Time Elapsed: 03:49:41

The second his vision cleared, Severance pulled away from Batin. "What was that for? Jack's not an enemy!"

"I didn't say he was," Batin said evenly. He didn't even react visibly to Severance's ire. Instead, he simply glanced towards the House, a not-so-subtle indicator that he wished for them to go inside.

Severance ignored it. "But you acted like he was!"

Maybe that was exaggerating a bit, but he wasn't blind or deaf. He knew hostility when he saw it. And he was getting tired of seeing his friends on the receiving side, even if it was caused by their own attitude.

"Severance." Batin's calm tone was like a bucket of ice water. It instantly quenched the fire and left Severance shivering. "How well do you know that Outsider?"

Technically, Severance didn't know Jack very well. They'd only met a handful of times. But since that particular discussion, something had been forged between them. A trust, an understanding that could only exist between people stuck in similar situations.

Jack knew what Severance knew. And although the tank clearly disagreed with him, not once had he tried to stop Severance from doing what he wanted. Through his actions, Jack spoke as loudly and clearly as he did with his voice.

But Severance couldn't exactly explain that to Batin. Not without potentially creating trouble for Jack.

He met the clansman's eyes. "Jack's my friend," he said firmly. "So leave him alone."

Batin blinked once. "You trust him, then?"

"Yes."

"Very well, I will not interfere. But I will be watching."

Severance sighed. "That's not necessary, really."

Instead of responding to that, Batin simply waved a hand towards the House. "Come, they are waiting."

The non-answer was not lost on Severance, but there wasn't much he could do. Getting Batin to agree with anything was a pretty big win on its own.

"Who's waiting?" He wondered.

Batin didn't answer. He merely headed inside, leaving it up to Severance to follow.

As it turned out, it was a clan meeting with Agadhi and all the Leaders. They'd gathered around one of the long tables in the dining room with a map and a few scrolls of unintelligible writing laying between them. A discussion was going on, but it quickly ground to a halt once Batin and Severance entered.

"Ah, you found him," Maun said, his customary good humor evident.

Batin took the nearest empty seat, which left Severance standing awkwardly just inside the doorway with everyone staring at him.

He rubbed the side of his neck. "What's going on?"

Olen was the one to answer. "Severance. Something came up that we'll need your help with. Now please, if you would close the door and join us...?"

"All right."

Now very curious, and perhaps a little apprehensive, Severance went to do just that. He reached for the heavy wooden door when a silver blur shot through the doorway and slammed into him.

Next thing he knew, he was flat on his back with a massive weight threatening to splinter his ribs. A rough tongue smeared his entire face with stinky slobber.

"Ugh," he groaned.

A happy huff blasted hot doggy breath into his face. It was absolutely nasty. What had this creature been eating? Putrefying skunk burgers?

"Vast. Get off."

To his utter astonishment, the big beast obeyed. He moved the paw from Severance's chest, which, to Severance's dismay, had been all he'd used to pin his human down. Severance looked up, and up and whoa, he was pretty sure he could sit astride Vast like a horse at this point.

Somewhere in the background, he heard snickering. He didn't even have to guess as to who that was. Severance got up with a scowl. He shut the door, one hand patting Vast's huge silver head. Vast grinned, tongue lolling out of his jaws, and gently leaned his weight against Severance.

It nearly knocked him flat again.

He settled at the corner of the table next to Hassiba, who gave him a crooked grin. Her gaze slid to Vast as the beast sat beside Severance, the furry head nearly level with Severance's.

She tilted her head curiously. "He's grown a bit, hm?"

A bit? This was way more than a bit! Severance turned to frown at Vast and got an immediate face-washing. He pushed Vast's head away with a disgusted grimace and wiped his face with his sleeve.

"He's too big," he grumbled. "If he decides to drag me off to the woods to eat me, no one will be able to stop him."

With a huff, Vast dropped his head onto Severance's lap and stared up with stunning silver-blue eyes. One ear twitched as if catching a sound, but otherwise, there was no movement. Vast didn't even blink.

It was creepy, unsettling, and incredibly endearing. Severance rubbed between the two ears, earning a quiet purring growl. It rumbled throughout the entire room.

"I'm sure he wouldn't do that," Hassiba laughed. The ugly scar over her missing eye twisted as she did so.

A polite cough from across the table settled everyone down. Olen, seated beside Agadhi, took charge of the meeting. "We should get started. There's-"

He was cut off by a sharp tch. It came from the woman beside Hassiba. She had her arms folded on the table before her, dark hair brushing her shoulders, and she positively glared at Olen.

To Severance's shock, the man actually flinched when he glanced at her. He swallowed, cleared his throat, and carefully asked, "Is something wrong, Bian?"

She bared her teeth in the semblance of a smile.

"Not at all, dear."

Severance looked from Olen's pinched expression to Bian's irritated visage. There was a tightness to her eyes, a faint hunch to her shoulders that made him wonder...

Impulsively, he leaned past Hassiba, and whispered, "Are you okay?"

He tried to keep it quiet, but the whole table heard anyway. He cringed inwardly, but he didn't back down. To him, Bian looked like she was very uncomfortable, and not just emotionally.

When she looked at him, her lips curved gently. "Well, finally a man who knows how to be considerate."

The tips of his ears started to burn. He could practically feel everyone staring at him.

Hassiba gave a quiet chuckle, causing him to realize he was in her space. He quickly drew back, muttering a quiet apology.

"I'm fine." Bian took mercy on him. "Just a bit of nausea, nothing to worry about."

Severance looked at her for a moment, then silently withdrew his fans from Inventory. They popped into his hands under the table, disrupting Vast from his lap. The beast lifted his head with a sigh, and instead settled his muzzle on the table top. His eyes shifted towards Severance.

Trying to keep it from being too obtrusive, Severance engaged Earth Dance and quietly fired off a Mend. Bian actually sighed in relief as a soft breeze fluttered through her hair and stirred the papers on the table.

Kamau, across from Bian, wordlessly flattened a palm over a map, pinning it to the table so it wouldn't get carried away.

"Thank you," Bian looked a lot more relaxed now. She sat straighter, no longer hunched.

Severance sent his fans back into Inventory, fighting a pleased smile. It felt good to see the discomfort literally melt away from her. "Next time, let me know if something's wrong. If I can help you, er, both of you, I will."

"I appreciate it, dear." The smile Bian gave him was absolutely dazzling. "But if you dare start treating me like a fragile flower like Olen does, I'll put you over my knee. Got that?"

Mouth suddenly dry, Severance hastily nodded.

"Good." She settled back in her chair, one hand resting lightly on her flat belly. She gave Olen a stern look.

"Go ahead, my dear. You're holding up the meeting."

Severance coughed, fist pressing to his mouth. Olen was holding up the meeting? That was not true at all, but he didn't dare say anything. Neither did anyone else.

"Right, well." Olen pinched the bridge of his nose. "We're here because Nihan has gone missing."

No one said a word.

Severance observed everyone, but only saw composed faces. This wasn't a surprise to them. He tilted his head. Was he the only one who didn't know what was going on?

He only had a vague impression of who Nihan was. He'd met the man once before, when he returned to the House with an injured Parvath, but since then, Severance had never really talked to him.

"Nihan was responsible for observing the Traders," Olen began. "He was close to uncovering the identity of their true Head. This morning, he was supposed to return or at the very least, send a report. But he has not, which means the last time we had contact was a little over a day ago."

"Nedra checked his last known location," Batin continued. "There were signs of a struggle, but no one in the vicinity. She was able to track them to a known Trader hideout, and confirm that Nihan is held prisoner within its heart. She's keeping watch as we speak."

Olen nodded, a silent thanks for Batin's input. "That is why we are here now. No doubt the Traders will attempt to get information from him. When they tire of that, they will kill him. There is little time; we need to act quickly."

That was a very nice way to say 'torture and murder'. Severance shifted on his chair. He tried not to imagine what poor Nihan was going through at this moment.

"A small strike team, as we were discussing, is the best approach." Kamau tapped the map. Severance saw it was hand-drawn, a quick, simple sketch of a small town and its surroundings. "Three, maybe four, but no more. Staying undetected will be a challenge, especially if there are Knights."

"I hope not." Hassiba frowned. "Still, we better put Maun and Batin on the team to handle any Knights that may show up."

Batin gracefully inclined his head in response, while Maun just smiled pleasantly. It was all very interesting, if not fascinating. Severance found his attention bouncing around the table as everyone contributed to the conversation.

Everyone but Agadhi, that is. The Veiled Head simply listened in silence, content to play the observer.

"Nedra?" Bian asked.

"No," Batin said. "She'll secure our exit and run interference, if necessary."

"I'll go," Hassiba offered.

Olen shook his head. "Thank you, Hassiba, but we're risking two Leaders as is. It'd be better if we sent someone else."

Hassiba considered that. "All right. Then what about Aaban? He's good in a fight."

"Hm." Maun made a thoughtful sound.

But it was Agadhi who finally spoke up to offer his own thoughts. "Aaban is a skilled fighter, but he lacks stealth. I would suggest Zillah as a more fitting choice. Her shadowing skill is not far from Nedra's level."

"Your daughter?" Bian sounded surprised. "She makes a good shadow, yes, but this mission holds considerable risk. Are you certain?"

A daughter? Now Severance was intrigued. He had no idea Agadhi even had a child. What kind of person would she be? He tried to imagine a mini-Agadhi in female form, but found it hard. She was as much a mystery as Agadhi himself.

"Yes," Agadhi said simply.

No one argued with that. Olen cleared his throat politely. "Then we have our team. With four, that should be enough to infiltrate the Trader camp and recover Nihan."

Severance found himself nodding along with the rest when realization struck him. Four? They'd only mentioned three! And with that, he got a sinking feeling in his stomach.

"Excuse me," he said. "The fourth person, that isn't-?"

"You?" Maun finished the question for him. His cobalt eyes twinkled. "Why, yes, it is. Excellent deduction, Sev."

Severance narrowed his eyes. He should have known. Why else would they drag him to this meeting and dump all this information on him? They clearly wanted something from him.

"Right. Okay. Then here, you all better take some of these."

He pulled out a hefty sack stuffed to the brim with the Amaurite crystals he'd been collecting from the Robot Raid, and plunked it onto the table. He hadn't gotten a chance to hand any of it over to Olen yet, but now was as good a time as any.

Everyone at the table just sort of stared at the sack. It wasn't a small one, by any means. It was so stuffed that the cord tied around it strained to keep it closed, revealing a glimmer of blue crystal peeking through its mouth. There was no doubt as to what it contained.

Maun let out a whistle. "Well now. You've been busy."

"I take my job seriously," Severance said, giving Maun a stare. Unlike some other people I know.

"Hm?" Maun's lips lifted. "Are you worried about me? That's very sweet."

Annoyance mingled with embarrassment, and Severance retorted, "Not at all. I'm just making sure you last long enough to be Knight bait."

"Ah, that's still very thoughtful of you."

"That's a good idea, Severance." Hassiba nodded approvingly. "Everyone should carry half a dozen crystals on them, just to be safe."

Agadhi dipped his head a fraction of an inch. "Indeed."

"Very good." Olen leaned towards Kamau, holding out his hand. The gruff Leader responded by passing over the hand drawn map. Olen took it, and laid it flat in front of himself, but turned it upside down so the others could easily see it. "Thank you, Kamau. Batin, you said Nedra was near the south approach?"

"Yes."

"Here, then." Olen tapped an area on the map. Maun and Batin both observed the map closely. So did Severance, but he had nothing to compare to. With no reference, it could have been a map of any town or large camp. "Approach from this direction. You should be able to meet up with her here before making your move."

"It'll be a quick in and out," Kamau gruffly added. "Your only goal is to recover Nihan and get him out of there. Ignore everything else. If you can, stay undetected."

"Agreed." Maun glanced to Batin. "You and Zillah should take the lead on this, then."

Batin's dark eyes gleamed. "Very well."

"Good." Olen seemed satisfied. "I think everything is in order, then. Any questions?"

Severance lifted a hand. "Yeah. When are we supposed to do this?"

Maun let out a bark of laughter.

"Great question, Sev. How about right now?"