Haha! But you admitted that she was pretty cute when she was frustrated like that."

    Dubs remained silent and continued walking onward through the wetlands.

    The ground squished as Dubs walked, and it required a fair amount of effort to take each step. "Alt, do you have any sort of mapping ability?", Dubs asked.

    "As of right now, I don''t. I would need to have more control over earth magic so that I could propagate a sonar like reading that graphs the location and altitude of the earth particles over a large area.", Alt replied.

    "And I would need to learn the [Cartography] spell, of course."

    Dubs was disappointed but looked around. "I suppose for now I will head to the north and explore the area around there. The purpose of my current expedition is to gather any materials that might be useful for experimentation, so there isn''t really a particular location I am interested in."

    Dubs and Alt headed north and slowly the wet sludge that they trudged their way through became more solid, until they had reached a dry plain. The crooked trees that covered the swamps also disappeared, and Dubs took a look at the sun.

    The color of the sky turned from a greenish tint to a bright orange, as the blazing star beamed down with a dry heat, now that they were out of the swamp, and Dubs began to analyze the movement.

    "It appears that over the course of an hour that the sun has moved 10 degrees in the sky... this would mean that the period of revolution of the planet is 36 hours- which doesn''t line up with the underground sense of time. I will continue to further investigate the natural occurrences on the surface of the world. ", Dubs thought.

    Making this observation, he moved on.

    Dubs walked through the soft grass and began to inspect and harvest some of the plants he found as he was walking.

    "I can determine the properties of these plants later if I gather enough of them, and analyze their uses."

    He picked some Violet flowers that had 3 petals and yellow tongues sticking out of the center, and stored them in the void that Alt could use.

    He also took a few handfuls of the grass and stored them, just in case.

    "It doesn''t seem as if there are too many useful materials within this plain. Alt, could you fly up to check if there are any landmarks in the area?", Dubs asked.

    "Roger that!", Alt relayed as he began to fly up and took a look around.

    "There is a river just past the hillside up ahead! We might be able to find something useful!", Alt shouted down to Dubs.

    Dubs pressed onward over to the raised plain and when he came to the top he saw a stream of crystal clear water flowing through the valley.

    "Perhaps there are some riverbed plants that would be useful... I am going to take a look.", Dubs stated as he slid down the hill.

    Stopping himself from sliding as he came close to the river, Dubs began to search the surrounding area and found some seaweed like plants under the shallow surface of the water. Dubs waded into the water, and the cold stream began to repel itself from Dubs feet, creating air bubbles surrounding them.

    "This reminds me of when my head was shoved into that irradiated water for minutes at a time. If I hadn''t developed a resistance to the radiation, creating an air pocket, I most likely would have drowned."

    Dubs began to rant madly. "I can''t believe they would do such a thing to a fellow innocent human... I will make them pay... I will lock them up in chambers far worse than what they put me through..."

    A light-bulb flashed inside Dubs head and he began to snicker at his ideas. "Ehehe... I will first create a regenerative medicine... and then I will have them be tortured... ripped and torn apart from the inside out... only to regenerate their lost flesh so that the process may be repeated..."

    Dubs went back to normal, and began to think again. "Did I just say something, Alt? I feel like I was ranting about something but I cant seem to recall what..."

    Alt simply snickered and brushed off the topic. "It will be interesting to watch and find out whether the insanity or the sanity in you wins out..."

    Dubs gave him an odd stare but then continued to gather the plants. "Ah, yes! I believe I decided just now to try to find some sort of herb with medicinal properties..."

    Alt began to laugh hysterically, but this only further confused Dubs.

    After gathering a reasonable amount of the seaweed, Dubs decided to venture a little further into the river to gather some of the coral that laid on the floor of the river.

    The pink branchlike coral had the texture of sandpaper, and Dubs slowly waded deeper and deeper in order to reach it.

    After his body had been submerged, an air bubble surrounded Dubs allowing him to breathe underwater. He stroked his way towards the coral reef and began to break off pieces of the coral one by one.

    Alt sucked the coral pieces up into his void storage, and Dubs came to a realization.

    "Wait a minute..."

    "If the water here is being repelled by my body... wouldn''t that mean that there is magical radiation present in the water?"

    The ground below the coral reef suddenly began to shake, and the entire reef emerged upwards.

    What Dubs had thought was a coral reef, suddenly showed itself as a predatory sea creature.

    The creature was flat like a pancake, and its skin was smooth, appearing to look like a sandstone. Its black beading eyes were on the lower half of the pancake, and below the eyes was a jagged mouth. Its jaws were as sharp as blades, and the creature clearly was angry at Dubs for extracting the coral from its back.

    "ahh... what a pain..." Dubs exclaimed, as he whipped out his dagger. "This could be a problem, as my mobility is limited here in the water... I wish to kill this creature to run some experiments on its material though..."

    Dubs began to grin with insanity and started forming a sphere of darkness in his hand. "I didn''t want to have to use mana on this trip so early, but it looks like I have no choice..."

    The creature flapped itself like a bed-sheet as it began to charge at Dubs. Dubs noticed a blue aura surrounding the creature light up as it was charging, and it seemingly increased in speed.

    "Can this creature use magic enhancements!? It had clearly been irradiated by the water."

    Dubs released the sphere of dark energy, which fired at the face of the creature. Burying in between the creatures eyes, the spinning ball of energy ripped the flesh of the creature apart, and Dubs slowly moved the ball inwards so that it would reach the brain of the creature.

    Trails of blood traced the water where the ball had hit the creature, and bits of its brain began to fly out into the water as Dubs manipulated the ball of energy further into the skull of the creature. After a moment, it had stopped moving, and Dubs had Alt collect its body into the void.

    Emerging from the surface of the water, Alt turned to Dubs and asked him "Why didn''t you just leave that one to me? Surely you didn''t have to waste mana on a creature like that. You used 10 of your 70 mana points, leaving you with 60."

    Dubs gave a creepy smile. "I felt like being the one to take its life... and I need the practice anyways..."

    Alt shrugged. "Have it your way."

    "Anyways, since my storage takes advantage of a void, the materials inside are essentially inside a vacuum. There is no need to worry about a spoiling carcass or anything."

    Dubs face began to twist around unnaturally, and the veins in his eyes popped out once more.

    "Very good, very good. Let us continue north... I am beginning to feel the presence of people up there..."

    Alt looked at Dubs confused. "What!? How could you sense people? There is too much radiation up north for me to be able to sense any lifeforms..."

    "I can see their forms... they are hunched over... mining... most likely dwarves... being whipped by men in armor... a slave camp...", Dubs ranted.

    "Dubs, I think you need to calm down and think rationally. You might be hallucinating and confusing it with reality." Alt responded.

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    "We will head north..." Dubs droned.

    Dubs face went back to normal, and remembering what had happened, Dubs face appeared slightly shocked.

    "I... what was that!? It was some sort of vision... like someone was broadcasting something into my mind... I can''t remember much... its all too hazy, but at any rate, we have to head north. There are most likely some terrible atrocities happening over there!", Dubs shouted.

    "Alright, will do. Lets get to the bottom of this.", Alt stated as the two swam across the river and headed north.

 37 Chapter 37- Flaunting of Power

    Dubs crossed the river and emerged from the water, completely dry. Suddenly, a spark of inspiration went off in his head.

    "Repulsion!", Dubs shouted.

    "Huh? What are you going on about now?", Alt asked, looking somewhat annoyed.

    Dubs began whispering to himself. "If I can determine the source of the repulsion of energy from my body I can use it to create a rocket-like propulsion... perhaps even an osculating system... the uses are endless!"

    Alt looked at Dubs dumbfoundedly. "Dubs, I have no idea what you''re talking about. Didn''t you just say we needed to hurry up and make our way north? Lets hurry up... if there are enemies to fight there then I can''t contain my excitement..."

    Dubs stopped thinking so deeply and snapped back to reality. "Ah! You''re right, Alt. Lets get going."

    Dubs began to conceal his emotions and silenced his movements. The two made their way across the hilly plain.

    After crossing a few hills, they came upon a much taller hill and began to climb it.

    "I can sense people...", Alt stated. "Many dwarves, a number of humans... all of the humans have a small amount of mana- they are most likely knights."

    Dubs halted, and his dagger swung back and forth like a pendulum as a result of the abrupt change in motion.

    "How close are we?", Dubs inquired.

    "They should be just beyond the hill... however, they are most likely underground. It might be tough to find the entrance- there may not even be an entrance around here."

    Dubs grinned maliciously. "Will that be a problem?"

    Alt looked at him comically. "Haha! I suppose for the two of us that won''t be a problem. If we can''t find an entrance then leave it to me to make one!"

    The two hiked across the hill, and to Alt''s disappointment, they saw what looked like the entrance to a mine at the bottom of the hill. Minecarts full of minerals and resources were laid on tracks that were connected to the mine that dug into the hill and to another underground entrance in front of the mine.

    The underground entrance where the carts were headed was most likely an underground ''highway'' to the empire, connecting it to the mine.

    Dwarves were pushing the heavy carts, and a few men in armor stood by with wooden bats.

    "We need to hurry this up! If we don''t get 30 tons of material moved by the end of the day then the landowner will have it in for all of us!", one of the guards shouted, as he took his bat and swung it at one of the slow working dwarves.

    "What happened to that dwarven pride of yours, eh!? I thought you all were the strongest and hardest working race. Can you not handle a little bit of hard labor!?", the guard taunted.

    One of the middle aged dwarves mumbled something under their breath. "Why don''t you take a go at pushing these carts?"

    The guard, who was on the other side of the track, held up his hand in order to halt the progress.

    The dwarves stopped pushing and the guard walked over to the one who had commented.

    "I''m sorry, I must be hard of hearing. Did I just hear you talk back to me?"

    The dwarf looked at the ground and stood still, not saying anything.

    The guard hit the dwarf in the back with the bat. Once, twice, three times, a swift cracking noise sounded with each hit.

    The guard started going into a frenzy, and beat the dwarf senseless until he was kneeling on the ground.

    "I''m sorry, did you say something!? I couldn''t hear you. Was there something you would like to say to me? Perhaps you think that your treatment is unjust? I will have you know that you should be bowing at the feet of the knights, honored that you lower beings can perform such a role in the construction of the empire! And yet you have the insolence to talk back to a higher being!?"

    The man then swung his bat again, but before it reached the face of the dwarf, which was covered in bruises and bloodstains, it was caught in mid air.

    "Ah, Ah. Looks like we have a winner! Ding Ding Ding! Congratulations sir, looks like you''ve made it onto the naughty list. I will be taking you back with me, so don''t try to resist. It will only result in more pain for you.", Dubs maniacally ranted.

    With the bat in his hand, Dubs clenched his fist, breaking the tool in two.

    "Wha-! Who are you!? How dare you interfere with this camp? I will have you know that you are going against the empire!!!", the man screamed as he began to hold his hands together, preparing to cast a spell.

    Dubs slowly walked around the guard. All the other guards around them had already gotten into a fighting stance, ready to attack at any time.

    The dwarves, who had stopped working shook in fear. "Are we going to get punished for this?", one asked.

    "Please sir, leave here immediately! If you cause any more trouble we might all be killed!", one of the dwarves shouted to Dubs.

    "Hoh?", Dubs stated as he slowly paced in a circle around the guard, who was gathering up his magical energy. "So you are all the type of trash who will kill anyone that you have power over for barely any reason?"

    "It looks like I will have to teach you what it means to be powerless..."

    The guard finished gathering up his magic and waved his hands about, casting an incantation. A series of icicles formed above the guard, and they all took aim at Dubs.

    "You will regret messing with the magical knights of the empire! No matter how skilled a warrior is, he will not be able to compete with the magical knights!", the guard exclaimed, before shouting "[Ice shards!]"

    The shards of ice flew off towards Dubs, 10 of them in total. Dubs remained still, and yawned as if he was bored.

    "Is this all you''ve got?"

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    The shards smashed into Dubs, but before reaching his skin they all shattered into pieces, which flew off in scattered directions.

    "You won''t be able to hit me with that...", Dubs stated as he swiftly stepped over to the guard.

    Before the guard knew it, Dubs was right in front of the guard''s face. A look of fear came across the guard, and he reached for his sword. Before his hand could make it to the sheath, it was sliced off by Dubs and fell to the ground.

    The man started to shriek in pain, holding up his handless arm, which spurted out blood profusely.

    "Aghhhh!!!! My hand!! Kill this man, he does not deserve to live after doing this to me!", he ordered the other guards.

    3 other guards charged at Dubs, and 2 of them stayed back and began to form up their own spells. Dubs weaved in and out of all of them, cutting off limbs. An arm here, a leg there. In an instant all 5 guards were on the ground in pain.

    "Do you see this?", Dubs walked over to the leader.

    "When you flaunt your power over others, you should be prepared for one more powerful to flaunt their power over you. Do you not agree?"

    The leader grabbed his sword with his free hand and pointed it at Dubs. "You will never get away with this!! The landowner will find out about the incident you have caused here, and he will inform the emperor about your crimes! You will be outcast and never allowed to return to the empire again! When that happens, you will be at the mercy of the surfacers, who will surely kill you on sight as soon as you enter their territory!"

    Dubs walked over to the guard and began to whisper into his ear. "Sorry bud. Looks like i''m already an outcast. Might as well take you and your guards out of commission to prevent an information leak."

    Dubs used the back hilt of his dagger to knock the leader out, and stood up.

    "Is there anyone left who wishes to debate my authority here?", Dubs asked.

    The remaining guards, who had lost their limbs cried out in fear. "No, sir! We beg your forgiveness! We should not have flaunted superiority over the dwarves, and we should not have been abusive to them! Please forgive us! We were only following the orders of the leader."

    "Is that so?"

    The guards all pleaded. "Yes, it is true! We will never be abusive again!"

    "If that is the case, then why don''t I propose a deal to you all. If I am able to find someone to heal your wounds, what do you say you become servants of mine... you should be honored... honored to perform such a role in the construction of my empire... AHAHA!!!"

    Dubs began to maniacally laugh, and his voice trailed off.

    "So? What do you say?", he said threateningly.

 38 Chapter 38- Interrogation

    Dubs took a glance at Alt and asked him, "Alt, is there any way you can make it such that these people are able to see your body?"

    Alt smiled menacingly. "I can do that easily. The reason they are unable to see my current form is because it is composed primarily of an invisible element, however if I create a form of a more visible element they will have no issue viewing me, assuming I don''t use any stealth techniques."

    Alt''s shadow form shifted, and the dark energy seeped into the ground. Flowing up from the ground came some light brown earth particles, which swiftly replaced the purple shadow form.

    When the shadow form had been completely replaced with earth particles, Alt looked up to see the guards terrified at what they had witnessed.

    "M-monster!!", one of them screamed.

    One guard, who had lost an arm as opposed to a leg, began to run away, stumbling. "I.. I have a family! I cannot die in a place like this! They are waiting for me at my home!"

    Alt frowned, disappointed, and his face became filled with rage. The earth form shifted into a cloud of dust, and blew along with the wind to swiftly make its way over to the fleeing guard.

    After Alt had caught up, he once again took a humanoid form and began to lecture before performing a spell.

    "And what of the families of the dwarves that you drove to slavery? Are your words only true for yourself? If so, why is that? Because you are more powerful? Because you are superior?"

    The man flinched back and tears began to flow from his eyes, a look of terror focused on Alt. "Stay away from me, monster! Get back!"

    "You are the real monster here. I am simply giving you a taste of your own medicine.", Alt exclaimed, thrilled, before he began to bloodthirstily cast a spell.

    "[Earth slice]'', Alt chanted as a blade of dust chopped off the head of the fleeing guard. The head fell to the ground, and let out one last shriek before the man died.

    Alt shifted into a cloud of dust and traveled back to where Dubs was, with the other 4 guards.

    "If you wish to run, be my guest", Dubs stated. "Whether trash dies here and now, or lives to help me achieve my goals, I could care less. I can say with absolute certainty-though- if you run, you will not be allowed to live."

    Four guards remained. Two of them had an arm chopped off, and two of them had a leg chopped off. None of them dared to move a muscle.

    "It looks like we have come to an understanding.", Dubs stated.

    Alt took his place beside Dubs, and Dubs asked Alt "What are the statistics on these men remaining, and what of their leader, who was killed?"

    Alt began to rant off numbers.

    "Each of these men are magical knights, trained in one particular element of magic. Their strength, agility, and perception all range from 2-4, and the leader has approximately 4 of each. Their magical controls for their respective elements are placed at around 20-30% for the lower echelon knights, and the leader had a control of 45%. Resistances for each member ranges between 10-25% for their respective element of mastery."

    Even physically, Dubs was around 3-4 times stronger than these knights, and while they did have a higher amount of magical control than he did, Dubs had a complete resistance to all elements, while the knights only had partial resistance to the element they had mastery in.

    "Your energy density for non-dark magic skills is currently at 7.5 Majoules per cubic centimeter. The magic produced by these knights just now was at a measly 1 Majoule/cm^3.", Alt critiqued.

    Dubs looked at these knights. "And to think that you are considered to be the upper echelon of the empires warriors... look at you! You have been put to shame by a mere test subject like myself! Worry not, though, for I am not evil. I am willing to forgive you of your transgressions and spare your lives, if you are willing to work towards the establishment of my empire."

    The knights all looked at each other nervously, and one spoke up.

    "What must we do, then?"

    Dubs smiled. "To begin, I will interrogate one of you. If I determine that you all will not prove useful- or that you may become a liability, then I will most likely rid myself of the burden of keeping you alive... hehehe"

    The guards shivered, and Dubs pointed to the one in front. "You there. Come with me. Alt, keep an eye on the others.

    "I am missing a leg! How am I supposed to go with you!?", the man screamed.

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    "So noisy...", Dubs exclaimed. Waving his hand, a shadow form engulfed the area where the mans leg should have been. "Use this prosthetic leg for now. We will deal with the other issues later."

    The man stood up and looked at his leg. He couldn''t see the prosthetic, but he could feel it there, as if it was pulsating with life. "What is this!?", he shouted.

    "Stop asking questions. Follow me.'' Dubs ordered, annoyed.

    The man obediently followed.

    Dubs took the man over to the mine entrance and the two sat on some stools that the guards had been using to relax while ordering the dwarves to do the busy work.

    "Lets start simple. What is your name and position?", Dubs asked.

    The guard began to fearfully speak. "My name is Arctus Windfulm. I am a soldier in the 3rd squadron of the empire''s magical knight army. I served under Captain William Debraust, who has now been killed."

    Dubs nodded. "And what is the purpose of the 3rd squadron?"

    Arctus continued. "The 3rd squadron is in control of the mining operations. The landowners give us the authority to use slaves to perform these tasks, however if the tasks aren''t completed then the squad faces disbandment. If a squadron is disbanded, the empire has made it explicit that knights who cannot prove their worth will be executed as a potential threat."

    Dubs nodded. "I see. Now, let me explain something to you, Arctus. Do you believe it is fair to use those who are weaker than you for your own advantage?"

    Arctus nodded his head from side to side. "No, I do not. However, I do not have the power to go against the captain, and even if I did, I could not hope to face the knights of the first platoon. Even if I managed to escape, I would be banished to the surface, which is more dangerous than any punishment the empire could put on me..."

    "And what if you had the power to overthrow the corrupt system that is in place, for a new system that doesn''t abuse the weak?", Dubs inquired.

    "Of course, that would be wonderful, but it is certainly unrealistic. I have seen your strength, and admit that it is great, but you cannot possibly hope to go up against the entire empire on your own! It would be foolhardy!", Arctus warned.

    "Do not worry about these things. The empire does not currently realize that I even exist, and much less that I am a threat. In due time, I will use the power of science and magic to build up an army to take on the empire. In the meantime, I will keep a low profile- however part of keeping a low profile includes silencing anyone who knows of my existence. Do you understand?"

    Arctus nodded quickly. "I understand."

    "If you all agree to become a part of my empire, I will guarantee your protection, and I will only allow you to harm those who are trash- those who are willing to use their power against the weak. Our empire will be one where the strong protects the weak.", Dubs lectured, excited.

    Arctus gave everything some deep thought. "I... I have always been too weak to disobey my superiors... I have always thought that what we were doing was wrong, but somewhere along the line I convinced myself that it was a necessary evil... I wish to assist you! I will convince the others as well, I am sure they all have the same sentiments as I do!"

    Dubs grinned. "Well then, Arctus, I leave it to you."

 39 Chapter 39- Lord Dubs

    Arctus was about to leave before Dubs called out to him. "Ah. One last thing!"

    Arctus faced back towards Dubs, and asked "What is it?"

    "Let me see your face. I wish to know the face of everyone who is a part of my empire.", Dubs said in an oddly kind, yet powerful voice.

    "Understood!", Arctus stated as he removed his helmet. The mans face revealed was tan and he had a large scar running down the side of his cheek. His short red hair contrasted his facial appearance, making him look somewhere in between a boy and a man.

    "You may go.", Dubs stated, as the man walked off.

    Arctus stumbled over to the other members of the guards, who had been paralyzed out of fear. All 3 of them looked forward blankly, staring into nothingness.

    "It''s all over."

    "I don''t want to die here"

    "There''s nothing we can do. We''ll all be killed."

    Arctus walked over and proudly exclaimed. "Fear not, my brothers of the 3rd squadron! There is a way for us to get out of this predicament alive!"

    The men looked over at Arctus. One of them gloomily rumbled "By becoming the pets of that monster? No thank you. I would rather die here."

    At these words the other two began to shiver, and Arctus continued.

    "We are not to become mere pets! Have you all not been gritting your teeth and biting your tongue at the actions of our superiors, and the way they treat the other races, and force us to comply with them? If we join this man, we will be going against that corrupted regime! Even if we were to die, we would die heroes fighting for a worthy cause!"

    The other two looked up, their eyes filled with a light glimmer of hope. "Is... is this true Arctus? What if that man is deceiving you to use us for his own benefit?", one asked.

    Arctus quieted down at this, and thought for a moment.

    "Perhaps that may be the case...."

    Arctus raised his arm in victory

    "But even if that is the case! What we do know is that the leaders of the empire are performing intolerable actions as we speak, and enforcing their opinions on the commonfolk! Even if we are being used by this man, we would still die fighting against the corruption that we wish to see removed!"

    Two of the men stood up. "I will fight with you, Arctus.", the first one resolved.

    "I will also.", the second one proclaimed.

    The third one still sat there, gloomily. This one had his leg removed. "I would rather die here than give in to the desires of that monster. Have you all forgotten your honor and loyalty to the empire!? Even if the empire is corrupt, and they force their opinions on the people, are we not the soldiers meant to protect that very empire, and those very people?? If you go with that man you will be labeled a traitor all your lives. I would rather die with the honor of remaining loyal even to a corrupt empire!"

    Dubs flashed behind the man as he uttered these words. "So be it.", Dubs grumbled.

    The man''s head rolled, and his body fell lifelessly to the ground. The others took a step back in shock.

    "I do not need anyone who is loyal to an empire where the strong trample the weak.", Dubs stated, disgusted.

    The two gulped, but Arctus stood up, holding back his emotions.

    "This... this was a sacrifice for the greater good!", Arctus exclaimed.

    Dubs walked over to the undecided two. "Arctus understands. Do you two?", he asked threateningly, as he laid his hands on the shoulders of each of the men.

    From their arm sockets, the purple shadow material began to form a prosthetic arm on each of the men.

    They moved the arms around. "It... it feels as if I never lost an arm!", one shouted.

    "This is only a temporary fix, but if you come with me then the problems you face will be easily taken care of...", Dubs whispered

    The men hesitated, but after a moment, they too resolved themselves to fight. "We will come with you, and help you to create your empire!", they both shouted.

    Dubs was pleased, and grinned at this.

    "Now that you three have decided on becoming my loyal vassals, I will first have you perform some basic tasks to prove your loyalty."

    Arctus looked over to Dubs, and kneeled. "What would you have us do, my lord?"

    At this, the other two also kneeled.

    Dubs began to laugh sadistically. "Ahaha! Interesting! A lord eh? I suppose that isn''t a bad idea." He casually walked off, in a manner that was very unfit of one who was called royalty.

    "Your first task is to apologize to the dwarves, and convince them to join my empire. I could use their abilities for mining... however I can assure you that their working conditions will be different from what they previously were.", Dubs ordered to the three guards.

    The guards bowed their heads and simultaneously stated "Yes, my lord!"

    Dubs waved his hand, ordering them to stand and they all took their leave, heading into the mines to gather up the remaining dwarves. Before the guards left, Dubs called out to them. "Wait! You two as well, lift your helmets! I wish to know the faces of all who are a part of my empire."

    The two men lifted their helmets. One man had light skin and a thin face, with black hair that reached down to his neck. The other was bald, with darker skin and a rougher face. These men, similar to Arctus, had a scar on the side of their cheeks.

    "Is there a reason why you and Arctus have those scars?", Dubs inquired.

    The man saluted. "Yes, my Lord! These scars are where we were implanted with a small magical crystal to awaken our magical abilities. After years of experimentation, the empire was able to create a crystal that is mostly stabilized, and relatively safe for use, which was then used on the current generation of magical knights. I believe there was a specific test subject who survived much longer than the others, who allowed for the collection of such a vast amount of data, however I heard a rumor that recently he has escaped!"

    Dubs and Alt both began to crack up, looking at each other. "Did you hear that one, Dubs!? This is all the empire got from those years of experiments!! A pathetic power like this is nothing compared to the original.", Alt crackled.

    The bald man looked at Dubs and Alt confused, but refrained from asking further questions. "Is there anything else, my lord?"

    Dubs wiped the tears from his eyes and stopped himself from laughing. "Ah! What are your names?"

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    The man with long black hair stood up straight and bowed. "Reginald Pericious, at your service."

    The bald man bowed as well, and stated "Sylvester Malishour, at your service."

    "Well then, Arctus, Reginald, Sylvester, I entrust you all with the expansion of my empire. Do not fail me- and one last thing. Know that secrecy is to be put above all else. I give you permission to silence anyone who threatens the secrecy of our regime- however nobody else. We must show the people that we are their allies, and that we do not wish to rule over them with an iron fist, but rather to break them free from the chains that bind them.", Dubs lectured.

    "You may go."

    The men kneeled once more before Sylvester and Reginald headed inside the mines, and Arctus headed over to speak with the dwarves who were waiting outside the mines.

    Dubs turned over to Alt. "It seems like the news of my existence is known throughout the magical knights, and even of my disappearance. They do not seem to know my appearance or demeanor, however, for they would have known who I was if they did. For now, I shouldn''t have any issues regarding being found out."

    Alt nodded, and the two casually skipped over towards the captain, who had been knocked out. Dubs gave Alt a hand signal, and Alt engulfed the captain into the void dimension.

    "Inside my storage, time does not flow, so this man will not die even if I keep him in here.", Alt explained.

    Dubs nodded. "Very good."

    Arctus walked over to the dwarves, who were all quietly sitting, three of them total.

    Upon arriving in front of them, Arctus began to speak.

 40 Chapter 40- Repentance

    Deep inside the mines, a torch flared giving off a vibrating burst of illumination. In the tunnels beyond, only the pitch black darkness could be seen, and it could envelop the miners at any given time.

    Water mixed with sulfur dripped from the ceiling as the four dwarves inside the mine breathed heavily, swinging their pickaxes at the yellow tinted walls.

    Dust flew about, causing one of the older dwarves, with a balding head and a long white beard, to start a coughing fit.

    Chains hung from one of the legs of each dwarf, connecting them in pairs.

    As the dwarves swung their pickaxes, the chains clanked and rattled, but when the older dwarf began to cough, a younger one threw down his pickaxe in fury.

    Rattling across the dusty ground, the pickaxe came to a halt, and the orange haired young dwarf began to rant.

    "These conditions are inhumane, I tell ya! How can they treat us like this? A few more days in these mines and well be poisoned by the fumes!"

    The dwarf who was chained to the younger one was middle aged, with dark brown hair and tired eyes. He placed his hand on the younger dwarf''s shoulder and looked at him sadly.

    "We are no longer in a realm where we have rights. We should be thankful that we are not worse off. Others who got captured from the village might be undergoing far worse tortures than this. At least in this place we do not have to undergo cruel and unusual treatment."

    Another middle aged dwarf, the one who was chained to the old man, had blonde hair and a braided beard.

    Speaking, this dwarf began to lecture the young one. "You should keep quiet. If the knights are watching us from a distance, we could all be punished for the words you just uttered. Do you wish to die for a few measly complaints? Get back to work before they find out we have been slacking off."

    The young dwarf angrily walked over to grab his pickaxe, dragging the brown haired one with him.

    Retrieving it, the dwarves continued to swing their pickaxes, placing the sulfurous ore into the minecarts, and shoving them off into the void of darkness, where gravity would guide them along to the entrance of the mine.

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    After the dwarves finished filling another load, they all took a breather.

    "We better keep this break short, else we risk getting found out.", the blonde dwarf stated.

    "They don''t even provide us food or water during the workday... its as if they are trying to kill us..." the young dwarf mumbled to himself.

    A short amount of time passed, and the dwarves heard footsteps coming from the dark corridor that lead to the entrance of the mine.

    "Ah shit! It looks like the knights are onto us! Quick everyone, get to work!", the yellow haired dwarf stated.

    The dwarves shuffled and their chains clanked as they quickly began working again.

    Sylvester and Reginald came down the corridor, and their faces lit up when they came into the range of the torchlight.

    "Dwarves, halt your work! A large incident has occurred, and we wish to explain the situation to you.", Sylvester proclaimed.

    "Did they catch onto our slacking off? Perhaps they overheard Drocai grumbling?", the brown haired dwarf thought.

    "No, that couldn''t be it. He said a large incident has occurred. If he were here to punish us, he would have been straightforward about it."

    "What is it, Sir?", the brown haired dwarf asked politely.

    Sylvester began to speak calmly. "The third squadron has been attacked, and no longer exists. The captain has been taken into custody, and a few members have been killed. The remaining knights who live are the ones, such as Reginald and myself who have always believed our treatment of the slaves to be unfair."

    Reginald began to talk as well. "We do not expect you to forgive us for the offenses we committed against you. Even though we disagreed with the captain, we still silently obeyed his orders, and we are guilty of not standing up for what is right. However, a savior has appeared!"

    Silence filled the cavern at these words. "A savior?", the young dwarf, Drocai, asked rudely. "What''s with that? What are you guys talking about?"

    The blonde haired dwarf put his hand over Drocai''s mouth. "I apologize for his rudeness, honored knights.", he stated, kneeling. "Please take out any punishment you wish to put upon him on myself!"

    Sylvester looked at Reginald, troubled. "Please listen to me, dwarves! We are no longer masters of yours! We no longer wish to oppress you all as we did before! You all are free to leave! If you wish, you may head back to wherever you have to go, however I have a proposition for all of you.", he exclaimed.

    "All of the remaining knights have broken our ties with the corrupted empire, and decided to follow Lord Dubs. He is a warrior of justice, who claims that he will use the combined powers of science and magic to establish an empire that spans the world!"

    Reginald cut off Sylvester. "Not only this, but Dubs is extremely powerful. He was able to take out the entire platoon of elite knights without lifting a finger. He claims that he wishes to create a world where the strong do not abuse the weak, but rather protect them!"

    "We are offering you the opportunity to become a part of this empire. You do not have to accept the invitation, but if you do then your talents will be put to good use, and your conditions will be very tolerable.", Reginald offered.

    Drocai walked over to Reginald and spit on him. "As if I would trust a knight of the empire! You are most likely deceiving us into running away so that we may be placed under a worse punishment- perhaps you wish to justify using us for experimentation? I won''t fall for it!"

    The other dwarves stepped back in fear of retribution, however Reginald only looked at Drocai with a kind face.

    He opened his arms, and began to remove his own armor.

    "I have committed a grave sin... against you dwarves, and against my own morals... it is only right that you take your anger out on me... it must have been difficult dealing with the racism and the lack of provisions, day in and day out. Working the long hours around the clock must have taken a toll on your bodies. If you wish, please hit me."

    Drocai became overtaken by his emotions and began to punch Reginald repeatedly. He beat the man till he was bruised all over his body, and had a tough time walking, however when Drocai looked up from his rage, he noticed the prosthetic arm.

    "What is... what is that?! What is that purple thing protruding from where your arm should be!?"

    "I lost this arm when I tried to fight against my Lord, by the orders of the captain. Dubs is a kind ruler, and so he did the favor of replacing it for me in exchange for my loyalty."

    Drocai began to hit the ground in frustration. "Is this mans story true? Could there really be a savior? Did these men really have a change of heart, and repent for their actions?", he thought.

    The blonde haired man began to speak to Reginald. "Will you take us to speak with this man that you call Lord Dubs?", he inquired.

    "Of course, we will. Please, come with us outside the mines.", Reginald stated, as he slowly put his armor back on, with difficulty.

    Sylvester reached into his pocket and took out an iron key, and bent down to undo the shackles that bounded the dwarves.

    "There is no longer a need for things like these. With the leadership of Lord Dubs, we will remove the shackles that bound this world!", he proclaimed.

    Tears began to form in Sylvester''s eyes as he undid the shackles. "I am truly sorry for the way the members of my squad treated you all, and for my lack of courage to stop them. I gave into the peer pressure that was exerted on me, and even took it upon myself to beat and abuse you all.", he cried.

    The older dwarf looked down on Sylvester solemnly. "I only have a few years left, so I don''t really understand what''s going on, but if I can live these last few years in peace that would be nice...", he mumbled.

    "I will do everything within my power to ensure that is the case.", Sylvester claimed.

    Sylvester wiped the tears from his eyes and lead the unshackled dwarves outside the mine, to where Dubs was waiting.

    Dubs was waiting in a circle with Arctus and the three other dwarves, all of them middle aged men. One of them had orange hair and a messy beard, a slightly redder tint than Drocai, and the other two had a light brown tone of hair with short cut beards.

    Reginald and Sylvester walked over to Dubs reverently and kneeled to him. "We are at your service, Lord Dubs."

    Drocai shouted loudly. "What the hell!? That kid is the savior they''ve been talking about!?"

 41 Chapter 41- Laws of the Universe

    The dwarf with orange hair and a messy beard stomped over to Drocai and slapped him across the face.

    "Mind your manners in front of Lord Dubs! This man has freed us from our slavery, and we owe him our lives!", he exclaimed.

    Drocai shunned away from the man and shyly responded.

    "Yes, father."

    Dubs let out a laugh. "Ahaha! You''ve got quite a feisty son there, Drocar."

    The dwarves and even the knights all began to laugh along with Dubs, as if all their problems had been erased.

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    Dubs all of a sudden became very serious, and with a villainous expression retorted

    "Be sure to raise him into a proper man who can further the influence of my new-coming empire."

    Drocar still remained cheerful, and kneeled down before Dubs. "Of course I will, Lord Dubs. Me and the entire clan of my village are at your disposal. If you would allow me to ask, would it be alright for you to assist in the rescue of the other members of my village? I understand this is no light favor, but I am willing to have my entire clan work towards the furthering of your cause, if you are willing to assist us."

    Dubs pondered for a moment. "I cannot say that I can rescue all of the members of your clan immediately, however I will put their rescue on the priority list, and depending on whether or not I will be able to do so while keeping my existence hidden from the empire will determine whether or not I do so now or later.", he responded.

    Drocar nodded. "I thank you for your kind words, Lord Dubs. In the meantime, what will you have the dwarves do?"

    Drocai looked clearly frustrated that his father, and even all the other dwarves had accepted such a dramatic change in their lives so quickly. "How can we trust that this man is not also using us?", he inquired.

    Dubs stepped over to Drocai swiftly, and a look of surprise came across his face. "So fast!", he thought. "I could barely even follow his movements!"

    Dubs looked Drocai up and down, and swiftly stepped behind him. Drocai turned around as soon as he realized that Dubs had disappeared from his sight. "How is he so quick!? Is he mocking me?"

    Dubs held up a finger and pointed over to a mine-cart filled with sulfur, the one that the dwarves had spent their efforts to fill and transport to the entrance.

    "You see that cart over there, Drocai? What is inside it?", Dubs asked with arrogance in his voice.

    Drocai looked over. "Its a cart of sulfur. What''s your point?"

    "Sulfur is a very flammable object. If I were to light it on fire, and it were to explode, that wouldn''t be very impressive, right?", Dubs questioned.

    "Even an extremely small flame spell used for light purposes would be able to light that batch of sulfur. What of it?" Drocai replied.

    "But what if I were to set it ablaze with a water spell?"

    Silence filled the camp.

    The dwarves all glanced at each other, and even the knights began whispering among themselves.

    "Lord Dubs, we understand that you are strong, but surely there is no way to light a batch of sulfur on fire using a water spell. It simply doesn''t make sense.", Arctus remarked.

    All the dwarves nodded in agreement, and Drocai began to boast.

    "Are you trying to bluff your way into making me think you are powerful!? You may have fooled my father, but you cannot fool me! Very well, I will hold you to your word. If you can use a water spell to set that batch of sulfur ablaze, I will accept that you are strong enough to lead even an empire, and follow you. If you cannot however, you will let me go free!"

    "When did I ever say anything about keeping you captive, or not allowing you to be free?" Dubs retorted.

    Drocar looked very nervous, and put his hand over his head. "How could my son be so rude to someone so powerful... if he angers Lord Dubs, he surely will lose his life..."

    Dubs once more appeared behind Drocai, and whispered into his ear sinisterly.

    "But now that you''ve proposed a deal to me, you cannot go back on your word. Anyone who goes back on their word is nothing more than a piece of trash who needs to be eliminated..."

    In an instant, Dubs reappeared in his previous position, as if he teleported behind Drocai for just a moment to whisper him something and then teleported back.

    Drocai began to sweat nervously, and began to think to himself. "This man... is clearly bluffing... right? RIGHT!? He has to be bluffing! There is no way he could light a batch of sulfur with a water spell... yes... he will fail and then I will leave back to live with my cousin, Drodus in the neighboring village. I will train, become strong, and be able to fight against the knights and even this man in front of me if he threatens me or my family..."

    Dubs smiled sadistically. "Then, I''ll get started."

    Drocai gained a crooked smile on his face.

    "That''s right... he will fail... I have nothing to worry about..."

    Dubs held up his hands, and an orb of water formed that had a radius of about 1 foot. Slowly the water contracted, and the radius decreased to the point where it was only about a couple millimeters.

    "You all clearly can see that this is a water spell, right!?", Dubs asked, his eyes bloodshot.

    The dwarves all nodded after taking a look, and after inspecting the orb, Drocai agreed.

    "Yes, its a water spell. You won''t be able to set that sulfur on fire though..." Drodus stated.

    "If magic was dominated by some unknown forces or randomized principles...", Dubs began to rant.

    "Then it would be impossible for humans to master... but magic is not something of that nature... magic is nothing more than an expansion of science!! The laws of the universe are what govern the principles behind the magic I can perform... which means that magic can be enhanced, if one can figure out these governing laws!!"

    Drocai shivered with worry, but continued telling himself that Dubs was bluffing.

    "This guy is nuts... he things that magic and science are one and the same? Absurd! He will certainly fail!"

    "And that also means... that if there are scientific laws that govern magic... that the other scientific laws of the universe will also apply to magic... particularly the law of friction."

    "..."

    The dwarves began to whisper again among themselves.

    "He is going to try to use friction to light the sulfur on fire!?"

    "Its a sphere of water! How could it possibly produce enough friction to overcome the effect of dowsing the sulfur with water? The sphere would have to be rotating at an incredibly high speed!"

    Dubs guided the small sphere over to the cart of sulfur. "Stand back if you don''t want any burn marks", he exclaimed.

    The sphere of water grazed the sulfur and immediately an explosion occurred. The radius of the explosion was enormous, and a ball of flame the size of a large building engulfed the terrain.

    The sphere of fire expanded in all directions, except for one.

    The direction that Dubs was standing.

    The dwarves and knights were all standing behind Dubs, and an arc of the explosion had been completely blocked and nullified, and the dwarves and knights were all left completely unharmed.

    Dubs stood, with his arms spread, and began to laugh hysterically.

    "AHAHA!!! What a thrill!! How did that feel, Alt!? Did I get you good over there!?", Dubs shouted.

    Alt, who was on the mountaintop, had been slightly singed by the fire, as he was on the outer radius.

    "HAHA!! So you manipulated the radius of your water spell so that the explosion would reach exactly the distance I was standing at!! Interesting! I didn''t think you had the intuition in you to make a decision so precise!!", Alt replied.

    Drocar, the leader of the dwarf clan, and Arctus, rushed over to Dubs.

    "My Lord, are you alright!? Surely you cannot be unscarred after defending us all from such a violent explosion!?", Arctus exclaimed.

    "I am terribly sorry for the rudeness of my son! To think you would go through such an ordeal to prove your strength to him! I beg of you, if you wish to punish him take it out on me!"

    The others began to talk among themselves.

    "Who is this man? He can create such a violent explosion and even survive and protect others from it!"

    "I do not wish to punish anyone who keeps their word. As long as your son follows his promise and becomes a member of my coming empire, I do not intend to demean him.", Dubs told Drocar with a kind voice.

    Drocar kneeled and thanked Dubs. "You are truly a kind leader, Lord Dubs! I will serve you to the end of my days!"

    Drocai fell down, defeated.

    "I have lost. Do with me as you will, Lord Dubs.", he stated, drearily, with blank eyes.

    Dubs looked down at himself, and gave a sigh.

    "It looks like even I couldn''t get out of this one completely unscathed...", he proclaimed.

    Turning around, Dubs revealed that his shirt and pants had been torn and singed, but his body remained perfectly intact.

    "It looks like I wasn''t able to stop the explosion from ruining my clothes!"

 42 Chapter 42- The Second Capital Offense

    The group of knights and dwarves looked towards Dubs with a slight amount of fear, yet soon their fear turned to hope and promise for a better future.

    Drocar once again questioned Dubs.

    "Lord Dubs, I asked once before when my son rudely interrupted, but what will you have the dwarves do for now?"

    Dubs gave the question some thought before replying "For now, both the dwarves and the knights will follow me back to my home. I would assume you are experienced in mining, so I wish you to find a suitable area to start a mine as close to my home as possible, so that we may begin extracting materials from the ground."

    Drocar bowed, and Dubs raised his hand, motioning for Drocar to stand up. "I expect you to take this task upon yourself. I will not impose any quotas on you, nor will I supervise any of the work you do. If you bring me resources, I wish to receive them out of your loyalty to me, and not out of fear or duty."

    Drocar looked at Dubs, almost about to cry. "You are such a kind leader, Lord Dubs! I will lead the dwarves to assist you!"

    "However..."

    "Should you decide to defect from my faction... the punishment for betrayal would be a different story than if you were to fail in production..."

    Dubs dismissed Drocar with that eerie message, and called Arctus forth.

    "Arctus, I wish for you and the knights to continue training. The woman I am staying with has a library full of spellbooks and information that you all are free to learn, however remember this-"

    Dubs eyes turned bloodshot and his expression wrinkled.

    "If you believe for even a moment that you can become more powerful than I am, and try to defy my leadership, I will not leave you to execution, but rather put you to undergo torture in the experimental chambers..."

    Arctus and the knights kneeled before Dubs. "Of course we would not betray you, my lord!"

    Dubs looked down on the three with an arrogant smile. "If that is the case, there will be no issue..."

    Dubs stood up and shouted out to the group, including Alt.

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    "Everyone! In my empire, there are currently two rules in place. The first is that the strong shall not abuse the weak, but rather take it upon themselves to protect the weak! The second rule is that betrayal will not be forgiven! Disobey either of these tenants, and you cease to be a member of my empire!"

    The group all chatted among themselves, but agreed. "We have no qualms, Dubs, as nobody here would dare betray you!", The blonde dwarf shouted.

    Dubs then continued speaking.

    "We are going to move out! Follow me back to my home, where we shall take a look at the state of things..."

    Dubs and the party began heading back across the hilly plains. Lead by Dubs, with Alt by his side, the caravan was formed with 3 knights followed by 7 dwarves.

    Moving across the hills, the party progressed slowly, as they were no longer just a single person traveling.

    "Ah... it is kind of a pain to have to lead this many people...particularly having to wait up for them.", Dubs complained.

    "HAHA!! Complaining about leading 10 people when you plan to become an emperor and take over the world!? It will only get worse from here...", Alt replied.

    "Haha! I suppose you''re right!", Dubs responded.

    Gradually, the hills became flatter as the party traveled. Suddenly, Alt sharply turned to the right, halting his movements.

    "We have enemies, Dubs. Should I take them out silently, or should I allow you to battle?"

    "I am the one who needs to continue to practice. Watch the caravan, I will take them out myself!"

 43 Chapter 43- Abomination

    Dubs looked back at his party and notioned for them all to halt. Alt stood in place, on guard as the dwarves and knights looked around confused.

    Arctus was quick to catch on, as he unsheathed his lustering iron sword, preparing for battle.

    Dubs wrapped a layer of shadow energy around his body. "Heh heh. It looks like I can completely cover myself in energy now...", he murmered as he disappeared from the sight of the party.

    "Our leader is truly marvelous...", Reginald stated in awe of Dubs coordination and control over magic that took him years to master.

    Dubs silently sprinted over to the area where the enemies were located, and behind some bushes and trees he found an abomination.

    Behind the bushes, he saw a hulk of flesh and bones, squirming along leaving a trail of blood in its path.

    The blood sizzled as it boiled the grass that it slithered across, and Dubs could feel energy emitting from the creature.

    "What is this!?", Dubs thought.

    The creature continued to slide across the ground towards the party.

    "Urgh... h-help me..."

    Dubs stared at the creature, and responded.

    "What do you want me to do?"

    The creature slid towards Dubs.

    "Put me out of my misery..."

    Dubs looked at the creature with eyes of pity.

    "What happened to make you become this way?", he inquired.

    The creature tumbled and turned, and the bones protruding from it swished around in the gel like flesh.

    "The surfacers... they ran radiation through my body... and this is what ive become..."

    As the ball of flesh spoke a crevice flapped up and down, allowing muffled words to escape in a raspy voice.

    "Please save my friends. I beg of you. We were a group of mercenaries who explored out of the range of the entrances to the empire.... we were all taken by surprise and..."

    The creature began a coughing fit, spitting up blood that boiled the grass, and strained to keep talking.

    "Please don''t allow them to undergo the same fate as me..."

    Dubs looked down at the ball and flesh, and with a dreary look said "I understand. I will make sure that these experiments are stopped.

    With this, Dubs formed a ball of flame and englufed the creature, quickly dissolving it.

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    "I will not be able to save the comrades of this person just yet... I am not yet powerful enough to reveal myself to the surfacers.", Dubs thought.

    "But at least I can give him peace of mind before he died. I will look into this when I have gained the strength to take on the surfacers."

    Dubs returned to the party, and waved to Alt. Speaking with Alt privately, he discussed the situation and Alt nodded in understanding.

    "There is nothing we can do for now if the surfacers are involved. We shouldn''t move too hastily...", Alt stated.

    Dubs told the party to continue moving, and they traveled across the hills until they became a flat plain, which then became more marshlike, until they were deep into the swamp where Reagan''s home was located.

 44 Chapter 44- Distribution of Labor

    Dubs and his party continued to push forward through the marshy terrain until they reached Reagan''s home.

    Reaching the home, the knights began to talk among themselves.

    "Why is there a manor here? Is this an area where the surfacers have abandoned? Or perhaps the owner is in line with the surfacers?", Sylvester asked.

    These were good questions. Dubs had been wondering as well as to why Reagans home had remained untouched by surfacers, and the sight he had recently seen- the blob of flesh- was not reassuring.

    "I will discuss this with her later...", Dubs thought.

    The dwarves became confused.

    "What manor?", Drocai asked. "I only see more swampland as far as the eye can see."

    "Ah, right. I forgot, and didn''t realize this would be an issue. Anyone who has no magical abilities will not be able to see the manor. All of you dwarves have most likely not been exposed to any magic, so you will not be able to enter."

    The elder dwarf raised his eyebrows and spoke up.

    "What will you have us do then, Lord Dubs?"

    Dubs looked at all the dwarves and shouted out an order.

    "Since none of you will be able to enter the manor, we will continue with the original plan. All dwarves are to find a suitable location nearby for mining, and relay the location back to me. I will then assign one of the knights to oversee the transportation of resources."

    The dwarves all kneeled to Dubs before dispursing, and Reginald looked at Dubs.

    "May I have permission to oversee the transportation of resources, my Lord?", he humbly asked.

    Dubs granted Reginald the permission.

    "I leave it to you then. Go with them, will you be able to locate the manor on your own?", Dubs inquired.

    "Yes, there will be no such issue. I will take my leave now.", Reginald stated as he took off towards a group of the dwarves.

    Dubs then ordered the two remaining knights to halt.

    "I should let you know beforehand... my woman can be a bit... troublesome. She enjoys playing some dangerous pranks, and performing some unique experiments... please stay behind me at all times when we enter.", Dubs warned.

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    The two knights agreed before they entered the manor.

    A flash of lightning struck Dubs on the way in, and a turret of fire spewed out at him. Both times, the magical energy dispursed in all directions before making contact with his skin.

    "Without a doubt this is a dangerous area...", Arctus remarked.

    Dubs reached to open the door, but as always before reaching it Reagan opened it for him.

    "Reagan, im home!", Dubs exclaimed.

    "Ah! I was sooo lonely while you were gone my sweet Dubs... come inside... I have some things to show you... hehehe...", Reagan giggled.

    Dubs walked in and dusted off himself.

    "I too have some things to discuss with you... i''m sure you''ll be pleased with the news i''ve brought.", Dubs stated.

    Arctus and Sylvester walked into the manor, and bowed to Reagan.

    "Greetings, Lady Reagan. We are at your service."

    "Hoh?" Reagan retorted. "You brought some meat shields? Would you boys help me with some experiments then... hehe."

    Dubs stopped her there. "Wait a minute darling. These men are not trash to be experimented on. I have brought you a test subject for that purpose..."

    Reagan smiled wickedly. "Bring the subject to me quickly then! Are there any particular requests for the experiments?"

    Dubs grinned. "Use this one to research regenerative spells..."

 45 Chapter 45- Consequences

    Alt, who had now taken his shadow form, slithered and reformed so that it was wrapped around an object that emerged from his body, plopping on the floor.

    The mucus covered body of the knight''s captain laid out before the group, and he began coughing and spitting.

    "Where am I!?", he shouted as he looked about, seeing a couple of familiar faces and a few unknown faces.

    "Arctus, Sylvester! Dispatch us of these enemies immidiately so we can escape from here!", he ordered in confusion.

    The two stared at their former captain with a look of disdain, but remained calm and didn''t reply.

    Reagan slowly lifted the chin of the captain.

    "What is this... why can I hardly move!?", he thought to himself.

    "That mucus has a slight paralysis effect... it wont harm you but it will keep you from causing us trouble....Ahaha!", Alt explained.

    Reagan began to whisper sweetly to the man, yet in a threatening way.

    "It seems you''ve had a bit of a misunderstanding... those knights over there are no longer yours to command... they belong to me and my Dubs..."

    The eyes of the captain looked back and forth, and his hands twitched slightly as his face filled with fear.

    "Help me!! I cant move!! I can barely even breathe!", he thought, but couldn''t get the words out.

    "You will undergo worse treatment than that which you gave to the dwarves... these men have repented of their foolishness, yet you still give me a glare of hatred in your eyes...", Dubs lectured to the captain.

    "Take him away my dear.", he stated as Reagan eagerly grabbed the man by his waist.

    Lifting him up over her shoulder, Reagan easily carried the full grown man, armor and all. It was an astounding sight to see such a skinny woman carry such a heavy load so easily.

    She took him away to the experimental chambers and looked back at Dubs, giving him a cute face.

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    "Thank you, Dubs!", she exclaimed before disappearing into the chamber.

    The knights stood firm, aware that this was a scene they would most likely see played out time and time again.

    "Well then, it is time I show you all to the training rooms. Let us go.", Dubs stated, leading them into the dark dungeon that the experimental chambers were in.

    Upon entering, they saw their captain chained to a table, and Reagan, who was wearing a lab coat, was experimenting with some potions at another table, murmering to herself.

    "What if I put in a teaspoon more of this?! What properties could that add?"

    Walking past her, Dubs showed the knights the training room.

    "Here is where you may train your skills for the time being. I will allow Alt to train you, however he will not allow you to surpass me. Ensure that you become useful to the new empire.", Dubs stated.

    Dubs then walked back into the corridor, and Alt appeared before the two in his earthen form.

    "Well then, boys. Lets get started. Hahaha!!"

 46 Chapter 46- Fire Magic

    Dubs exited the training room.

    "I should check up on Reagan and then perhaps head over to the library to begin some research.", he thought.

    Walking over to the lab, he tapped on Reagans shoulder. She was whispering to herself, but as soon as Dubs touched her shoulder she let out a high pitched squeal.

    "Eek!"

    She turned around furiously, but her face calmed when she saw Dubs.

    "Ah! It''s you, my darling! What is it?", she said while fumbling with some test tubes.

    Dubs placed his hand on her shoulder.

    "I just wanted to check to see if there was anything you needed. Do you need assistance with your experiments?"

    Reagan began to run her fingers through Dubs hair.

    "You silly goose! Why do you think I didn''t want you to look at my data!? Get out of here! Don''t speak to me until I come to you with results.", she lectured.

    Dubs refit his beanie and nodded, taking his leave.

    On his way out, he commented "Don''t show any mercy to this one... he is nothing more than trash who deserves to suffer..."

    "Will do!", Reagan cheerfully replied.

    Dubs headed to the library and began scanning through the books.

    "It seems I''ve mastered using the shadow cloak, but I need to expand my capabilities. I should try to train in a different elemental area.", he muttered.

    Dubs looked through the books and took out one that was on beginners level flame magic.

    "Lets take a look at this and see what we can do here..."

    Dubs looked through the book and first read about the properties of the fire element.

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    Fire particles are used primarily for attack magic. Spells such as [fireball] or [Blanket of Flames] use the destructive properties of fire to cause damage to enemies.

    Fire spells do have uses other than attack magic, such as the production of heat and light.

    Fire magic can be enhanced with air magic, if one is talented enough, and can be weakened or even extinguished by water magic.

    Dubs considered the implications of learning this magic.

    "I will end up learning all of the types of magic either way, so I don''t have to rush to perform the [cryogenic stasis] spell. I will learn to use fire magic next.", he decided.

    Continuing to look through the book, he analyzed some of the spells.

    "It seems that at the beginners level, fire can only be used for basic attacks and uses, like lighting campfires. However, if I were to engineer a machine that ran off heat energy, I could use fire magic to produce this energy."

    "Once I have mastered fire magic to a certain extent, I will be able to create flames at a very high temperature, and as a result I could potentially create new stronger alloys to use in armor and weaponry... if I combine this with some mechanical systems, I could create some very powerful weapons."

    Dubs continued reading and pondering the uses for fire magic for the rest of the day.

    Meanwhile, Reagan had been making progress in her experiments on the knight captain, and Arctus and Sylvester had been undergoing harsh training under Alt...

 47 Chapter 47- Arctus and Reginalds newfound Training

    Alt analyzed the two knights statistics, and began to consider the best way to train them.

    Arctus:

    Strength: 3.4

    Agility/Perception: 2.3

    Vitality/Defense: 3.1

    Primary Element: Water

    Water Magic Control: 15%

    Mana: 150

    Health: 310

    Sylvester:

    Strength: 3.7

    Agility/Perception: 3.2

    Vitality/Defense: 2.9

    Primary Element: Air

    Air Magic Control: 13%

    Mana:130

    Health:290

    Alt determined that these knights were only capable of mastering a single elemental area of magic.

    This was quite ordinary, and was not necessarily a bad thing. While these knights were unable to master magic that required combinations of different elements, this could be seen as an upper hand for Dubs.

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    Dubs did not want any of his subordinates to become stronger than he was, and so keeping them limited to only a few elemental schools was one way to achieve this.

    Along with this, these knights who did not have the training aptitude that Dubs had would be able to focus completely on a single magic type.

    It was a situation where rather than becoming a jack of all trades, they would become a master of one.

    Alt began with a fighting stance.

    "Alright boys... both of you come at me at once... feel free to use any tactics or magic you want, I am merely going to measure your abilities.", Alt sinisterly stated.

    Of course, there was no need to actually test their abilities, since Alt knew exactly their level by a simple glance, and where he should go forth with their training.

    Alt was doing this to show these two the dispairity in their strength compared to his own, and to encourage them to work to approach the level he was on.

    The two assumed fighting stances, and Sylvester charged at Alt while Arctus stayed behind.

    "Naive!", Alt whispered. "If you think you can beat me with a halfassed tactic such as splitting up the labor between physical fighting and magic attacks, then you''re dead wrong!"

    Arctus began to wave his hands and chant, and a tidal wave began to form behind him.

    Sylvester swerved back and forth, swiftly flipping his sword from stance to stance, preparing to attack.

    Sylvester jumped to the side to make way for the water spell that Arctus had prepared, but Alt merely sighed.

    Alt cut off Slyvester''s path before he could dodge, and with a swift hand to the back of the neck, knocked Sylvester unconscious.

    Arctus had finished his chant, but was clearly shocked by this. He stumbled to cast the spell, and finally got the words out.

    "[Tidal wave]!"

    The water that had gathered behind Arctus burst forth, cresting over Arctus, aimed at Alt. Alt moved in front of Sylvester to block the attack, with a disappointed look.

    "Are you trying to kill your own comrade in battle? What if I was an enemy who didn''t care about his life, and used him as a shield!?"

    Alt blocked the tidal wave and the water evaporated as soon as it touched the earthen form that he had taken on.

    "What!? Water spells should at least wet the ground of an earthen form... to think my spell evaporated before it even affected you...", Arctus exclaimed, perplexed.

    "Duke Alt, If I was fighting an enemy who was willing to lose their pride as a warrior, only then would they perform the shameless act of using an unconscious enemy as a human shield!"

    Alt facepalmed. "And what makes you think that the enemies you face will be honor filled warriors? From here on out, everyone you face will be tje scum of the earth- the lowest of the low- those who will use any and every dirty tactic to win. That is what we are fighting against."

 48 Chapter 48- Swords, Spells, and Science

    "Er... well... that is...", Arctus fumbled his words in response to Alt as he began to think back to the brutal abuse the captain of his squad used to implement on non-human races.

    Bloody scenes of beatings and rapes filled his mind, with Arctus silently standing by, biting his lip in discontent.

    Arctus felt angry, but more with himself than with his captain and the other soldiers who committed the autrocities.

    "How could I have just stood by and watched as those things happened? Did I truly believe that I was powerless to make a difference?"

    Arctus cringed as he thought this.

    "Even if I was powerless, I surely should have done something to stand up against that evil. However, I mustn''t keep dwelling on the past. What is done is done, and I should now focus on doing what I can here with Lord Dubs."

    "I will pay for my sins by giving my life to Lord Dubs'' cause."

    Arctus readied himself. "You are right, Duke Alt. I will take your wise words into account."

    Alt grinned. "Very well. It is about time you both began to practice defending. I''m going to release quite a bit of offensive power on you both... do your best to survive...heh heh."

    Arctus and Slyvester looked worried about the evil grin Alt had, but their eyes radiated courage.

    Streams of dark energy began to surround Alt, forming blades, which swirled about before flying towards the knights.

    "If you survive training with me, your strength will have increased multiple times over!", Alt exclaimed.

    Meanwhile, Dubs went to check up on Reagan.

    Arriving in the laboratory, Dubs set aside some of the items he had obtained from the journey.

    He spread the herbs on a table, along with some of the coral and the bits of the sea creature. He placed these in test tubes with water.

    "Darling! I''ve obtained some more samples for you to look into. If you have time come take a look at these."

    Reagan was busy with her work, but lifted her head at the sound of new samples to experiment with.

    "Hehe! Alright, ''Lord Dubs'', as those knights have been calling you.", she replied.

    "I have an idea regarding the creation of a regeneration potion... hear me out.", Reagan asked.

    Dubs nodded and listened.

    "Clearly the acid from the plant monster has the properties to destroy flesh. But what if we were to reverse engineer an acid with the exact opposite chemical properties? Rather than destroying flesh, it would instead restore it. I have been working on this for a while now."

    Dubs nodded. "Brilliant! May I be informed of your findings thus far so I too can assist you with this project?"

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    Reagan blushed at being called brilliant, and responded shyly.

    "Fiiine... let me show you what I have discovered so far."

    Dubs walked over to the table where she had many test tubes of the acidic substance, and Reagan began to explain what she had discovered about chemistry in this world.

 49 Chapter 49- Chemistry Lesson

    Reagan spent the next few minutes explaining to Dubs her current knowledge of the fundamentals behind chemistry and the structure of the objects and magical entities in the world.

    Dubs patiently and eagerly listened, intrigued by the findings. Dubs had not lived freely in the world for very long, and while he had a longing to discover how things worked, this was his first experience being taught.

    There were a few principles that governed the chemical structure of the objects in the universe.

    The first of these principles was that all forms of matter- whether it be a physical item or a grouping of magical energy- was composed of some basic particles.

    These particles were the same particles that made up the 6 elemental schools of magic- Light, Dark, Fire, Air, Water, and Earth.

    Physical objects were composed of various ratios of these particles. When an object was in a physical form- whether solid, liquid, or gas, the particles were in a lower state of energy.

    These lower energy particles had bonds that stored the energy, allowing for matter to keep a physical form.

    When particles were unbonded, they formed pools of magical energy. These pools were extremely unstable, and would radiate energy, which affected the bonds in physical matter.

    This is why spells, which are created purely of magical energy, were able to do extensive amounts of damage to living beings.

    Each element has different properties, and when combined in the correct ratios, can be used to create any possible material.

    As he gained this knowledge, Dubs asked questions.

    "How is it that magicians can gather these particles to use in spells?", he asked Reagan.

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    Reagan went on to explain the aforementioned properties regarding the creation of magical fields which controlled the flow of certian types of particles.

    "Magical energy is first gathered from the surroundings by breaking the bonds in nearby materials, reducing them to their ubonded elemental forms.", she explained.

    "Once this is done, a magical field that is created by the magician guides the particles in the desired motion. The stronger the field, the larger the guiding force can be, and the more quickly the particles are moved."

    Reagan also explained that all particles of the same type repelled each other, which is why it takes a great force to contract them into a dense spell.

    Particles of opposing elements attracted each other, and when these particles collided they would bond, forming physical matter. Each particle reacted with different particles in different ways.

    One example of this would be fire particles merging with water particles, to create physical steam.

    It was also possible for like particles to create raw matter through bonding, such as pure fire or pure water, but this process required a vast amount of cooling to create the required bonds to store the energy.

    The list of different bonds between elements goes on.

    After learning all this, Dubs took a look at the acid that Reagan was looking into.

    "So, how do we break down that acidic substance into its elementary particles, and how are we to measure the ratio of elements that it is composed of?", he inquired.

    Reagan took the test tube as she happily creeped over to a metal machine that looked like a microscope of sorts, but with a 3 pronged claw where the object should be placed.

    "Just watch, hehe!"

    Underneath the claw was a test tube holder, and above was an eyepice for viewing.

    Reagan placed the test tube into the holder and pressed the switch, and the claw began to rotate rapidly.

    Sparks of lightning emerged from the tip of each claw, converging on the acid filled tube. The acid slowly began to shake violently, before separating into a flash of colors.

    On the bottom was a red liquid, it was about 1/4 of the solution. In the middle, about half of the solution was a murky green liquid, and on top the remaining quarter of the solution was a blue liquid.

    Reagan quickly grabbed the tube and began to pour the liquid into a graduated cylinder. The liquids separated like oil and water, each forming their own layers.

    15 mL Fire element

    34 mL Earth element

    21 mL Water element

    Scribbling down these numbers, Reagan smiled as she began to work on her next test.

 50 Chapter 50- Checkup on Progress

    21.4% Fire

    48.6% Earth

    30.0% Water

    This was the ratio of elements that created the acid produced by the carnivorous plant.

    Each element had an opposite. Light and Dark, Fire and Water, Air and Earth.

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    According to Reagans hypothesis, by creating the same ratio of opposing elements it may be possible to create a solution that has restorative properties.

    This solution, therefore, whould be as such:

    21.4% Water

    30.0% Fire

    48.6% Air

    Reagan quickly rushed over to a machine that looked like a large pump, attached to 6 different containers. Each container held a gaseous form of the 6 elements.

    She placed a beaker underneath the fire pump, and connected it through a nozzled cap. This cap was airtight, and the hose connecting it could be removed and reconnected without any gas escaping the beaker.

    Reagan pressed the pump until the beaker was filled to the correct proportion with the fire gas, and reconnected the hose to fill it with the air, then the water gases.

    After this was complete, she placed the beaker into an icy box for cooling.

    "The elements won''t bond unless they are in a cooler tenperature. This will bring down the energy levels and force bonds to be created, thus producing a reaction.", Reagan explained.

    "Reagan is certainly knowledgable and experienced in the field of science and the study of the laws that govern this universe... amazing.", Dubs thought.

    "We will need to wait a while, to find out the results... we will then test them on the subject you so kindly brought in... hehehe!", she exclaimed happily.

    Dubs nodded. Only after a product had been sufficiently tested on a disposable subject would he allow it to be used on members of his empire.

    "Good work, Reagan.", Dubs exclaimed. Reagan blushed but stated "This is what I live for, Dubs!", with wide eyes. "If we work together we can use science to solve any problem... hehehe... with some sacrifice of course."

    Dubs smiled, and took his leave to check on Alt and the soldiers who had been training in the rooms.

    As he approached the training room, Dubs heard the sounds of banging and explosions. It was a memorable sound for Dubs, one that made him recall his training with Alt.

    "Looks like my other self is really putting those boys through the ringer... I had a resistance to magic, but he really isn''t holding back on them...", Dubs thought.

    Dubs knocked and entered the room, to see Arctus and Sylvester on the ground. Alt looked like a demon, violently spewing out spells and attacks left and right at random.

    "Lord Dubs, help us! This training was too harsh! We beg your forgiveness for underestimating your associates!", Sylvester exclaimed.

    Dubs coldly rolled his eyes, and looked at the knights without a shred of pity in his eyes.

    "You cannot become strong unless you are put through hell and back. Continue training them, Alt. They will either become worthy soldiers of the empire, or they will die trying..."

 51 Chapter 51- Restoration Potion Testing

    Dubs snickered as he left out the door.

    "Alt won''t kill them. He knows better than I do that we need people loyal to our cause. I don''t want to rely on fear to create loyal vassles, but having some insurance is the safe option...", Dubs pondered.

    "On top of that, it is true that those two are at the point in their training where unless they are pushed to the very brink they will not improve. Even if their deaths are merely an illusion, we must create that illusion for the sake of their progress."

    Dubs finished his thinking and returned to the lab a bit later where Reagan had a test tube with a purple gaseous substance in her hands.

    "Is that the finished product?", Dubs asked.

    Reagan looked at Dubs with a wild face, eager to test the substance on the subject.

    "Hehehe!! Will my theory prove to be correct, so that we can chop off the limbs of our subject here and regenerate them? Or will my theory prove wrong and the substance will poison him, forcing us to amputate!? Only time will tell...", she exclaimed.

    Walking over to the chained subject, who had a gag on his mouth, he began to squirm and appear to beg for Reagan to stop. Reagan showed no such mercy, and grabbed a tray of surgical tools.

    On the tray was a number of scalpels, saws, picks, and other tools. She took one of the scalpels and sliced open a cut in the finger of the man. Blood rushed out, but she took a clear paste and applied it to the cut, which stopped the bleeding.

    "Hoh? What is that?", Dubs asked.

    "After a number of experiments I managed to create a substance that has the form of a paste but the properties of a sponge.. it stops any flow of fluids, whether it be blood or water or anything else.", Reagan explained.

    Continuing, she took the purple gas and connected it to a siphoning tool. She placed the tool into the cut and began to pump the gas into the cut.

    The man started to shake violently in agony, but there was nothing he could do as he was chained down to each and every joint.

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    The finger began to turn purple, and the corruption ran up the finger quickly.

    "Aha! Looks like weve had a failure in our experiment... oh well, looks like I will have to amputate!!", Reagan shouted, delighted as she grabbed the saw and began to hack off the mans finger before the corruption spread to the hand.

    The man screamed as his finger fell off, and Reagan applied the cream to the stub that was left behind, stopping the bleeding.

    "Perhaps the reason this was a failure was due to the elements that composed the acid in the first place... Clearly replacing the earthen content with air content made the substance into a mist, and I believe that fire and water when combined in certain proportions create an acidic combination.", Dubs suggested.

    "What if we were to remove the fire component and use earth, water, and perhaps something that is more healing based, such as light? If we can find the correct proportions, we might be able to create a restoration elixer."

    Reagan smiled and excitedly got to work. "Interesting theory, Dubs! Lets try it out immidiately!"

    Meanwhile, the captain had passed out due to the pain.

    "But lets give things a rest for the day. I wouldn''t want you to overwork, my dear.", Dubs said to Reagan.

 52 Chapter 52- Winging i

    Dubs grabbed Reagans hand and he lead her up the stairs to the dining room.

    "Just... just a minute Dubs!", she stated, blushing. "I still have more to investigate in the lab..."

    Dubs continued to lead her up the stairs.

    "You''ve worked very hard today. You deserve a rest. Allow my vassles to prepare dinner for us tonight, and we will rest and feast. Work can continue in the morning."

    Reagan sighed and reluctantly agreed, eager to get back to her experiments.

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    When Dubs got upstairs, he pulled Reagan close to him and gave her a kiss.

    "...!"

    Reagan was surprised, and unsure how to react. She ackwardly flailed until giving in and kissing back.

    Dubs lifted up her face into the light.

    "You look beautiful", he told her.

    Thoughts filled her mind, but eventually she began to think more clearly.

    "Hehe.. you realize what you''ve just done Dubs...", she remarked in a controlling voice.

    "We are to be of one mind if we are to achieve the goals we have laid out. Loyalty to each other is number one priority in this respect.", Dubs stated.

    "Then, you wouldn''t mind if I were to take into custody any women that I feel are making a move on you, right?", Reagan inquired.

    "Do as you please.", Dubs responded.

    Dubs lead Reagan to the table and began to think.

    "I wish I had a spell where I could contact others... I will have to do some research into this field."

    Dubs excused himself to go and gather his subordinates, and first headed to the training room.

    Upon entering, he saw Arctus and Sylvester both bruised and cut from the barrage of attacks that Alt subjected them to.

    Alt had barely broken a sweat, and was switching back and forth between different elemental forms.

    "Ah! Dubs. Is it time to call it a day?", Alt asked.

    "Yes. How has their progress been for today?"

    "To be honest, both have grown a bit in their reflexes, but I suppose I should have them focus more on handling larger magical powers. I will begin that training tomorrow."

    Dubs nodded and addressed the two knights.

    "Are you both alright? I hope you don''t hold any hard feelings. Harsh training is necessary to create strong warriors."

    Both nodded and bowed. "We are fine, Lord Dubs! Thank you for your concern!", they proclaimed.

    "I see... well then, let me ask. Does either of yoy know how to cook?"

    "...."

    The two stared at Dubs, confused.

    "Cooking, Lord Dubs?", Sylvester replied. "Well... yes, I can make some basic dishes, however surely a lord such as yourself has a chef to make much higher quality food than I coukd prepare..."

    ...

    "Nope! The only subordinates I have are the ones I obtained today.", Dubs stated.

    "Are you telling me that your entire empire as of right now consists of yourself, Lady Reagan, Duke Alt, and the knights and dwarves you convinced to join just earlier?", Arctus questioned.

    "Yep!"

    "I see... surely you know what your doing though. I will trust your wise judgement, Lord Dubs."

    "Thats great to hear that you trust me and all, but this whole empire thing...

    Im just winging it."

 53 Chapter 53- Gathering for the Meeting

    Arctus gave a nervous laugh.

    "Surely you jest, Lord Dubs. It would be unthinkable for one to even dream of creating an empire without a plan..."

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    Dubs smiled and laughed. "Heh heh.. just watch."

    Arctus hid his nervousness.

    "Well then, I will attend to the cooking. If you''ll excuse me.", Sylvester stated before bowing and leaving to cook.

    "Do not worry so much, Arctus. I may not have some grand scheme plotted to each and every detail, but my instincts are good. I won''t lead this empire to ruin, especially not before we even establish ourselves."

    Arctus reaffirmed himself and bowed. "As you say, Lord Dubs! I will go and assist Sylvester."

    Arctus left, and Dubs headed to the exit.

    "I had better gather some others before holding a meeting at the dinner table...", Dubs thought.

    "Reagan, do you have any of those goggles that I used to enter here before?!", Dubs shouted across the room.

    "Yes, Ill retrieve them!", she replied, quickly descending and ascending from the lab with 2 pairs of goggles.

    "It looks like I can only invite 2 guests to the meeting who cannot use magic. Well, I know who to invite.", Dubs decided.

    Dubs turned to Reagan once more. "Are the traps to the entrance turned off?"

    "Tch! No fun...", Reagan said bitterly as she waved her hand and a magic string spread out at the speed of light in many directions, like a flash of electricity connecting to each of the traps in the yard.

    "Thank you, Dear.", Dubs said as he left.

    Dubs flew up by propelling his body using some air magic, and took a look around the area.

    It was dark out at this point, so all he could see was the dark outline of the swamp in the distance, and a single light a bit far away in a dryer patch.

    Dubs flew over to the light. "There are no settlements in immidiate range of Reagan''s manor, therefore this must be the new dwarven settlement.

    Upon arrival, he found a newly dug cave, and a shack for storage that had been built in a single day.

    Reginald was standing guard at the entrance to the cave, and flashed his lantern on Dubs when he heard the approach.

    (Dubs had not bothered to silence his movements)

    "Who goes there!?", Reginald shouted.

    "This is the property of Lord Dubs, ruler of the newfound empire! Identify yourself!"

    Dubs laughed. "Advertising already, are we Reginald?"

    Reginald realised Dubs voice, and saw his figure as Dubs walked closer.

    "Lord Dubs! What brings you to the mine so soon? As you can see, the dwarves found a suitable plot of land for mining, and have already started construction of storage facilities and digging in the mine.", Reginald reported.

    "Thank you for the report. I have come to invite you and two others to a meeting so that we may discuss further the plans of my empire. You do have time, right?"

    Reginald kneeled. "Anything for my lord!"

    "Gather Drocar and Drocai. Meet me at the manor in 15 minutes. Here," Dubs threw over the pairs of goggles. "Tell the dwarves to wear these as they enter the manor. Without them they will be unable to enter."

    "Yes sir!"

    "And one more thing... have you noticed any suspicious activity around here?"

    Reginald came uo close to whisper to Dubs.

    "To be honest, yes, I have. There seemed to be an unidentified scout sneaking around this area recently. I would highly suggest that we increase the defenses of this mine, before the surfacers take action against our intrusion on what they consider to be their land."

 54 Chapter 54- Dinner

    "I see...", Dubs responded to Reginald. "If the surfacers get involved things could become problematic. We do not know how strong they are, and it would be a fatal error to underestimate them. They have been researching different types of magic for centuries."

    "I agree, my Lord. Should we attempt to make contact to negotiate and establish friendly relations?", Reginald inquired.

    "No, they are an enemy that must be overcome at some point. We will not be an empire to engage in some political farse to appease other countries. Those empires end up favoring the politicians and nobles over the masses"

    Reginald looked slightly surprised. "You are right, Lord Dubs, however without maintaining political relations we will not be able to survive as an empire-"

    "Silence. We will simply stay out of their line of fire until we have the cannons to fire back."

    Dubs returned to the manor and found Reagan relaxing at table with a glass of wine, swirling it about in one hand.

    Arctus and Sylvester were hard at work in the kitchen, and Dubs began to sip some wine with his lover as well.

    The time passed, and the food was placed on the table. A stew with tomato sauce as the base, with chunks of potatoes and hot dogs was the main dish.

    There was also a spinach salad with olives, tomatoes, and vinegar as the dressing.

    Dubs waited patiently and heard a knock at the door. Opening it, he saw Reginald with the two dwarves, both wearing the goggles.

    "Ah! So this is the manor of m''lord!", Drocar exclaimed.

    "I welcome both of you to our home. This is my... lets say my wife, Reagan. You shall address her as Lady Reagan."

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    The three knelt before Dubs and Reagan.

    "We are honored to be invited into your home, Lord Dubs and Lady Reagan."

    Dubs smiled, and raised his hand. "You all may sit at the table. That includes you two, Sylvester. Arctus."

    Dubs and Reagan took the two heads of the table, and on one side sat the three knights. On the other side sat the two dwarves, and next to Dubs on the dwarves side Alt took a spot.

    "Everyone, please eat to your hearts content! Following the meal we will discuss the future of the empire."

    The group dug into the dishes. It was in no way resembling of a meeting between the leaders of an empire.

    The only ones who were polite and with manners were the knights, but even Dubs, Alt, and Reagan ate like pigs.

    After the chaos had ended, and the food was gone, Dubs got the attention of the rest of the table.

    Well then, it looks like its time to get down to business.

 55 Chapter 55- Council Meeting

    Dubs wiped his mouth with his hand and made some smacking sounds woth his lips before chugging a glass of water.

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    "Alright. As the Lord of this new empire, it is my duty to inform my vassals of the current status of the empire and where we are going to move from here on out.", Dubs stated.

    The others at the table listened as Dubs went on.

    "First order of business- Reagan, I wish for your current priority to be to continue your research on a restoration potion. I will assist you in this, however I will be spending the majority of my time studying fire magic so that I may further master magic."

    Reagan nodded in approval. "Yes, sweetie!", she exclaimed while giggling.

    Dubs looked to Arctus and Sylvester. "The two of you will continue training under Alt. It will be difficult, but I have faith that you two will come out of it much stronger than before."

    The two looked determined, and putting their fists together made a salute. "Yes, my Lord!"

    Dubs looked at Reginald. "What is the current status on the dwarven outpost?"

    Reginald took the spotlight and explained the situation.

    "We have found a suitable plot for mining and begun to dig out the scene. A hut for storage and some living quarters have already been built, and we plan on excavating from here on out. Resources will begin to show up a few days from now once we have dug deep enough to reach them."

    Drocar spoke up. "I can assure you that there are an abundance of minerals underneath the location we chose. You could say its a dwarven intuition."

    "Well then, I will leave that to you two.", Dubs stated.

    Dubs turned towards Drocai. "There is a special reason why I have called you here, Drocai."

    Drocai nervously responded. "What is it, Lord Dubs?"

    "I wish for you to become a scout. The lands surrounding this area need to be charted, and if there are any other hints of civilization nearby we need to know immidiately."

    Drocai nodded, understanding. "I will fulfill this task, my Lord!"

    "However", Dubs warned. "This is not a trivial task. Reginald, report to the council here what you told me earlier."

    Reginald began speaking. "I noticed that there was an unidentified scout sneaking around the area near the dwarven outpost. It seems out presence on the surface hasnt gone unnoticed, and in a worst case scenario the surfacers guild may take action against us. This is very concerning, especially because we are uninformed about their current strength."

    The council was filled with worry and whispers, however it was Drocai who spoke up bravely to calm the council.

    "So what shall we do about this, Lord Dubs?"

    Dubs responded. "If the surfacers make contact with us, the best thing to do would be to negotiate, in order to survive. However, I am repulsed at this notion. Negotiation with those people would mean accepting their ways of doing things, which I have no intention of doing. I will train myself and out forces to be able to contend with the surfacers, no matter how strong they are."

    The council felt at ease with these words. They were confident in the strength of their ruler.

    "That is all for tonight. You may return to your posts.", Dubs stated.

    All of a sudden, from the entrance to the manor, a knocking sound was heard.

 56 Chapter 56-Duel

    Dubs told everyone to be quiet and walked over to the door.

    The members of the council who were sitting at their seats remain seated and Dubs opened the door with a creak.

    Three men stood outside of the door. All three men were wearing shiny silver armor that covered them from head to toe.

    Swords hung from their hilts and shields were in their left hands.

    "Who are you?" Dubs asked.

    "I am Corporal Leopold von Gracier, of the surfacers guild.", the man stated proudly.

    "We of the surfacers guild suspect encroachment on our lands by the people of this household, and this will not be tolerated. Be thankful that we are even giving you the time of day to speak with you about these things, however we will be taking custody of you and anyone currently in this household from this point forward. Is this understood?"

    Dubs rolled his eyes, and Alt reverted from his shadow form, taking a place inside the mind of Dubs.

    "Dubs, these guys might prove to be trouble. The one in the center has physical stats that average to 14! The other 2 average to 10! If we took on all 3 at once, we would almost certainly lose unless we kept the battle to a long range magic fight, however with their physical speed it would be almost impossible with 3 opponents.", Alt explained.

    Dubs considered this, and questioned the man.

    "Are you saying this is essentially an arrest?", he asked.

    "We of the surfacers guild perfer not to use such vulgar terms... call it a confiscation of personelle."

    "What a pain.", Dubs thought. "These guys are the type to cover up evil actions with pretty words and politically correct language. I hate those types the most."

    "Dubs, I have an idea...", Alt stated in a battle eager tone.

    The rest of the council watched Dubs intensely. The silence could be broken by the drop of a pin, and nobody dared to breath. The tension in the room was extreme.

    "This man is clearly one who puts status and public opinion above all else... challenge him to a duel. If he loses, the surfacers will have to retreat from this location. If he wins, you will obey him quietly and your people will go with him. We can win a one on one fight- even though it might be difficult."

    Dubs made the proposal, and the man looked somewhat concerned.

    "If I turn this down I will look bad in front of my subordinates... but if I lose I will also look bad in front of them... aha! All I have to do is win!", he thought.

    "Understood! Let us duel out in the field near this home. Members of this household, you all must come to view the duel, and if I win you must all come quietly, no excuses."

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    The council members had faith that Dubs would win, and became at ease.

    "Lord Dubs is truly wise. Even against a foe he refuses to negotiate with, he has managed to set up a duel for his own land and freedom.", Drocar stated.

    The knights nodded in agreement.

    The groups all stepped outside, and stood far away from where Dubs and Leopold stood. The other two knights were not very far off, and Drocai yelled at them from afar.

    "Yall had better get off the battlefield before Lord Dubs fries you to a crisp!", he shouted.

    The other two knights simply laughed that statement off, but the eyebrow of Leopold cringed.

    "Arrogant kid... he thinks that the soldiers I have personally trained would need to step aside for a small skirmish such as this? I will show him the power of the surfacers..."

    Alt whispered into Dubs ear. "Hey... Dubs... can I take over for this fight? Cmon... lemme fight...."

    "Forgive me Alt, but this fight is too critical for you to go beserk here. Next time I promise I will leave things to you."

    The battle then begun.

 57 Chapter 57- Premonition

    Dubs rolled his eyes at the arrogance of the two who remained at a close distance.

    "They don''t think I have the magical power to harm them from this distance? Or perhaps they have faith that their leader will prevent anything from reaching them."

    Dubs smiled sinisterly. "Perhaps I should prove them wrong with a little test..."

    Hearing Alt''s voice in his head, Dubs hesitated for a moment.

    "Calm down, Dubs. If you hit those two who is to say that they won''t join the fray themselves? Perhaps that was their plan all along for all we know. Its possible that they even plan on joining if it looks like their leader will lose, and our allies would stand no chance against either of them."

    The situation was indeed explosive. A single wrong move would lead to the capture of Dubs and all the members of the council.

    The most irritating thing, however, was that a corporal had such strength. Physical strength greater than even Dubs'' current power, for Agility, Power, and Defense.

    Along with this, this Corporal in particular had an outstanding 57.3% control over Air magic, and 25.4% control over Light magic.

    A formidable enemy to be certain, one who would be able to single handedly take down the empire.

    On top of that, his soldiers were just below him at around 10 for their physical stats, and averaging at around 30% control for their Air magic control, and 10% for their light magic control.

    "This surfacers guild produces skilled magicians like an assembly line... intriguing! I must find out more about this...", Dubs thought.

    Taking a stance, Dubs covered himself in dark energy which concealed himself. He moved about swiftly, and the corporal seemed to follow Dubs with his eyes as he approached.

    "Lets take a little test drive...", Dubs thought, as he slashed where the mans right kidney would be.

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    The man chopped Dubs dagged out of his hand, and it flew down to the ground before Dubs reached the mans armor.

    The mans hand was covered in a barrier of air magic, swirling about.

    "Your speed it not bad, but it is a pity that you had me for an opponent", the Corporal stated.

    Dubs jumped back, unable to retrieve his dagger.

    "I underestimated him... looks like I will have to fight with magic from now on."

    The man began to chant his own spell, raising his sword. A burst of air surrounded it, and he chanted out [Swirling Storm Blade].

    The man then chanted once more, and streaks of light engulfed his feet and arms, creating yellow vein like patterns. [Electromagnetic enhancement!]

    The mans movements sped up, as he charged towards Dubs, who was still on the retreat.

    "This is bad news, Dubs! He used light magic to enhance his physical abilities! At this rate, his Agility has gone up to 17 and his strength has increased to 16! If we don''t take this oppurtunity to attack him, we will lose this battle!", Alt exclaimed.

    While running back, Dubs heeded the words and formed a sphere of darkness energy. The energy cloaking Dubs gathered in the air and combined with energy that emerged from the ground to form the high velocity- rotating sphere.

    Dubs pressed the sphere with the entirity of his power, and the rotation increased to the point where one would have difficulty making it out.

    "I didn''t want to have to kill this man just yet, but so be it... He was the type to use others to increase his status anyways.", Dubs thought with a grin on his face as he was about to fire the ball of energy at his enemy.

    Suddenly, Dubs heard a female voice in his head.

    "If you lose here and allow yourself to be taken in, I will show you something interesting, and further the progress of your empire.", the voice stated.

    In a split second, Dubs made a decision.

    "It looks like I''m going to be winging it from start to finish."

    The ball of energy flew off, slightly off direction, purposely missing the corporal, who appeared before Dubs and slashed at his chest with his swirling sword.

    Dubs fell unconscious, and awoke later in a carriage next to all the council members, who had all been gagged and tied up, along with Dubs.

 58 Chapter 58- Capture

    Dubs tried to speak but only muffled noises came out due to the gag.

    He tried to move his arms but heard the sound of the ropes crunching as he struggled.

    "Heh heh... I let my curiousity get the better of me. Perhaps all this empire jargon was nothing more than a pipe dream...", Dubs thought.

    The carriage trodded forward. They had already exited the marsh, and were traveking alonside a cobblestone road.

    "I don''t think this will work but I supoose Ill give it a try..."

    Dubs tried to create an orb of fire, but the bindings on his hands flashed and prevented him from doing so.

    "Just as I thought.."

    Alt began to whisper to Dubs.

    "What happened? You clearly missed that shot on purpose back there. Did you have a glimpse of mercy? For trash like him? You disappoint me, Dubs."

    That wasn''t it. Dubs had been told by a voice to be taken captive, and he was curious as to who this voice could be, and why they would ask him to become a captive.

    Dubs had been arrogant in his skills, and thought that escape would be easy, so he allowed himself to be captured, but he couldn''t have been more wrong.

    "That voice was the same voice that I heard before, when we discovered the mine where the dwarves were working... perhaps once more I will find a use of sonething I encounter here."

    If anything, Dubs would be able to see firsthand and gague the strength of the surfacers.

    Reagan had her hands bound and mouth gagged, and Dubs scooted closer to her in the cart.

    He looked at her, signaling his eyes in morse code. He looked up and down, and Reagan, being the genius she was, understood his message clearly.

    "Trust me."

    "I do." she responded, in the same manner.

    After running through multiple pathways, forks and turns, the wagon came to a large city.

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    Huge walls scanned the boarder, towering over the cart. An automatic gate system opened, pulling the metal gate upwards.

    When they entered, enormous towers and buildings sprawled across the landscape. Beautiful colored roofs and walls made of various stones spanned as far as the eye could see, and they only got bigger and brighter as one moved through the town.

    The technology used was not excessively high level, but it was inginuitive. Mechanical systems allowed for transportation of materials, and Civil works such as aqueducts and bridges existed.

    "If I wasnt captured alive this woukd have been a pretty nice trip... oh well. I might as well enjoy the scenery while I can.", Dubs thought as he looked around at all the people rushing to see the Corporal and his prize.

    But Dubs then looked back at Reagan, and looked around at the dwarves and the knights who had been captured and tied up.

    Dubs realized something that was obvious, yet inside him an anger that far exceeded anything he had ever experienced was triggered.

    All of his teammated had bruises and even some rugburn marks covering their bodies. They had not been treated with care.

    Dubs began to scream in fury, his voice being muffled by the gag.

    "How.... how dare you harm my subjects..... You will pay for this, Corporal Leopold von Gracier." Dubs stated.

 59 Chapter 59- The Ascent up the Central Tower

    After the carriage traveled through the town of the surfacers, it eventually reached an inner wall that was twice as tall as the walls that guarded the city.

    Dubs gritted his teeth in spite, and to the passerby villagers appeared to be a caged animal.

    Whispers were heard from the passing people.

    "How terrible..."

    "I can''t believe people this uncivilized live on the outside..."

    "We must thank Corporal Leopold for taking care of this rifraff..."

    "Barbaric underground dwellers..."

    Dubs eyes glared at the people with fury as they looked down upon him and his council members.

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    "Calm down, Dubs.... this is not the time to be angry. We need information about this place. Is that not why we came here?", Alt said firmly.

    Dubs regained his composer. "To think you of all people would be the one to calm me...", he thought.

    The carriage started going up a ramp after entering the second wall. The ramp spiraled around the tall castle in the center, which slowly became thinner and thinner up to the top.

    Gateways on the left hand side appeared periodically as they circled the tower.

    Once they had gone around a full circle, the cart stopped. The two soldiers opened the door to the carriage and grabbed hold of the dwarves, Drocar and Drocai.

    "Nonhuman garbage don''t deserve to even have a decent cell. This is the last stop for you.", the soldier told the dwarves.

    "Is every member of this world a supremecist...", Dubs thought with rage.

    "It appears I was right to be suspicious of the surfacers... not only the underground empire, but every established domain in this world is lead by supremecists..."

    "Destroy.... I must destroy and rebuild everything. A world where no man nor dwarf nor elf nor orc nor goblin stands above another. A world where the only ones to be treated as inferior are those who treat others as inferior... this is my task. I will fulfill it...."

    The dwarves were roughly thrown off and shoved into the hallway as the gate was closed behind them. One of the soldiers escourted the dwarves off, and the cart continued.

    When they were halfway to the top, the cart stopped once more.

    "This is where the underground dwelling trash are to dwell... better than the pigsty that the nonhumans live in but still a place fit for your type...", The second soldier remarked as he grabbed hold of Reagan.

    He seemed to enjoy himself as he handled her, before carrying off the sleeping woman. The rest of the knights were awaken wildly by the Corporal, and forced to walk down the hall as he closed the gate on them.

    Now only the Corporal remained to drive the wagon, and Dubs was the only remaining prisoner.

    "How dare they treat my woman like that."

    Dubs eyes burst with hatred and the veins popped out of his head.

    "Not yet, Dubs!", Alt shouted at him.

    "We must persist! For the sake of taking over this country in the long run, we must endure this suffering for now!"

    The carriage was now at the top of the ramp, and Dubs had lost all sense of reason.

    A burst of dark magic emerged from the mouth of Dubs, overcoming the limit of the barrier bonding him, and destroying the gag on his mouth.

    "Allow this man and his soldiers to fondle my woman, beat my council members, and abuse members of other races and factions for the sole reason of being different? Is that what you are asking of me Alt?", Dubs screeched.

    "No. That will not do. They will pay here and now."

    Dubs eyes rolled back in his head, revealing a merciless madman.

    "Heh heh. As you wish, Dubs."

 60 Chapter 60- Rampage

    There is a fine line between the sane and the insane.

    This line however, is paper thin.

    One could say that sanity and insanity are two sides of the same coin. The front of the page, and the back of the page.

    A blanket of flames engulfed Dubs'' body, and melted off the roped that bound him.

    The flames went from a red to yellow, and slowly transformed until they created a blue flame.

    The flames of anger and hatred manifested in a physical form, as Dubs grabbed the iron bars of the carriage that caged him.

    "Hehheee heh. ahaha!!!", Dubs began to laigh as the bars melted.

    "This will be your helmet in just a second, Corporal Leopold! Do you hear me!? I let you capture me and my subordinates out of curiosity, but you went too far, dear Sir!" Dubs screamed.

    The bars finished melting and Dubs stepped outside the cage.

    The stone he walked on turned into molten lava, squishing down with every step Dubs took.

    Leopold, who was sitting on the carriage, was struck with shock.

    "What is he doing!? How could this man escape the barriers I placed on him!? Was he not using his full strength when we fought!?"

    Leopold got off the carriage on the right hand side, the opposing side that Dubs was coming around, and made a break down the spiral ramp.

    His heavy armor clanked as he began to throw it off his body so he could run faster.

    The yellow streaks grew across his arms and legs as he used [Electromagnetic enhancement].

    His speed was unmatched compared to what Dubs had previously seen, however in the state of rage Dubs was in, this did not matter.

    Dubs turned around and began dashing after the man. The very walls of the gigantic tower shook with every step Dubs took.

    In barely a moment, Dubs had caught up to the Corporal. Chunks from the building began to fall off due to the great vibrations each step created.

    Before the general could mutter a word, his head and body exploded in a roaring ball of flames.

    Dubs then rampaged off towards the lower tower, and melting the gate to enter, caught up quickly with the guard who had taken Reagan and the knights.

    In an instant, this man too was overflowed with fire energy to the point of combustion, and his body exploded violently.

    Reagan was still asleep, and Dubs cooled his arms with water magic before catching her falling body.

    The other knights were walking in front of the soldier in chains, and they turned towards Dubs in surprise.

    "Lord Dubs! Is this all part of your plan!?", Sylvester shouted.

    Dubs calmed his gaze from the eyes of a beast and they reverted back to their original state.

    "Sorry for that uncivilized display... haha! I simply couldnt allow such brutes to handle my woman in such a way."

    "..." The soldiers looked concerned, but agreed.

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    "Now then, I suppose we should go have a talk with this leader... if I dont, you can be sure they wont let us leave this place unharmed.", Dubs stated.

    "Lord Dubs, even if you say that... youve killed two soldiers already... I highly doubt they will allow you to..."

    Sylvester was cut off by Arctus.

    "No, we should have faith in Lord Dubs. I am certain he has some sort of plan..."

    "I hope..."

 61 Chapter 61- The leaders of the Surfacers

    Dubs had Arctus carry Reagan, and the soldiers followed Dubs up the pathway to the highest entrance.

    Guards stood at the entrance, and Dubs cloaked himself and his subordinates in a sheet of darkness particles to sneak past them.

    "This spell didn''t conceal me from the eyes of the corporal, however these guards are mere footsoldiers that I coukd easily take out if necessary.", Dubs thought.

    The five snuck by as the cloak muffled their movements and they entered into a circular room.

    Banners spanned the walls, and a lush red carpet lead to a stairway that had 3 seats on top of it.

    A multitude of guards, around 20 in total, stood at the bottom of the stairway, and at the top 3 figures sat at each chair.

    They appeared to be waiting for the Corporal who was now dead, and when Dubs and his party entered the room, five of the soldiers were alerted to their presence, and stood at arms.

    "Who goes there!?", one of the soldiers shouted.

    The 3 leaders also seemed to notice the presence of Dubs, and they stared intently at the intruders.

    "Ah! Looks like weve been caught red handed... tsk tsk..", Dubs stated as he undid the cloaking spell.

    Once the dark blanket had receded the rest of the soldiers stood on guard.

    "How dare you enter the throne room so casually!", one of the knights in the center exclaimed.

    He wore a helmet that had a red feather atop it. One of the knights wore a hat with a yellow feather, and three of them wore hats with a green feather.

    The rest did not have any garnishments on their helmets.

    " Ive come here to give you all a warning...", Dubs stated boldly.

    "Why you little...", the man with a red feather became frusturated and marched over to Dubs to deal with him.

    The man in the center held up his hand.

    "Hold yourself, First Squad Captain Johannes. I wish to listen to what this young man has to say. Please remove all guards from this room immidiately."

    The Captain begged to differ. "Your highness! I cannot allow you and the Lords to stay alone with a potentially dangerous man here! I beg that you reconsider!"

    The old man gave the Captain a glare and the Captain reluctantly obeyed.

    "Very well, your Highness."

    The guards exited the room, leaving only the 3 seated men and Dubs with Reagan and his 3 soldiers.

    "You- I have some questions to ask.", The man in the center stated.

    "I have some questions to ask as well...", Dubs interrupted.

    "Is it true that you allow the discrimination I have seen to exist within your domain here? I also have seen a horrifying escaped experiment. What do you say in your defense, oh king of the surfacers?"

    The man stayed calm, but the two others on his sides began to whisper things to him.

    "Silence!", the man stated.

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    "I do not deny the claims you have made against us. We of the surface are the masters of magic, the original mages. It is only right that we are held as the rulers of this world."

    "However what I am interested in is that dagger by your side... where did you get that from!?"

    Dubs had his dagger confiscated when he was taken prisoner, however he retrieved it when he killed the corporal.

    "If I am not mistaken, that is the dagger of Frederic Ruffield. Where did you obtain such an item?"

 62 Chapter 62- Offer

    "..."

    Dubs became visually angry.

    "You admit your sins so casually, and then have the balls to change the topic on me?", he stated, enraged.

    The man looked somewhat annoyed.

    "Sins? As if. I did not admit to committing any ''sin''. I merely admitted that I have followed the order of nature- I have heeded to the survival of the fittest. I am sure you have done this yourself as well."

    "Well it seems that we will have to agree to disagree...", Dubs stated, giving the man a threatening glare.

    "You act as if you have power over me.", the man stated, chuckling. "My name is Marcus Thaust. I am the Grand Mage who rules over the surfacers guild. Over the course of 1200 years I have been studying magic, and yet a child like you comes and stomps in here as if you have control over me."

    Dubs remained silent.

    "I will allow you to see the true difference between us...", Marcus stated.

    An aura of bright particles gathered around Marcus and infused with his body. This technique looked similar to that of the Corporals, however his entire body became glowing and radiant.

    Alt whispered to Dubs

    "Dubs, this is bad. His physical strength and magical control are beyond comprehension. For you, the magic isnt an issue. He has mastered hundereds of spells, and extremely complex ones at that, however they won''t be troublesome to you at all. The issue is that his physical attributes are outrageous..."

    Dubs felt the aura of power emerging from the figure. "Even without Alt telling me I can feel power bursting forth from this man... I despise his ways, and the surfacers guild, however I could never take him on in my current state."

    "His physical stats average to be over 200! This is not a man we can even dream of defeating!", Alt stated.

    "However... I just obtained a new goal", Dubs stated out loud to Alt.

    His servants behind him overheard Dubs say this as they shook in fear from the sublime power emerging from Marcus.

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    "So this is the power that the surfacers have tapped into...", Reginald stated.

    "I could never even dream of this."

    "Worry not, comrades!", Dubs shouted back to them. "I will soon surpass even this man woth science and research!"

    Marcus laughed. "Ahaha! You are certainly interesting, and excessively overestimating yourself. Let me ask you now. Where did you obtain that dagger?"

    "I was given this dagger. I was told that it belonged to my father, who was executed by the empire for treason."

    A grin came across Marcus'' face. "You''re father was once a surfacer. He turned his back on us, but one cannot deny their roots. You too are his son then- and the grandson of the man next to me, Gregory Ruffield. I will give you a choice."

    Dubs seemed suspicious but listened.

    "I will welcome you home as one of us, if you pledge your loyalty to the surfacers guild. We will allow your subordinates as well to become members of the guild, and to live here as a part of the surfacers."

    Dubs cringed at this. "To give in to this demand would be to accept the corrupted higherarchy, and to become a part of it.", he responded.

    "If you refuse, I will simply kill off you and all your subordinates." Marcus waved his hand and cast a [Message] spell.

    "Captain Johannes, take away the men in the throne room to the prison."

    Turning towards Dubs, Marcus stated "I will give you three days to reconsider your decision. Decide wisely. Do not try to resist arrest, or I will slaughter you all here and now."

 63 Chapter 63- Meanwhile...

    Dubs decided calmly to allow himself to be arrested.

    "I refuse to give in to the demands of these men. They are wicked, and deserve no sympathy or cooperation from me. However, given that they are leaps and bounds more powerful than I am, I have no choice but to be arrested and to come up with a plan over the next three days.", Dubs decided.

    Dubs raised his arms as the guard from before with the red feather took him into custody.

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    The subordinates of Dubs watched as he was taken away silently, and soon after they were taken away as well.

    "Treat these ones well for the time being", Marcus ordered to the knights who were arresting the subordinates of Dubs.

    "The son of Frederic holds within him a great power to learn... he will prove to be an extremely useful pawn if we can convince him to join us. If we cannot, we lose out on a great opportunity."

    The knights saluted and proceeded to take the rest of the captives away.

    During the days that Dubs had been training, the members of the resistance had also been working hard to gain new skills. Lilith, Drodus, Tirian, and Samuel had all become adept magicians- powerful enough to take on a middle ranked knight of the empire.

    Drodus had improved his ability to use air magic to enhance his flame spells, and Lilith had made progress on healing spells. She wasn''t able to heal major wounds yet, however she was able to immediately heal small cuts, and over time she could treat larger wounds.

    Tirian had mastered a unique form of water spells- draining spells. He could control the water in the body of a living being and manipulate it. If he extracted the particles from a living being, the creature would dry out and cease to live. This was a very dangerous style of magic, and could only be used if one had perfect control over their magic, else they risk draining themselves or nearby allies.

    Samuel had focused on increasing the power of his spells. He could now perform the [Earthquake] spell, which, as it sounds, extracts a huge amount of earth particles from the ground at a rapid rate, causing an earthquake.

    Samuel was driven by his will to defeat Dubs, who had left on a long term journey mysteriously.

    Elsewhere, at the mine where the dwarves were stationed, they became concerned now that a day had passed and Drocai and Drocar had still not returned.

    The digging of the mine was progressing smoothly, and they were almost deep enough to reach the rock layer, however without their leader or Reginald to back them up they became uneasy.

    "I hope nothing has happened with Lord Dubs. He is a kind lord, however he has an odd personality...", one of the dwarves stated.

    "Do not speak such blasphemy! If anything has happened, it is certainly not that Lord Dubs has turned his back on us. We must continue working here in good faith that soon our chief will return safely.", another replied.

    With this, the dwarves all continued to work hard.

    Back in the prison, Dubs was locked in a cell and left alone, with the guard standing far down the hall.

    "What is your plan, Dubs?", Alt asked.

 64 Chapter 64- Scheming

    "What has my plan always been?"

    "Heh. Roger that, Dubs.", Alt smirked.

    "Its time to wing it!", both of them stated simultaneously.

    A voice was heard from down the hallway.

    "Shut up down there!"

    The guard lectured Dubs before returning to his post.

    Dubs sat quietly in his cell. "As much as I despise his methods, the leader of the surfacers has advanced the magical knowledge of his faction to unbelievable levels. In the case that I can manage to escape from here, my first step will unfortunately have to be a strategic retreat."

    Dubs had a plan for this however. He intended to relocate the base for his new empire into the mine that the dwarves were currently working on. This wasn''t exactly a safe option, but if he worked underground it would most likely stop the surfacers from taking action against Dubs for the time being.

    The real issue was whether or not Dubs would be able to escape from his current predicament, and if so, would he be able to escape with his comrades.

    "I refuse to leave behind those who have pledged their loyalty to me.", Dubs thought.

    "If I were to save myself at the expense of leaving them behind, I would be no worse than the people who I punish. I will make an attempt to save them, even if it means I die trying. In a worst case scenario, we will all be killed off, and the dwarves back at the mine will continue to live a peaceful life without worrying about any grand politics..."

    "My impact on this world will have been small, but I will have at least saved a few people from the evils that corrupt this landscape."

    Dubs came to peace with the possibility of failure, and resolved himself to make an honest attempt to help everyone involved.

    "Haha! Its funny to see the just side of you, Dubs... especially when you have already slaughtered so many... heh heh.", Alt mocked.

    "The ones I have dispatched of were nothing more than fools who sacrificed others for the sake of their own benefit. I refuse to lower myself to their level!"

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    "Are you sure you haven''t already?"

    Dubs remained silent, but then he was reminded of the fact that he had already killed two of the surfacers soldiers.

    "It is strange...", Dubs stated.

    "What is?" , Alt replied.

    "Surely, with his advanced capabilities in magic, the leader of the surfacers is well aware that I killed two of his soldiers- and one of them a Corporal. Does he not care about his own men? Why would he have offered me an invitation to join him of he knew that I have already killed his own people?"

    "..."

    "What a heartless bastard... to not care about the lives of his own..."

    Dubs spit at the ground in spite.

    "He sees a great potential in you... far greater than the subordinates of his that you have killed.", a female voice rang in Dubs head.

    "This voice... I''ve heard it before... that time before I saved the dwarves!"

 65 Chapter 65- The Elven Queen

    "Who''s there!?", Dubs shouted as he heard this voice. "Who are you? What do you want of me?"

    The guard heard Dubs shouting and came over to his cell.

    "I told you to shut up, you lunatic! Who the hell do you think your talking to!? I swear the insane people I have to babysit after..."

    The guard walked off, his armor making clinking noises as the metal rubbed against itself.

    "You do not need to reply to me by speaking- I can hear your thoughts, unlike that other self of yours...", the female voice replied.

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    Dubs quieted himself, and responded to the voice in his thoughts.

    "You haven''t answered any of my questions."

    "I am Rilia, the Queen of the elves. To put the story short, the elven towns under my control were being attacked by the empire and I fled to the surface for aid. I have a unique ability to see certain parts of the future- the gift of prophesy. My second ability is the gift of telepathy, which I am using to speak to you."

    "And what did you foresee to convince you to come up to the surface?", Dubs inquired.

    "You."

    "Huh? What do you mean?"

    "I foresaw me and you, working together to unite all races of the world. Ever since I left for the surface, I have been seeking you out, and guiding you to the path I foresaw you taking."

    Dubs thought about this. "So that time with the dwarves was also this woman guiding me to expand my empire? Interesting. I could use this ability to my advantage."

    "I don''t mind if you use me, so long as we share the same goal.", Rilia replied.

    "Haha! Whoops. Looks like I will have a difficult time hiding anything from you. This could be interesting, but make sure not to get in my way. Why have you contacted me now?"

    The Queen let out a sigh and replied. "I was captured by the surfacers, along with some of my subordinates. I was put in the exact same situation as you are in, and in order to ensure the survival of my subordinates, I agreed to the demands of the surfacers and we became members of the guild."

    "I was waiting for you to come here so we could escape together."

    "Why did you wait for me? As you may already know, I am no match for the leader of the surfacers. You would probably have the same chances of escaping with or without me- no, perhaps an even greater chance. If the numbers of escapees increase, the likelyhood of getting caught will increase."

    "We of the elven tribe are skilled with magic, however I am not a fighter, and even among the top soldiers I command, none of them currently have the ability to defeat even the lowest rankings among the surfacers soldiers. I waited for you because you are strong enough to take out low ranking soldiers who get in our way as we escape."

    "I see... So if we can avoid the big bosses then we will successfully escape, since I can defeat the small fries... sounds like a fine plan, but how do you suggest I save my comrades? I do not intend on leaving them behind."

    The woman laughed. "I have been captive by the surfacers guild for many months now. All my soldiers are trusted members of the guild, myself included. Tomorrow at 2 am, during the shift in which my soldiers are in charge of guarding the prisons, we will free all your comrades and rendezvous at the gate to the central area of the town. From there we will follow you as you rampage and defeat any soldiers who stand in our path."

    "Sounds like a plan to me. Heh heh."

 66 Chapter 66- The Day before the Escape

    Drocar and Drocai were tossed into a grimy cell at the bottom of the central tower.

    The guard who had led them along the hall had been slurring insults towards the dwarven people the entire time. Drocai wanted to lash back at the guard, but could only hold back his emotions.

    He had matured a bit since the display of power that Dubs had shown, and was confident that Dubs would not abandon him.

    "Dwarven pigs! The only thing you are good for is to be worked to the bone as slaves. Your women are disgusting, and your existence pollutes the beautiful surface! You should all go back to the mines where you were born, and will die!", the guard exclaimed.

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    Drocar bit his tongue and endured the insults, but Drocai had faith in Dubs to save him.

    "Lord Dubs will not forgive you for your racist comments. Wait and see, he will give you what is coming to you..."

    The man became angry and readied his whip, giving Drocai a lash across the back. Drocai merely smiled in satisfaction, as he was used to such treatment.

    The other guard reacted to this, and scolded his companion.

    "Calm yourself, Ricardo. The captain told us that it was the orders of the lord not to harm anyone related to this ''Dubs'' character. I don''t know who he is, or why he is held in such high esteem, especially since he killed Leopold and Charles, but we must obey the commands of the lord."

    The guard who was whipping Drocai held his hand and spit in disgust.

    "And do you think we should let this ''Dubs'' get away with killing surfacers so easily, just because he is favored by the leader? I say we kill these dwarven pigs here and now to show this man who he was messing with."

    The other guard looked alarmed.

    "Be quiet when you speak such blasphemy against the leader and his orders! If you are overheard you yourself may face execution for treason!"

    "Yeah, yeah."

    The guard closed and locked the cage, and Drocar gave his son a hug.

    "What a turn of events... first we are saved by lord Dubs, and before we get the chance to save more of our comrades from the empire, we get caught up in the business of the surfacers..."

    Drocai responded to his father.

    "Lord Dubs will surely come to save us. He is powerful and wise."

    The father smiled at his sons maturity in the situation.

    "It is truly a good thing for this boy that we met someone like Lord Dubs.", he thought.

    Meanwhile, Reagan and the Knights were taken to separate cells on the middle levels of the tower.

    They were treated with care this time, as the leader of the surfacers guild had ordered.

    "I cannot believe how powerless we are...", Arctus stated.

    "This is truly a situation where we can do nothing but rely on Lord Dubs.", Sylvester remarked.

    "I will trust that Lord Dubs has a plan. He saved us from the clutches of the empire, and is more powerful than any of us. Despite the fact that we were members of a discriminating empire, he pardoned us and accepted us as his own so that we may begin our lives anew! I am willing to die for him here if that is what must happen!", Reginald proclaimed.

    Reagan, who was located in another cell, was beginning to fidget.

    Earlier, one of the soldiers had attempted to grope her while she was asleep. She now lay in a cell, and she was asleep during the entire duration of what happened.

    "Where the hell am I? Where is my Dubs.... Where is my lab? I want to experiment more..."

    The guard told her to stop her mumbling, and she replied with a horrifying grimace, that said "I will not forgive you all."

    "Hehehe... It looks like we have found a large number of test subjects, haven''t we Dubs? hehehe..."

    Reagan continued her insane mumbling for the rest of the night as she remained cradled in her cell.

    A day passed, and soon enough the next night came. The night that Dubs planned on escaping.

 67 Chapter 67- Yet another Escape

    Dubs had slept through the day, in preparation to be fully rested for the big night. There was one thing that concerned him, however.

    "What does this Elven Queen really want from me? Is her goal as she said, to assist me in the creation of my empire? If she truly has the gift of prophesy, then she would be able to foresee how great my empire is..."

    "The possibility of being used exists, however the possibility of staging a false escape is low, as there seems to be no benefit to her, aside from the fact that the surfacers may grow impatient and kill me and my subordinates."

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    "What if my death means something to her? What if she is indeed a person who needs to be cleansed from this world, and she is working to stop that from happening?"

    "I suppose I''ll cross that bridge when I get there."

    Dubs waited patiently, and soon enough 2 am arrived. Footsteps were heard down the hallway, as someone approached the door.

    It was a female, covered from head to toe in armor, with a yellow feather on her helmet.

    "A Lieutenant eh?", Dubs thought.

    She removed the helmet, to reveal long flowing blonde hair that fell out, and beautiful blue eyes. Her ears were excessively long and pointed, and she looked at Dubs with kindness as she spoke.

    "Hello, Dubs. I am the Elven Queen."

    "As I expected. What is your plan?"

    "My soldiers are all in position, and there are no soldiers of any other squad assigned to the prison currently. We can free your comrades and meet up as planned. "

    The woman closed her eyes and a white flow of energy connected itself to the mind of Dubs, and it also flowed downwards into the ground.

    "You may speak to your comrades.", Rilia stated.

    Dubs spoke.

    "This is your Lord, Dubs. Are all my subjects being treated fairly?"

    A flow of voices were hears.

    "Lord Dubs!", the knights exclaimed.

    "What is going on, my Lord?", Drocai asked.

    "Listen carefully, my comrades. I apologize for the selfishness that I have indulged in over the past few days. I ask you to continue to bear with it until we can make our way home. Right now, there should be some guards who will let you out of the chambers, and they will be joining our empire today. Please escape and meet me at the bottom of the tower. From there, we will make our way through the city, trying to avoid any powerful enemies. Once we have escaped, we will take the proper measures to avoid aggravating the surfacers for the time being, however the primary goal for right now is the safety of you all. Is this understood?"

    "Yes, Lord Dubs!", everyone replied.

    "Reagan, are you alright?", Dubs asked.

    "I am fine... I will be much better when I see you again though..."

    "Well then, let the escape plan commence."

 68 Chapter 68- Trouble brewing

    Simultaneously, the Elven guards unlocked the 4 different doors that contained Dubs and his council members.

    Dubs was accompanied by the Queen and 2 escorts, and the other 3 groups were led by 2 Elven soldiers.

    Dubs headed down the hallway, swiftly and silently.

    "I need to catch up with my comrades as soon as possible... we have the cover of the night, but if we run into anyone troublesome then there will be a major issue. There are not that many people who can defeat me, however. I can defeat a corporal if I apply myself to the maximum, however if we run into anyone Lieutenant or higher its game over.", Dubs thought.

    The real problem was the regular soldiers, and their vast numbers.

    Dubs would not have a problem fighting these regular soldiers, as their physical stats were less than his. He could easily keep them at bay by keeping his distance and using magical attacks, even if their numbers were great.

    Nobody who worked under Dubs could even come close to his strength, however. If they encountered any Surfacers, it would most likely be the end for them.

    "They do have the Elven escorts, however these Elves were also former underground dwellers. Their strength could not possibly reach the level that the surfacers had spent thousands of years cultivating."

    At the end of the day, the best solution was for Dubs to reach his members before they encountered any guards.

    Reaching the end of the hallway, Dubs and Rilia exited the tower and began to descend the spiral ramp.

    No guards were present on the tower so far. The inside halls were completely under the patrol of the Elven unit at this time, however that didn''t mean other patrols couldn''t show up.

    Drocai and Drocar were led by their respective unit, and reached the end of the hall near the bottom of the tower.

    When they reached the bottom, they got to a commercial area. Shops and bars littered the roadways, and they ducked into an alleyway to avoid any suspicion.

    "For now we should wait here until Lord Dubs arrives from the top of the tower.", Drocar stated.

    The elven guards and Drocai agreed, and they all stayed hidden in the darkness.

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    Reagan was lead by 2 female Elven guards, and they hurried down the hallway. Their footsteps were loud, but it didn''t matter as nobody aside from the prisoners and the Elven guards were present.

    Coming down the hall, Reagan caught sight of the knights under Dubs command, and she hollered to them.

    "Yoohoo! Over here!"

    "SHHH!!!", Reginald exclaimed with a serious look on his face. "If you act like that we could get found out at any moment."

    "Mhm.... lets hurry out of this dump so we can meet up with my prince hehe!", Reagan giggled.

    The group hurried along the hallways and came to the exit.

    Upon leaving the dungeon, lower down along the ramp was a group of two soldiers running a night patrol. It was the two soldiers who were guarding the lower level earlier in the day.

    When the group of 8 stepped out, the 2 soldiers immediately noticed.

    "Hey!", the arrogant one shouted. "Whats going on over there!? Do you have written permission to be taking these prisoners somewhere!?"

    "Uh oh...", Sylvester stated.

    "It seems were going to have to make a run for it."

 69 Chapter 69- Run Away!

    "What do we do!?", Arctus asked frantically.

    Reagan laughed condescendingly.

    "Isn''t it obvious, Mr. knight? This is where you give up your pride and make a run for it."

    There was no way the knights at their current level could handle the warriors who fought for the surfacers. Even the elves were mere captives acting as surfacers. If the plot between Dubs and Rilia were to fail, both parties would most likely face a grim future.

    Regardless of trust, both were bound by fear to succeed.

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    The elven warriors were the first to accept Reagan''s words. They dashed off, up the slope. It wasn''t exactly a safe bet, but if Dubs and Rilia were at the top they would at least be able to make it to them.

    The danger of heading upwards, as opposed to fleeing to the town was that if Dubs was not powerful enough to defeat the soldiers, there would be no solution. They would be cornered like rats.

    The other issue was that if Dubs was still inside the prison, they would not end up meeting up with Dubs or Rilia, and would also be cornered.

    Even so, the two elves took off.

    "The woman is right! Lets go!", one shouted back. Reagan followed them in a hurry, and after a reluctant pause the other knights began to run as well.

    "I am uncomfortable with this dishonorable method, however Lady Reagan is right. There is no choice here but to retreat and hope for backup. I will continue to train myself under Duke Alt and with the enhancements Dubs provides in the long run I will become stronger...", Arctus thought.

    "Not so fast.", the arrogant soldier smiled, as he began to perform a spell. A grid of green values and rotating circles of different radius lengths formed in front of one of the mans eyes, as he exclaimed ''[Enhance sight]!'' He then continued his chanting and in his hand a spear of fire began to take form.

    "[Flaming Spear]."

    The man threw the spear of fire at a tremendous speed, and it escalated the ramp of the tower in a mere second.

    Aiming for Reagan, who was close to the front of the party, Reagan turned around swiftly and reached into the pocket of her lab coat. She took out a bottle, and in the span of an instant threw the glass container up to hit the flaming spear.

    The glass container broke open and a flurry of blue particles engulfed the spear, and when they collided the particles disappeared.

    "Ah, ah. What a pest. You made me use up my precious water based antimatter solution. It looks like I can''t let you go after such an offense as to disrupt my research..."

    Reagan had a glint of excitement in her eyes as she reached for another item inside her labcoat.

    She pulled out a plastic bag with what looked like a tiny crossbow inside, loaded with a small needle. The needle had a green liquid on the tip, dripping off of it.

    "It isn''t a good idea to mess with a mad scientist..."

 70 Chapter 70- The strength of Science

    The elven soldiers looked back in shock.

    "How did that woman dissipate such a concentrated spell? She threw some sort of potion at it... just what could it have contained?", one of them whispered to the other.

    It was no surprise that these elves were astounded by the technology Reagan had developed. The surfacers had gone through lengths to hinder any scientific progress outside of their own cities, which was the main reason they prevented underground dwellers from coming onto the surface.

    The range of magical energy was extremely potent on the surface, and magic could be freely researched, however underground there was only a limited amount of energy that had seeped through.

    This is why there is such a difference in power between the surfacers and the empire.

    Reagan, however, had somehow managed to survive without the empire detecting her. It was not due to the visual screen that shielded her manor, as this could be easily seen through by anyone with magical abilities.

    One reason why she had survived so long was due to her ability to set magical traps. These traps were strong enough to disable even higher ranked surfacer soldiers.

    The second reason was because she had a much higher level spell that surrounded the space of the manor. When activated, this spell would relocate the dimensional space the manor existed in, allowing her to effectively teleport the manor from location to location in a pinch.

    Two things led to the easy breach of the surfacers into the manor. The first issue was that Dubs had brought in outsiders for a meeting, forcing Reagan to turn off any trap defenses to prevent any unfortunate accidents.

    The reason the Corporal and his soldiers made it through was due to this.

    The second reason was that in order to perform a teleportation spell, a very large amount of energy was needed, and at the time the magical energy generators had not yet stored up enough to use this feature.

    On top of this, Dubs had now established a dwarven outpost, so teleportation would disrupt his activities.

    All in all, the reason for all the issues was the fault of Dubs.

    This did not bother Reagan in the slightest, however.

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    Rather, this encouraged her to go beyond her simple experimentation game of hide and seek.

    As someone who had lived alone for years, Reagan was thrilled to see as much excitement in her life as she had been shown recently, and this inspired her to further her knowledge.

    Loading the crossbow with the green tipped arrow, Reagan took aim at the man who stood at the bottom of the mountain.

    "This one... is a new experiment that I haven''t had a subject to test on just yet... it was too risky to waste the subject Dubs spent his effort to bring in, because I didn''t know when I would be able to obtain a new one. Now that you guys have shown up, that worry has disappeared... hehehe..."

    She shot the arrow with pinpoint accuracy into the neck of the man. It slipped between the chinks in his armor and placed itself into his flesh, and the man started to wreath in pain.

    "AGH! What is this!? Er! Ack!!"

    The mans body began to wrinkle up and shrink in size. The armor he was wearing fell to the ground, and the man crawled out of one of the chinks, barely breathing.

    He was as small as a safety pin, and the naked man began to scream at the top of his lungs, however the sound did not reach very far.

    Reagan took out another bolt, this one with no liquid on the tip.

    "A success... the other one is unneccesary..."

    She shot the bolt, and it pierced the mans helmet.

    Blood dripped from the mans skull, and he fell dead instantly.

 71 Chapter 71- Regathered

    The rest of the group halted their ascent up the tower and Reagan took the lead as they all descended.

    "Did you all think I was nothing more than some crazy woman? Don''t let my beautiful appearance fool you.", Reagan boasted.

    "Of course not, Lady Reagan! We were certain that as one of the people associated with Lord Dubs that you were extremely skilled in your field.", Arctus stated.

    One of the elves breathed a sigh of relief, and the four reached the bottom of the ramp. There were no other guards in sight, but there was the corpse of the slain man, and the armor of the one who was shrunk.

    "He should be around here somewhere...", Reagan stated as she searched the area near the suit of armor.

    She lifted up the armor, and underneath the helmet laid the man, breathing heavily and out of energy. He couldn''t even move his body to get up, and Reagan picked up the man and placed him in her pocket.

    "Don''t squirm too much or I might end up snapping your spine in there..."

    Looking around, there were many buildings and streets. A number of paths could be taken, but out of one of the alleyways came Drocai, waving at the group.

    "Lady Reagan! Do you know where Lord Dubs is?", he asked.

    Drocar followed behind him.

    The entire group had now assembled, with a total of 4 elves, 2 dwarves, 3 former knights of the empire, and Reagan.

    "He had better hurry to get here quickly.", Reagan stated with a sweet smile, yet in a terrifying way.

    "However, I am so glad I was able to find another test subject so quickly! Clearly Dubs knows where to get these things."

    A moment later, Dubs, Rilia, and 2 more elven soldiers came down the ramp. The entire party met up, and Dubs finally took charge.

    "Well done in making it this far everyone.", Dubs stated.

    "Its time for the difficult part of the escape. We need to make it through 2 gates in order to exit the town. This means we will have to sneak through without being noticed by anyone, and if we are found I have to take care of the people who find us out before they can alert anyone. Otherwise, the gates will be closed and this escape will become much more difficult."

    The group complied.

    "Where have you been Dubs? Will we be able to return soon so I may run more experiments with you?", Reagan asked.

    "Of course, Dear. Very soon, however we might want to move the laboratory to a different location."

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    "Fine by me as long as we are together!", Reagan exclaimed as she ran her pointer finger across Dubs cheek.

    Dubs turned to the crowd of people."

    "I know this isn''t much, and can most likely be seen through by anyone of Corporal status or higher, however..."

    Dubs waved his hand and created a much larger version of the blanket of dark particles that allowed for stealth. He wrapped the ''blanket'' around the entire group, so that everyone became invisible.

    "Move out.", he whispered.

 72 Chapter 72- Baited and Trapped

    The group silently crept through the town with the blanket over their heads.

    They stayed in the alleyways as they all moved simultaneously.

    "This is very disorganized...", Dubs thought. "Truly unfitting of one who claims to lead an empire... but that is exactly what I want..."

    "I will show the rulers of this world that power can come from even the disorganized, order from disorder. The status quo is nothing more than a figment of our imaginations- something defined by humans that can be easily molded and redesigned."

    Dubs spoke to Alt.

    "Alt, is there any way that you could detect the energies of nearby enemies?"

    Many people in the group looked confused.

    "Lord Dubs, I don''t believe Duke Alt is here right now...", Sylvester stated, looking around at all the people within the veil of dark energy.

    "Heh heh... it seems that you guys don''t understand who Alt really is..."

    The knights were confused, but decided not to question their lord further.

    "As you say, my Lord.", Sylvester replied.

    Alt responded to Dubs.

    "I can display a map showing the magical readings that I sense around me. Would you like to see it?"

    "Yes."

    In front of Dubs a grid appeared, showing both the layout of the town, along with some violet and blue dots. There was even a green dot a far way away.

    "The purple dots represent those who have around the same mana as the strongest knights of the empire or less. Of course, all the people in this squad aside from you are represented in this manner. All the regular citizens of the surfacers too are at this level."

    "The blue dots represent those who are at the level of a foot soldier of the surfacers. There are quite a few around here, so it would be best to avoid them."

    "The green represent those at the level of a corporal. You are at this level, Dubs, and as you can see there is a corporal a bit of a distance away from us."

    "Lieutenants would be represented by yellow dots, and Captains or greater by red. Fortunately there are none nearby..."

    Dubs nodded.

    It seemed as if there was a path to the outer gate that was completely free of guards.

    "We should head this way," Dubs said, showing the map to all his subordinates.

    Everyone agreed and they began to move.

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    As they walked through the alleyways, they took a few twists and turns before they were getting closer to the gates. All of a sudden, a chill struck Dubs.

    "What if..."

    "No, maybe I am worrying too much."

    All of a sudden, despite the fact that there were no energy signals on the map, Dubs and his group turned a corner to run into a man with a yellow feather on top of his helmet.

    "A lieutenant!? There was no reading on the map... could my prediction have been right after all?"

    "It seems you and your little group of escapees have been playing around too much, Dubs... I was originally ordered to take you alive, but I believe that behavior like this can easily create an accidental death or 10..."

    The man clenched his fists and a burst of energy radiated from him. The cloak of dark energy that surrounded Dubs and his subordinates was blown off.

    "This is bad. It seems I was right. This man was completely concealing his energy, and as a result there was no reading on the map..."

    "It seems I have no choice but to fight, but how unlucky it was to run into a mini boss so quickly..."

    "Unlucky?", The Lieutenant questioned. "You didn''t run into me just because you were unlucky. We set a trap for you, placing our soldiers so you would be lead straight to me. Don''t tell me this is all you amount to as a strategist, Mr. prodigy."

 73 Chapter 73- Turncoats

    The Lieutenant took off his helmet, revealing his face to the group.

    He had blonde hair that was spiraled upwards, and styled in a wild fashion.

    His expression was filled with hubris as he looked down upon Dubs and his group.

    "If your leader is this clueless about what he''s doing, then why are you all following him so blindly? Do you all not care about your lives? Let me offer you all a deal. I will allow you to choose a side before this fight begins. If you choose my side, then I will allow you all to become members of the surfacers guild when I defeat him. If you stay on your leaders side, then I will finish you all off with your leader when he loses."

    Arctus looked painfully disturbed by this mans arrogance, and his opinion towards Dubs. "Is this man assuming that there is no chance that Dubs will even win?"

    Speaking up, Arctus asked "And what if Dubs wins?"

    The man with the swirled hair rolled his eyes. "I suppose that just because there is a sliver of a percent chance that something could happen doesn''t mean it can''t happen. In that case, your leader can do what he wishes with you, assuming you chose my side."

    Dubs smiled at this.

    "Join the surfacers.", he ordered to his troops.

    "Im sorry?", Reginald asked. "I believe I misheard you, my Lord. Did you just say to abandon you and join the surfacers?"

    "You heard me. Join this man, and watch our duel."

    The subordinates of Dubs were in shock, but Reagan readily skipped over to the side where the Lieutenant stood.

    "Lady Reagan! You cannot mean to betray Lord Dubs!?", Sylvester shouted.

    "Teehee! I was only using Dubs for assistance with my experiments, and it seems that the members of the surfacers have much greater knowledge and potential for me to research. I would rather not die here."

    Reagan gave Dubs a crooked smile, and stuck her tongue out playfully.

    "She understands my intentions...", Dubs thought, breathing a sigh of relief.

    "There goes one!", The Lieutenant exclaimed.

    "Do we have any other takers?"

    Rilia walked over to the side of the Lieutenant.

    "It seems you understand your place here, Rilia... It would be a shame to lose your ability."

    The rest of the elves followed their queen, defeated.

    "I had hoped we could escape this tyrannical place...", one thought.

    The only ones remaining were the dwarves and the knights, who refused to budge.

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    "We will not betray you, Dubs! Even at your orders!", Drocai shouted. He looked like he was about to cry. He had finally found someone just to look up to, and now he was being told by that very person to leave his side.

    "Why can''t these guys get it through their thick heads that I''m trying to play out a strategy here... if they choose to go with the Lieutenant here, then if I lose they will not be killed, and if I win they will come back with me. There is no loss to them joining the other side!", Dubs thought.

    "Alt, take over from here. While training these men you figured out how to control the bodies of others weaker than you, right?"

    "Heh heh... I thought you''d never ask..."

 74 Chapter 74- The Order to Abandon

    Alt was nothing more than a second personality of Dubs

    He was a consciousness, without a physical form.

    This, however, allowed him to use the energy of the mind to gather up magical particles, and physically manifest himself as them.

    When Alt took over as Dubs personality, he shifted the flow of the electrical impulses inside the brain of Dubs, such that his own thoughts became dominant.

    This would require a certain level of intimacy with the person it was being performed on, as Alt would need to understand the flow of the electric impulses of the brain of the individual perfectly before he could alter them.

    After training with Arctus and Sylvester, Alt had figured out their brain patterns.

    The eyes of Sylvester and Arctus began to roll back just as Dubs eyes had before.

    "I''ll be taking these bodies for a bit, boys...", Alt whispered to the knights as they squirmed and shivered.

    Both Arctus and Sylvester had similar faces- that of intrigue.

    However, this curiosity was short lived, as Alt had a task to perform.

    "It is the will of Lord Dubs to side with this man and be spared... you wouldn''t dare disobey an order from your lord, would you Reginald?", Alt said speaking for Arctus.

    "Indeed. For the sake of the empire Lord Dubs is creating we must obey his orders without question. Let us go."

    The two walked over to the other side.

    The Lieutenant was disgusted.

    "What- What happened to your eyes!? Why are they so bloodshot, and how did they turn around like that!?"

    Reginald, who was fighting a battle inside himself, eventually stepped forward, slowly.

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    "I understand..."

    Drocar followed Reginald, biting his lip.

    "If this truly is the will of Lord Dubs..."

    Only one remained now.

    "I.... I cannot betray you, Dubs!", Drocai shouted. "You saved us from persecution, and I cannot bring myself to step over to the side of this man who threatens you! Why must we make such a harsh decision!?"

    Drocar yelled at his son.

    "Why you! Do you not realize how difficult it is for each one of us to cross this line! Respect the wishes of our Lord and come over here!"

    Dubs looked at Drocai with kindness, and walked over to him.

    "It delights me that you hold such loyalty to me, Drocai."

    Dubs face turned bloodthirsty.

    "But I need you to trust me that I have a plan to defeat this man, and it requires you all to be out of harms way... I will not be able to focus on the battle if your lives are held in the balance...", Dubs whispered threateningly.

    Drocai wiped the tears from his face and slowly paced over to the other side.

    "So it seems that everyone has abandoned you, Dubs. This was the obvious choice, as there is no chance you will ever defeat me, a Lieutenant of the Surfacers. Shall we end this?"

    "You promise that not a hand will be laid on them should I lose?" Dubs inquired

    "I swear on my warriors pride."

    "Let us begin then."

 75 Chapter 75- Ready to Die

    Dubs immediately beckoned to Alt, who had spread himself across the minds of 3 different people.

    "Alt! Give me the status on this man!"

    "Got it, Dubs!

    Strength: 33

    Agility: 29

    Health: 230/230

    Air Magic: 65% Control,

    Earth Magic: 30% Control

    Mana: 950"

    "Ah shit."

    This man was far beyond a level that Dubs could hope to take on and defeat.

    "What will you do, Dubs? Will you run, or will you fight and most likely die here?", Alt asked.

    "If I run, all my effort to save the lives of my comrades will have been wasted. They will lose their respect for me as a leader, and even if they do not, there is a good chance they will be killed if I don''t fight with honor."

    "It seems this is the place where I die. Alt, let the ones you are currently controlling know that I am handing over the baton to destroy the discrimination in this world to them."

    Alt laughed.

    "Are you going to kill yourself off so easily, Dubs? Pathetic. Hehehe... well, its not like you have much of a choice in this situation. We had a good run while it lasted... it sure didn''t last long though."

    Dubs prepared himself to fight and formed a dark covering around himself.

    "I want to try something new before I go though..."

    Dubs gathered a large amount of fire particles in one hand, and a small amount of water particles.

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    He combined the two, and with a vigorous combustion steam and bits of heat spewed away from the mass.

    Opening his palms, a mass of lava remained.

    Dubs Gathered up some silver earth particles, and infused them into the lava, molding the piece into the shape of a sword.

    He then gathered another mass of water to cool it, and the metal sword formed.

    "And now for the final touch..."

    The Lieutenant had been watching Dubs out of curiosity to see what he would do.

    "Its not like he can defeat me either way. I might as well watch his little party trick..."

    Dubs then gathered some particles of lightning, a mix of air and light particles, and shocked the metal sword.

    "This guy is insane.... he handles lava with his bare hands, and even wields a sword charged with lightning!? Does he have no fear of being harmed by these things?"

    Dubs had no fear, for two reasons.

    His resistance of magic prevented him from being harmed from anything made from magic particles.

    Secondly, he had already forfeited his life. Even if his hands were somehow scorched, and his body rendered useless, the only thing that would change would be the order of events.

    "And now..."

    Dubs swung the sword, lunging at the Lieutenant, trying to graze his armor. The Lieutenant dodged with ease, however he made sure to steer clear of the sword.

    "With metal armor on, that thing would fry me... I wouldn''t die, but it would certainly be a pain..."

    The Lieutenant gathered a large amount of air energy, and with a single blast, aimed for the hands of Dubs, blowing the sword away.

    "Now that weve taken care of that..."

    The Lieutenant looked at Dubs hands, which had been directly hit by his wind spell.

    "..."

    "They are uninjured..."

    "My wind spell can produce hurricane force winds... how could his hands be completely unscathed??"

    Dubs rolled his eyes.

    "Ah.... ah.... I didn''t think that would work, but now all my effort to create that sword has gone to waste..."

    The Lieutenant was angered at Dubs casual tone.

    "Are you mocking me!? I will show you my strength..."

    The Lieutenant lunged at Dubs with a speed faster than Dubs could dodge, even with Dark energy reinforcing his legs.

    The sword of the Lieutenant pierced the stomach of Dubs, and blood came gushing out.

    Dubs began to cough up blood, but he looked down at the Lieutenant happily.

    "I might not be able to beat you..."

    Dubs grabbed the hilt of the sword with his hands, holding it in place."

    "But I might be able to take you down with me."

    Dubs Health: 25/200

    Dubs mana: 650/700

 76 End

    @@Hello fans of Mercenary. I apologize, however after much thought I have decided to end my Mercenary series here.

    I have seen many examples of great storywriting recently, and realized that my story is nothing more than mediocre at best.

    I may at some point continue writing Mercenary in the future, however I do not expect to.

    Once again, I deeply apologize, especially if you have come this far in reading.