An Understated Dominance (Dustin Rhys)

As night fell, Warrick sat motionless in his room as he tried to calm his mind through meditation. He had always been able to clear his mind with ease. But tonight, no matter how hard he tried, focus eluded him. A restless unease settled over him and refused to let him relax.

Nearly two hours passed before Mulder’s scouts finally returned. This time, they brought good news.

The smuggling route they had scouted was completely safe, with no signs of an ambush. The West Lucozia army had yet to discover this potential escape route.

Once everything was confirmed, Mulder let out a breath of relief. Warrick, too, finally felt the weight lift from his chest.

“Since the route is safe, we should set out immediately to avoid any unexpected complications.” Warrick said.

He had no intention of waiting any longer. He was a wanted man, and every moment in West Lucozia increased his chances of capture.

There was no telling when the army might surround him. Only by escaping to Thaloria would he be truly safe.

“Pack up. We’re leaving now.” Mulder wasted no time.

After a quick disguise, the group set out.

The countryside was quiet, and their plain van blended in as it rumbled down the road. After about an hour, they reached a fork where the road ended.

“There’s a narrow path ahead. The van can’t go any further we’ll have to walk from here.”

silence. They moved swiftly along the narrow path

over a dozen fishing boats. At first glance, it looked like nothing more than a temporary mooring spot for local

a dim light still flickered. A man dressed like a fisherman lay on the deck with a straw hat pulled low over

Warrick frowned the moment he saw the fishing boats ahead. ” You’ve

private fishing boats, and none were longer than 25 feet. They might be fine for a short trip in calm

rough weather, a boat this size wouldn’t stand a

grandmaster wouldn’t save Warrick if he got thrown into the sea. He

said evenly, “Of course, I know these fishing boats can’t handle an open-sea

Thaloria on them would

what’s your plan?”

for the first leg of the trip. About 30 miles out, the

nearly had me thinking you’d

himself of course, Mulder wasn’t the type to make such an amateur

have pulled a stunt like this,” Mulder said with a faint

it the perfect cover. A larger vessel would only attract attention and invite trouble. To be safe, he had the main ship anchor farther

area, and there’s no ambush.

After confirming there was no danger, he finally led Warrick forward. Under the cover

now, “Mulder said as he leaped

crossed, didn’t react. He looked as

Wake up!” Mulder kicked