Chris: Yes, I haven't updated this in forever. Problems include my computer crashing, having absolutely no ideas on how to start the chapter, and the chapter in general. However, I managed to work away around it and hopefully you'll see this update faster since I'll be concentrating on this fic a lot, lot more now.

Chapter 10: Infiltrating NightKnife, Part 2

Cafranel grimaced as he walked around the abysmal knight's camp. He wanted to fight, but because of some deal that was struck, he was forbidden to ride toward Prontera and kill his former commander. He clenched his fists in rage, his nails biting into his skin. He barely noticed the pain, however. All of his thoughts were focused on when his former commander betrayed all of them. All for the sake of two novices. One of them was dead, but the other…Cafranel vowed that he would kill her. He could never rest until her ripped and mangled body lying in front of him. She would pay for driving Agranias mad.

His mind was made up. He would find her and kill her in the lull of the fighting. He wasn't commanding any troops anyway, so he was certain that Aelumina would let him go. If she didn't, he would leave to kill the novice anyway. Cafranel stomped towards their new captain, who turned at the distraction.

"Aelumina!" Cafranel shouted, not bothering with niceties. "I need to speak with you."

"What is it?" The captain of the abysmal knights looked at Cafranel, her eyes narrowed.

"Give me permission to hunt down that novice girl! I can't rest until her blood coats my axe!" Cafranel roared angrily, his eyes flashing with hate.

"Fine." Aelumina waved the abysmal knight away, distracted slightly. "You're not an important member of the attack, so you have leave to do whatever you want."

"Thank you." Cafranel bowed briefly before heading towards where his horse was stabled. Along the way, however, he was stopped by a fellow abysmal knight.

"The Enraged Executioner…"

"What is it, Ixyll? I'm busy." Cafranel snapped, infuriated by the delay.

"I heard what you plan to do. Do you even know where the novice is?" Ixyll said.

"It doesn't matter! I will find her!" Cafranel roared, taking his axe and slamming it into the ground.

"Let me help you out." Ixyll offered. "I happen to know where your quarry is right at this moment."

"Tell me! But if you steer me wrong…" Cafranel let the warning fade.

"Trust me. I'm just as dedicated as you are to the eradication of the girl. I just trust your greater strength to do it for me." Ixyll seemed to smile. "The girl you seek is in Payon."

"At last! Revenge!" Cafranel roared in triumph, setting out immediately towards the forest town. Ixyll watched him leave, his eyes glinting.

---

"Okay, there's a couple of things I need to warn you about the NightKnife trials. First of all, don't even think of disobeying any of their commands. They wouldn't hesitate to kill you." Alexstrazos coached. The NightKnife recruiter had given them the remaining part of the day to get ready for the trials in the morning. Alex took this time to train his friends about how to handle themselves in NightKnife territory.

"I'm not surprised." Carylesti grimaced. "What else is there?"

"The tests consist of three trials. Failing these is okay, they'll just turn you away, not kill you. However, after that, there is an "initiation ceremony". This is the part where they'll kill you if you do anything remotely bad. First, and this isn't my idea, you have to strip. As in all the way through. As in no clothes whatsoever."

"What?" Niklason exploded, standing on his feet. "That's crazy!"

"Even if it is, you can't say anything. Just look straight ahead, don't move, and don't act impatient. Just…act like dolls or something. Don't do anything." Alex warned in a low voice. "Any movement, any actions, anything will get you killed. After waiting for quite a while, the master of ceremonies will come and claim one of us is a traitor. Do not hesitate, whether the traitor be me, Niklason, Carylesti…It doesn't matter. They'll give us knives and we must attack the traitor. However, before we can actually kill the guy, they'll stop us."

"Phew…That's good." Sylvia breathed. "But this is very dangerous. I know as a fact that Niklason and Radella aren't fit for this. They're too young."

The two of them exchanged glances. Niklason looked defiant while Radella was just worried. The mage sighed. "Maybe she's right. We really haven't killed people, you know? Can we do this?"

"Of course we can!" The swordsman answered confidently. "This is for the good of the community. Besides, if we think we can't handle this stuff, we can always fail the first three tests, right?"

"Maybe…" Alex answered uneasily. "If they knew you weren't giving it your all, they might kill you anyway. But for the tests, remember, this is a thieving and assassination guild. They require subtlety, cunning, good senses, and loyalty. Elindasin, you're ready, right?"

"As ready as I can get. However, after this, I will need to depart for Prontera. This is the third day of the break and I must report back to lend a hand." The red-haired priest nodded.

"Okay." Carylesti nodded. "Everyone, get a good sleep. We'll need it for tomorrow. Good luck and may victory be ours."

---

"Nick?"

The disguised swordsman paused in his pacing, looking around. It was late at night and pretty much everyone was asleep. He reached for the handle of his sword, suspicious. "Who is it?"

"It's me, Radella." The mage walked down to the inn's common room to join the swordsman. She gave a small sigh and plopped down on one of the couches. "Why are you still awake?"

"Same reason as you, probably." He said, sitting down next to his friend. "Are you feeling okay?"

Radella nodded, but she shook her head right afterwards. She sighed and looked down at the ground, her eyes shadowed. "No…I'm so worried, Nick. We might die. I can't sleep. Every time I close my eyes, I see one of us getting killed through one minor mistake. I can't stand it."

"You don't have to come." Niklason said.

"If I don't go, they might get suspicious. After all, they saw five people that could join the guild. If I'm not there, they could believe that I went to get the militia or something. You all could be killed just because I got cold feet at the last minute." Radella sniffed and Niklason noticed that she was crying. "Just like Rakthos…"

"What are you talking about? His death wasn't your fault."

"If I hadn't asked him to continue training with me, maybe he wouldn't have died that day. He didn't have to protect me. I could have done something." The mage ignored Niklason's protests. "I was so weak…I was the reason he died. I should have continued fighting with him."

"But you would have died also!" Niklason shouted.

"So? At least I would have died with him. And you wouldn't be friends with a coward like me. Everything would be better. I know I'm going to mess up tomorrow and cause more people to die. It's my fate to be the cause of other people's deaths."

"Don't be stupid!" Niklason grabbed Radella by the shoulders and shook her. "I don't know what I would have done without you. You've helped me out so many times in the past. Heck, if you weren't with me, I might have died against those wolves or snakes. Trust me, Radella. You won't mess up."

"Really?" She sniffed. "…But I can't help thinking that I'll mess up."

"Then stop thinking like that. You're a smart girl, Radella. Don't let the past mess up the present." Niklason smirked. "Come on, we need some sleep. We have to be ready for tomorrow, okay?"

"Right." She nodded. "Thanks for your help, Nick. I feel a lot better now."

"You're welcome." Niklason smiled and started back up on the stairs.

Radella watched him go when she realized he never answered her question. "Hey, Niklason, why were you down here anyway?"

He paused and looked back down at her, the smile still on his face. "Nothing important. Come on, it's time to sleep."

---

The next day, the five of them were assembled at the guild headquarters. The recruiter from earlier met them at the door, his face expressionless. "I'm glad to see there's no one else with you. If anyone else was with you, we might have had to kill you all." He opened the door and allowed the five people inside.

"Follow me." He motioned, seemingly vanishing in the shadows. The five companions walked straight down the hallway, feeling oppressed in the dark and gloomy environment.

They were led into a nearly pitch-black room, the only light coming through a few miniscule cracks in the wall. The door behind them was shut closed and they were left in utter blackness, slightly nervous. However, their resolve was enforced by the fact that Alex had explained all of the trials to them yesterday. In this one, there would be rogues that would steal things from them. Their mission was to detect the rogues.

Niklason clenched his fists and closed his eyes. His sergeant had taught him a method to hone the senses. By closing off some of the senses, the body will heighten the other senses to above average levels. Slowly he breathed in and out, just focusing on sound and touch. He heard the rustle of clothes around him as the rest of his friends used their own methods to complete the trial.

Alex just stood there, waiting. He knew they were coming soon enough and he would be ready. His reflexes were good enough to pass the test the first time through and he had no doubt that they were even better now. He leaned against one of the walls, trying not to act like he knew what was happening. They might get suspicious if they realized that all of them already knew about the trials.

Carylesti, as befitted her station, had good enough senses to know when she was being robbed. Sylvia, with her sharp eyes that she used when crafting weapons, would be able to handle herself.

Radella, on the other hand, had no techniques to hone the senses like Niklason and she didn't have the great reflexes or perception that the others possessed. The only thing she had with her was the faerie that always traveled with her. She opened the pouch that served as the faerie's home and looked down at it worriedly.

'Please help.' She asked worriedly in her mind. The faerie caught on and nodded.

Alex was the first person to notice. He grabbed a stray hand that was reaching for his belt and smiled pleasantly. "I don't like people stealing from me." He released the hand and settled down now that his role was complete.

Carylesti discovered the thievery when she felt someone try to slip off the bracelet she was wearing on her wrist. Grimacing, she looked around. "Hey, whoever's trying to steal from me, quit it."

"I know, it's getting annoying." Sylvia groaned, looking around. "I know you're there. You shouldn't have tried to steal my gloves."

Niklason was too involved in his exercises to rejoice over his comrades' successes. Unbeknownst to him, the rogues that were stealing from him had already made one mistake. He only had one more chance to notice the thievery before having to give up. However, at the last second, his training came through and he swung a punch at where the rogue used to be. "Hey, let go of my things!"

Finally, it was up to Radella. She felt scared because she hadn't noticed anything that went around in the room, other than her friends' cries of amazement. 'I'm going to mess this up. I know it.' She looked worriedly down at the faerie, who pointed frantically at her neck. Her hands flew up to her neck and she realized that her blue choker was missing. "Hey, where'd my choker go?"

The doors opened and the recruited stepped inside. "Good work. You passed the first trail. Follow me."

He led them to another room and faced all five of them. "Each of you will answer questions. Depending on your answers, you may progress or we may turn you away."

They all nodded. The recruiter speared Alex with a glance. "Suppose you have just completed a robbery and are being chased by three knights. You run into an alley and find out that it's a dead-end. There is no other exit except the entrance. What do you do?"

"Is the heist at night?"

"No. Broad daylight."

"Easy." Alex shrugged. "Well, the only exit is through the knights, yet it would be foolhardy to fight all three of them. I would assume that I wouldn't have any special equipment?" He waited for the inevitable nod. "It's an alley, right? I might not be strong, but I'm agile enough to leap over their heads and get away quickly enough. Since it's also bright sunlight, I'd probably use the steel of my dagger to shine some of that light in their eyes so they don't see."

"Good. Now, you." He pointed to Carylesti. "Assume that while stealing something, the owner of those valuables notices you. A hanging chandelier lights the place and he's standing in the doorway. Two windows are behind you and you are prohibited from killing the owner. What would you do?"

"Shoot the rope that holds up the chandelier and escape during the commotion." She stated plainly.

The recruiter nodded. He looked at Sylvia. "You've slipped into a rival guild's hideout when you are confronted by three thieves. They are all faster than you and they're all going to alert the others of the guild. If they succeed, there is no doubt that you will die. Your actions?"

"Is there just one passageway?"

"Yes."

"Hmmm…" Sylvia thought. "I probably wouldn't be able to kill them. I…don't know."

"I'm sorry, but you've failed. Someone will escort you outside."

"Sigh…" Sylvia shook her head sadly. "Dammit." She let herself be led out of the guild by a swordsman, leaving the others.

"Now, on to you." He looked at Niklason. "You've just been discovered by a knight, who goes into a berserk rage when he finds out you're stealing his treasured peco peco. He charges you. What do you do?"

'Crap, I can't think of anything.' Niklason thought frantically. "Where am I? The stables?"

"Yes."

'How can I do this?' He grimaced, but smiled when an idea came to him. "Since he's pretty much in a berserk rage and devoid of common sense, I'll roll to avoid his first attack and use my sword to trip him. Then, I mount the peco peco and race away."

"…" The recruiter nodded. "Last question." He turned to Radella. "You are on the third floor of a mansion and have to get away without triggering any alarms. However, your backup has not appeared and it's about time for the guards to begin their patrol. You have no butterfly or fly wings and the building is in the center of the city."

"I would…cast ice arrows so they would strike the wall at staggered intervals and slowly climb down the walls. However, I'd direct a couple of lightning bolts to strike the opposite side of the mansion in order to distract the guards and escape."

"Congratulations, you all passed. Now, on to your final test." The recruiter beckoned towards them. "Come with me."

The remaining members looked at each other, relief present in their eyes. However, their victory was underscored by the fact that Sylvia wasn't with them. Would they lose another person before the whole ordeal was over? Especially since the loyalty trial was still in front of them and the reward for failure was death.

Chris: Hopefully, this chapter was good and fits the overall theme of the NightKnife recruitment process. And everyone was in character. Leave any comments or suggestions if you have any. Reviews are always appreciated.