Ark walks into bay 2.
"Yo Theo, you texted?" Ark asks.
Theo is sitting on the large ramp of his ship scrubbing the armour aggressively. Hearing Ark, he perks up.
"Hey bro! You're here!" Theo drops the sponge and jumps up to greet Ark.
"All you told me was to meet you, what's going on?"
"Ah, yes. So, today, I went to the Mercenary Guild,"
"I saw I got paid, it's so much!"
"Right? Well, while I was there, this baron guy-"
"Baron Risquit?"
"Yeah, him!"
"Was he there?"
"Not him, his emissary."
"Ah, that makes sense."
"Well, this emissary guy said the Baron is recruiting mercs to support his knights."
"Mercs?"
"Yeah, mercs - mercenaries."
"Ah, okay, continue."
"Enrollment end tomorrow and then they leave on Saturday, you wanna do it?"
Ark looks down at his hands, then off to the side, then back to Theo.
"Alright man, I'm down."
"Nice! I'll go sign up now!" Theo pats Ark's shoulder as he walks past him.
Ark keeps staring at where Theo was, "Hey... Theo."
Theo freezes before slowly turning around to see Ark pointing at the half cleaned armour.
"You've done it again, haven't you?" Ark's disappointed tone sends shivers down Theo's spine and they just stare at each other until Theo spins around and sprints away.
"Hey-" Ark reaches after him then slowly lowers his arm and turns to look at the armour.
Then he sighs and picks up the sponge.
■■■
B-ring B-ring! B-ring B-ring!
Ark springs awake. He grabs his phone and stops the alarm.
7:00
Saturday 11th April
He leaps out of bed, does some stretches and a quick workout on the floor. After taking a shower, he looks at his reflection and flashes a grin before thumping his fist on his chest and striding out.
He puts on dark, practical clothes and walks through the house.
"Bye mum and dad, I might be gone for a few days!"
Ark's parents watch as he leaves then share a glance.
Ark walks out of his apartment building to see Theo on his phone with two duffel bags over his shoulders.
"Yo!" Ark calls out.
Theo puts his phone away and smiles at Ark, "Hey, Ark!" they bump their fists together, "You ready?"
Theo dumps the smaller of the bags on Ark.
"Oof!" Ark exhales as he catches it, "always! Did you bring it?"
"You know it! I never let you down."
"Then let's go!"
■■■
On the outskirts of Malgon city, Ark and Theo approach the imposing walls of the local military base. They cross the road and pass by a queue of trucks all trying to enter. To the side of the vehicle gate are checkpoints for both vehicles and pedestrians.
"Welcome to Malgon Garrison, reason for entry?" the officer manning the pedestrian checkpoint asks Theo and Ark.
"We're mercenaries here for the mission," Theo tells him.
"Hand over your Guild identification."
The pair gives their guild cards and the officer scans them before opening the door.
"First building on the left."
They thank the officer and enter the base.
"Woah!" Ark exclaims, "This base is bigger than I expected!"
They look around at the large infrastructure but their eyes are primarily drawn to the ships parked in the centre.
"Those must be the troop carriers," Theo points out, "Just how many mercenaries are gathered here?"
They then look at the crowd gathered around the building on the left and go towards it.
After shuffling into the building, they look around at all the people.
"There are at least 300 mercenaries here…" Ark says.
Theo nods, "yeah, I didn't expect that. I hope the pay is still good."
"Attention everyone!" a booming voice echoes across the room.
Everyone turns to the back of the room where there stands a uniformed man with fangs and pointy, fluffy ears like a dog's.
The crowd murmurs but the man ignores it and continues speaking, "What I'm about to tell you can not leave this room. You have the right to decline this request, but any mention of the contents of the mission to anyone, will result in punishment. Do you understand?"
More murmurs can be heard as the mercenaries acknowledge the arrangement.
"Now that you understand, I will begin. The Barony's First Order of Knights are being sent to hunt a dragon."
Shock reverberates through the room.
Slam!
"Silence!" The uniformed man hits the podium with his fist. "You will not be hunting the dragon. Your job will be to patrol the surrounding forest, exterminating any monsters you encounter, so that the knights are not interrupted by external threats."
The man observes the now silent room, "If you would like to back out, sign out at the exit. If not, you can board the troop carriers outside. Any questions?"
A plethora of hands are raised, the man picks one of them.
"How is pay distributed?" A mercenary asks.
"You will be paid a flat rate of 500 credits, with a bonus based on the magic stones you collect. 5 credits for small stones, 20 credits for medium stones, and 50 credits for large stones."
The mercenaries, pleased with the pay, start going towards the ship.
Ark and Theo follow.
"A dragon, huh, that's a surprise," Theo comments.
"I'm more surprised by the beastfolk guy. I mean, I know I saw them during the war, but I've never seen them around here," says Ark.
"Yeah, I noticed this place is like that."
"You two! Over here!" a man calls to them from a ship. They go over and greet the man. "Pass your bags, I'll strap them in, then take a seat." he orders, then they give their bags to him before boarding.
"I guess we'll just sit here," Ark says as he straps himself in.
"It's a bit cramped…" Theo comments.
"Eh, it's only a short flight."
Theo shuffles in his seat, trying to make himself comfortable, as three other mercenaries sit down opposite them.
"Woah, you don't fit in that chair at all!" one of the mercenaries says in an upbeat way.
"Heh, you're right about that," Theo chuckles, "hi, I'm Theo, nice to meet you."
"Ark," Ark waves.
"I'm Mifan," Mifan introduces himself then points to the people next to him, "this is Cleya and Otto. We're a team!"
Cleya says "Hi," and Otto just grunts.
"So, are you two a team?" Mifan asks.
"Yeah, I use a sword, Ark uses a gun," Theo replies.
"Wow! Myself, I dual wield daggers, Cleya is an archer and Otto's a priest."
"Wait, Cleya, you use a bow?" Ark interjects.
"Yep!" Cleya replies, "It's my family's specialty."
"We're taking off!" The pilot announces over the intercom.
"Oh, you've got to show me that later!" The conversation finishes as the thrusters fire up.
The ship begins ascending then flies forward. Ark looks out the window and watches the city shrink behind them until it is entirely out of view. Then he stares at the ground below where farmland and small villages zoom by.
After flying for about half an hour, the ship starts slowing down, then it descends into a large clearing surrounded by dense jungle.
The man who took their bags opens the door and they unstrap before jumping off.
"Hnngh…!" Theo groans while stretching, "that was rough."
"It wasn't that bad," Ark picks up his bag.
"It WaSn'T tHaT BaD," Theo mocks Ark as he picks up his bag, "So, where do we go now?"
"There's a tent over there you can get ready in," the man tells the group while pointing to the right.
They walk over and enter a long dark green tent lined with rows of bunkbeds.
"Just like the military," Ark comments as they find a bunkbed.
"Well, it is the military," Theo remarks and Ark sideyes him.
"You guys were also in the military?" Mifan asks.
"Yeah, 17th support regiment, you?" Ark replies while taking out his armour.
"56th infantry battalion, stationed on Soiras."
"Frontlines, huh."
Mifan stops smiling and looks down for a moment before smiling again, "It wasn't that bad!"
Ark pulls out the last thing in his bag, a long barrelled, semi-automatic rifle, with attachable scope and adjustable stock. He grins, admiring it, until he is interrupted by the sound of a large ship landing outside.
They all go outside where they see a large troop transporter has landed. This troop transport differs from the military ships, it has a white and emerald green colour scheme with a coat of arms stamped on.
The ramp at the front lowers and knights start marching out. They are wearing shiny silver plate armour over a more protective undersuit, all of it is lined with the same emerald green as the ship.
They all have swords and pistols at their waists but they're holding a variety of weapons, ranging from spears and shields to automatic rifles and larger machine guns. Their helmets varying along with their weapons. Flying above them are flags with the same crest as the ship, and tailing them are a group of priests in their robes followed by a tank hovering along.
Ark's eyes are drawn to the three people leading them, a middle aged man with a mustache and combed hair, with a young man and woman behind him. Their armour is fancier than the rest and they aren't wearing helmets.
"Hey, Ark," Theo nudges Ark before pointing at a mysterious cloaked figure behind the leading trio, "look at that guy, could he be a mage?"
Ark examines him, "could be, but I don't see why a mage would be here, and to hunt a dragon, no less."
Theo shrugs, "They might be bored."
After the procession of knights passes by the mercenary tents, a military officer enters the tent and announces, "Attention, everyone! If you're ready, it's time to move out!"
Theo and Ark look at each other, grinning excitedly.
"You ready?" Theo asks.
"Always!"