The rain ended sometime while Josh slept, but it left its mark the next day in the slickness of the earth and the thin mist coating the terrain. The sun beat down. Mixed with the humid air, it had Josh sweating only fifteen minutes into the walk. He hadn't bothered equipping his cloak. Instead, he had to deal with the chainmail shirt Akachi had instructed him to put on.

Josh readjusted the armor yet again with a frown. His backpack made the darn thing keep pinching him. He shouldn't have to wear it. It wasn't like he had to be in combat anyways.

A bird chirped nearby. Josh glanced at Akachi. Normally a bird in a forest wouldn't be such a big deal, but he'd started to notice that every time he heard one, Akachi tilted his head toward the noise. After a moment, Akachi came to a stop.

"The orcs are nearby."

Josh's hand fell to his sword hilt as he examined their surroundings. He didn't see or hear anything. What had tipped Akachi off?

Akachi crept forward. Josh winced as he followed. Akachi and Cale could walk with only the barest of noise. It seemed like Josh stepped on every possible twig he could.

They broke from the orc's path to circle around a group of trees. He heard grunts and grumbles about a hundred yards after they had diverged from the path. Seriously, how had Akachi known about the orcs?

Probably the birds.

Josh resisted a scoff at Boomer's words. You're hilarious.

What? You were wondering, so I told you. He knows because the birds told him so.

Eying Akachi's back, Josh said, I know he was reacting weird to the birds, but I don't remember speaking animal languages being a Paladin power.

Boomer sighed. Apparently neither is being smart. Ignoring Josh's exclamation at that remark, his dragon continued, Being bonded to a dragon enhances parts of the soul that are already there. Some people become more attuned to aspects of themselves and are better at certain skills. Akachi really likes animals, so being bonded lets him extend his soul to them.

Oh. Well, it seemed Akachi could talk to birds in a way then. Josh fought back a frown. It was awesome, and he wished he could do such things, but he couldn't even summon lightning, much less have some sort of special power.

You just—

Akachi held out an open palm, and Josh tuned out Boomer to focus on the mission. They came to a stop. Akachi turned toward him and Cale. He spoke, but it was so soft, Josh could only understand him by watching his lips.

"I'm going to check their numbers. You two stay here."

Akachi slipped away. Josh shifted his weight, trying to ignore that he had been left alone with Cale. Both of them were silent. The occasional orc grunts and hums of nature provided the only noise.

I'm not even there, and I feel awkward, Boomer said.

Thank you so much for your helpful input. Josh readjusted his shield and picked at his chainmail shirt. It clinked together. Cale shot him a glare that he struggled not to return.

Akachi returned moments later, though it felt like an eternity.  "There's twelve orcs," he said. "Four are charged."

Josh's eyebrows rose, but his unspoken question went ignored.

Cale grunted. "Annoying, but should be easy enough to handle."

Akachi nodded, then turned to Josh. "I also found a cluster of trees near the edge of the orcs' camp site. You can safely observe the battle from there. I'll take you to it. Cale, be ready to attack when I return."

He started off in the direction he had gone before, motioning for Josh to follow. They made a wide circle around the source of the orc noises, but after a minute, they arrived at the spot Akachi mentioned.

"Here." Akachi pointed behind a large, mossy tree root. Or log, he wasn't sure. A small gap separated it and another, but Akachi had pointed at the spot as far away from the gap as possible. "You are not to look out until you hear Cale. They shouldn't see you, but I'd rather you wait until they are fully distracted. Do you understand?"

"Yes," Josh said.

Akachi examined him for a moment, then turned and took off in Cale's direction. Josh rolled his eyes as he crouched down in his spot and deposited his backpack on the ground, trying to ignore how close the orcs were. Why did nobody seem to believe he would stay out of trouble? Both Xander and Akachi had been hesitant when he agreed to follow their orders.

Okay, maybe he liked to charge in at combat training and try more reckless strategies, but that didn't have to translate to not listening to his superiors.

The earth trembled beneath him a moment before he heard a crash past the log. The orcs cried out as large and small objects slammed against the ground. Josh rushed to the gap and peered out at the situation. His mouth fell open.

The orcs had decided to rest underneath the thick branches and roots of a large, twisty tree. An earth pillar had exploded from the ground, splintering parts of the tree and probably sending the orcs flying since they were sprawled around the area along with wooden clubs.

Josh had seen many types of orcs in video games, but he still gaped as the real things rushed to get back on their feet. They were six feet of rippling muscles and lean bodies. Most of the orcs shared the same features—arms a bit too long to be proportionate with the rest of their body, large under bites with sharp tusks, brows jutting out over murky brown eyes, long ears that curved at the tip, and yellow claws on their hands and feet. There were some differences between them, like tusk lengths varied and some had horns coming from their temples. The biggest difference, though, was that four of the orcs didn't share the same dingy gray skin as the others.

Although still dulled in shade, two of the orcs were orange, one was blue, and the other was brown.

The monstrous creatures had just gotten to their feet—some with clubs, others without—when Cale and Akachi burst from different spots of the forest. Cale brought his two swords down on one of the orcs with clubs while Akachi slammed his now metal-coated fist into the back of the brown orc's head.

Those are the charged ones.

The orcs broke in half to attack the Paladins. Cale stayed at the edges of the group targeting him. He side-stepped and spun every couple of seconds, whatever it took to keep the orcs in front of him. He was a cyclone of blade strikes, his swords darting out to slice the monsters with his constant movements. An orc almost got around his assault, but then an earthen pillar shot from the ground straight into its chest, sending it flying away.

Akachi, on the other hand, fully immersed himself in his adversaries. He ducked past most of their hits, whether it be their hands or clubs. The strikes that landed didn't faze him. He struck out with precise punches and kicks that left the orcs stumbling away or thumping to the ground.

But no matter how often Cale sent the orcs flying or Akachi rammed his fists into them, they kept getting back up and attacking again. Only a killing blow would defeat them, according to what he remembered from his classes, at least.

Wait, did you say something, Boomer?

Boomer sighed. The ones with a different skin color like the one Cale is attacking right now? The one in question was the blue one. Those are the charged orcs. Creatures from the Energy Realm absorb as much energy from things as they can, and when they do, they can become 'charged' with the energy and use it. At least until they run out.

As if on cue, the blue orc raised its hands over its head. A ball of water gushed to life, and with a roar, it chucked it at Cale. He rolled out of the way at the same time as summoning an earth pillar to knock the charged orc to the side. In one swift movement, Cale was back on his feet and swinging his sword at an approaching orc. The blade bit into the monsters neck, went half way through—

The creature burst into a flurry of black specks. They fell slowly at first, then seemed to get sucked in at a specific spot before fading from existence. Josh glanced around despite himself. He knew from reading that the orc had been sucked back into the Energy Realm, but some part of him still felt like it would reappear out of nowhere.

Something rustled off to the side. Josh spun in the direction of the noise, his hand falling to his sword. The orc couldn't have actually slipped back through, could it?

He gaped at a more confusing sight. A young, brown-skinned woman stood a handful of yards from him, a hand over her mouth as she stared at the battle with wide eyes.

Josh glanced between the fight and the woman. She shouldn't be able to be here, not with what Akachi said about the barriers. Nobody had taught him what to do if a non-bonded human stumbled across a magical situation. He gulped.

"Hey." He pitched his voice as loud as he dared. She didn't react. He shot another look at the fight—none of the orcs faced them—before inching closer to her. "Hey, miss."

She flinched before turning his way. A sudden thunk yanked Josh's attention away before he could motion her over. His blood ran cold in his veins.

Either Akachi or Cale had sent a red orc flying into the tree closest to the woman.

Please head back to the fight, Josh mentally pleaded, his heart thundering in his ears. Don't turn around. Just go back. Or someone come kill it. Something, please.

The orc grunted as it pushed to its feet. Its lips pulled back into a snarl as it glared at Akachi, and for a moment, it seemed like Josh would get his wish. Then something happened—maybe a twig snap, maybe a too loud breath, whatever—that caused the orc to tense. It spun around and came face-to-face with the woman.

She didn't make a sound, just turned on her heel and sprinted away. The orc chased after her with a growl.

Josh slid his blade out and took off a few yards before his thoughts caught up to him. He gritted his teeth together and skidded to a stop. His stomach rolled as his body tried to break free and keep going forward.

"Fighting should only be a last resort for you. Do you understand?"

He bit back a curse as he looked over his shoulder. The two Paladins still engaged with their remaining orcs. Akachi must have thought he killed the other one. They still had so many to fight, unaware of the woman in danger. It wasn't like they could ditch the monsters.

Josh...

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. I know, Boomer. We can't just leave her. He took off in the direction the woman and the orc had gone. All he had to do was get her away from the orc until Akachi and Cale could handle it. Fighting would be a last resort.

One he was possibly racing toward.

It's just one orc, Boomer said. You should be able to grab the girl and get away.

I really hope you're right.

A lone orc didn't leave as much carnage in its wake as a group, but its path was still as clear as day. Thankfully, no splatters of blood joined the destroyed earth. The woman was managing to keep her distance at least.

A woman's scream ripped through the forest, followed by an orc's roar. Josh's breath caught in his throat as he forced his legs to move faster. The sound had been close.

He burst into a clearing and stumbled to a stop. His eyes scanned the area as he brought his sword in front of him. The woman was in the middle of the clearing, crumpled to the ground with her face buried in her hands. Sobs wracked her body, but otherwise, she looked unharmed.

The orc was nowhere to be seen.

That's weird, Boomer said. Did the orc decide to run off after scaring her?

Josh's eyes continued to dart around as he crept closer toward the woman. No idea, he said, but either way, we need to get her out of here.

Something churned in Josh's stomach as he crouched down by the woman. He glanced around once more, but he saw nothing. Gulping past his tight throat, he placed a hand on the woman's shoulder. She jerked away, peering at him from between her fingers.

He put on his most comforting smile. "Excuse me, miss, I'm here to help. I just need—"

She didn't give him time to finish before throwing herself at him. She buried her face in his neck. Something wet dripped along his collarbone, and he could only hope it was tears rather than snot.

"Hey, it's okay now," he assured, patting her back. His still stirring stomach tried to suggest otherwise, but he shoved the unease down. Nerves or adrenaline, maybe. "But, um, we need to get out of here before that, uh, thing comes back."

Brilliant wording, Boomer said.

Shut it, Josh grumbled. She's gotta be confused without me making it worse.

Though considering how she only clung to him tighter and continued to cry, he wasn't sure how much worse he could make it.

"Look, if you just follow me, I can get you to a safe place away—"

Before he could finish, a guttural shriek shattered all sense of safety. Josh shot to his feet, dragging the woman along with him. Thankfully, she held her own weight despite not letting go. He wrapped his shield arm around her and started backing away, all while holding a shaking sword in the direction of the noise.

It had been the orc, he had no doubt about that, but it hadn't sounded angry. The monster had been in pain.

Please be Akachi or Cale, Josh pleaded, but the other Paladins were far behind him, and a sense of wrongness flowed through his veins, making everything within him squirm.

"Okay, miss, I know you're scared but I'm going to need you to let go of me so we can run."

The woman sniffled and trembled against him. Josh bit back an exasperated huff. At this rate he would have to carry—

He froze as he realized that the sobs had shifted. She wasn't shaking from crying. The woman had started laughing.

"I really tried, but your attempts are too hilarious."

"What do you—" Something large crashed to the ground in the distance, coming from the same direction as the orc's cry. Josh tensed as he glanced toward it for only a moment before staring down at the woman.

A chill spread from his chest to the rest of his body, paralyzing him. The woman had pulled away and gazed up at him, a small smile pulling at her lips. It gave him his first good look at her eyes.

Eyes a cold shade of blue with a slit as a pupil. The unease of being near her finally made sense.

She was possessed.

Fun Fact: The way charged orcs work is actually similar to an old idea I had for the dragons. There used to be a realm between the Soul and Energy Realms (which actually were only ever given names this write through <.<) where dragons would go to absorb/eat energy from people. Yeah... I don't know xD

Josh was actually doing so good and listening, but it seems he may have stumbled into a bit of a trap.  He just keeps running into these possessed peeps... And this time, he's alone with something roaming the forest 👀 Doesn't seem like things are going well for him, but what do you think? He gonna be okay? And just overall thoughts of the field experience so far? 

Let me know your thoughts on the chapter down below, and if you enjoyed it, don't forget to vote and comment! I also have a discord open to anyone who wants to join, and we have a section there to discuss the book :D It's in my bio if you'd like to join!