My eight story for the SSSS-challenge, inspired by the prompt Innocence. And of course there is an Emil. How could I claim him as my favorite if there wasn't? :P

His parents had always described him as innocent. A bit stuck-up, a lot of ego, sure, but still innocent at heart. That's probably why they were the most surprised by his choice.
"I'm joining the Cleansers."
"What? Why?"
"Because... Because the teachers are out to get me and school is boring and joining the Cleansers might give me a chance to get our fortune back!"
They couldn't follow along in his argument.
"Honey, I'm not sure that's really..."
"No, it'll work!"
The parents looked at each other, exchanged glances their child could not see, or at least did not notice.
"But the military... Honey, that's dangerous."
"Not the Cleansers, they're safe!"
He hoped, he wasn't sure. His parents exchanged glances again. Their son, their sweet, innocent boy, in the military? It had been terrible enough having to send him to public school, but the military? But they also knew their son was right. He would need to get a job eventually and if the military was where he wanted to go, was it really right for them to stop him? He was the right age after all. The looked at him, leaned towards him.
"Are you really sure about this?"
He nodded. He was sure. He put the application on the table, determination in his eyes.
"I really, really want this."
His mother let out a sigh, looked at his father for support.
"Okay, honey. If you're really sure about this... But if you ever change your mind there's nothing wrong with coming back home. You know that, right?"
He straightened his back, his chubby body making the gesture more comical than serious, but neither of his parents said anything.
"Don't worry, I'll make you proud."
He took the application again and left the room. They could tell he would go sign in right away. They looked at each other, his mother shivering slightly.
"Our small boy... working with fire."
Her husband laid an arm around her, pulled her closer.
"I'm sure he knows what he's doing."

Emil had no clue what he was doing. There was fire everywhere, most of it coming from his co-workers weapons, some of it from his own as well. He tried to pretend to understand what was going on, but mostly he didn't. He tightened the grip around his own weapon, focused on the task at hand.
This was only training. They had fire extinguishers nearby in case of accidents, their superiors were watching over them, correcting them when stuff went awry. Emil had learned much already, just two months into the military. They had gone through so much safety instructions he had almost wanted to quit, he had seriously considered it seeral times, but now...
He aimed the fire from his weapon, made sure to hit his target. A piece of wood, to learn how their weapons and the fire behaved. Not much fire was needed, his co-workers exaggerating their triggerhappy fingers. Emil was friends with the fire, it listened to him. He understood it. He did not understand where his knowledge about fire came from.
His superior patted his shoulder when he walked past Emil to inspect everyone's work. Emil was doing good.

Training got more and more intense as time went past. Soon enough Emil was called out to the field. He burned down the trees, let it take the time it needed. His superiors and co-workers working in the same pace, a couple of them a little slower. Emil was a prodigy when it came to the cleansing business, if he could say so himself. He never said it out loud, of course, the others would be more than jealous if he did.
He had one problem though...
A movement inside the trees caught his attention. He pulled off one of the grenades stuck to his belt, pulled out the pin and threw the grenade, calling out for everyone to take cover. He threw himself to the ground, pulled the co-worker closest with him and positioned himself above him, to protect him from the shockwave. The grenade exploaded and his ears rang.
"You alright?"
His co-worker nodded and Emil heard his name being called.
"VÄSTERSTRÖM!"
Emil gulped. He slowly got up, tried to look like he knew what was going on, but everyone grew small under their superior's stare.
"Do you feel like explaining just what happened?"
"I... I believe there was a troll out there, sir."
"A troll... You saying our scouts missed a troll and you're the only one in our division that managed to see it?"
"I..."
"No excuses, Västerström, I want you to apologise to your co-workers immediately."
Emil could feel everyone looking at him and he blushed, turned towards them.
"I'm sorry, everyone."
They muttered, grabbed their flamethrowers and went back to work. Emil looked into the forest where he had thrown the grenade before joining them. He was certain he had seen a troll. But after what his superior said he wasn't sure anymore.
When the scouts was sent out that night, they found a burned troll in the woods.

Emil's biggest problem in the military was that he often shot first and asked questions later. But as time past he got better at not throwing grenades at the slightest movement in the forest. He learned a lot during his first year in the military, but looking at his superiors he somehow concluded that to get their fortune back this was not the right choice.
"Emil, I have a suggestion for you."
Emil looked at Torbjörn over the dinner table. His younger cousins had already finished their meals and hurried off to prepare for playing and Emil tried to finish his food quickly to join them.
"We're assembling a team, and we need a cleanser."
"A team for what?"
Emil shoved some more food into his mouth, and Torbjörn looked at him. Siv shook her head and got up, leaving the two of them alone.
"We're sending a team out into the Silent World."
"Are you insane?"
Emil had never really seen what lurked out in the Silent World, he had only heard the stories. He had heard about the occassional troll getting fried on the electric fences and about beasts from the mages that returned from he night shift, but he had never seen it with his own eyes.
"It will be an adventure! Think about it. No one has ventured out there for 80 years, most trolls should be long dead by now. Everyone will think about how couragous you are for daring to go where no one has before."
Emil looked at Torbjörn, leaned back in his chair, put the knife and fork down. He looked at the ceiling, but didn't reach any conclusion.
"I'll think about it."
He got up from the chair, went to find his cousins. He had promised them he'd play with them before bed-time.

Emil couldn't sleep that night. He laid awake, pondering the possibilites Torbjörn's offer gave him. He wouldn't win anything by staying with the military, that much was certain. And venturing out in the Silent World... Torbjörn was probably right, it wouldn't be very dangerous. He was immune after all, and it had been 90 years since the outbreak. Surely a lot of trolls was dead by now. It'd be pretty safe.
People would talk about him. Emil Västerström, the couragous adventurer who dared venture where no one had before.
Well, where no one had for several decades.
He'd be a hero, a legend! That would show his teachers, that would show them that he wasn't useless, that they had been wrong in assuming so. It would show them that he was meant for greatness and that they had been wrong in telling him he'd never be anything if he didn't study!
Emil knew there was no way he could turn Torbjörn's offer down. Sure, the pay was less then stellar, even smaller than what he made in the military, but it'd be during the winter, when they didn't have any work anyway. What few trolls there would be out there would be sleeping anyway. It would be safe. And once he returned as a hero, maybe then he would finally be able to return to his older, richer life.

"I'll do it."
Torbjörn looked confused at Emil for a second before remembering the conversation they had the previous day. Then he smiled.
"That's great, I knew we could count on you!"
Siv shook her head again, but didn't say anything. Emil knew what that meant, she was thinking about all the ways this could go horrible wrong. He put a hand on her shoulder.
"Don't worry, it'll be a breeze. Most trolls will be hibernating by then anyway."
She nodded. Emil knew she wasn't convinced, but he wasn't sure if it was his safety she was worried about. He decided to let the matter rest. Torbjörn put an arm over Emil's shoulder and dragged him away.
"I'll have to talk to your surperiors, and there's a lot of preparing to do, but don't worry, everything will be just fiiiine."
Emil wasn't sure he liked how Torbjörn said the last two words, but he didn't question it. He knew he didn't have any other choice anyway. He smiled when he thought about how baffled his teachers from public school would be when he returned, how they'd talk about him, how brave he was and how everyone should aspire to be more like Emil Västerström.
Yes, going on the expedition to Denmark, into the Silent World, was his best choice if he wanted to get his old life back.

"Are you really sure about this?"
"For the last time, mum, yes. It's too late to back out now anyway, we're meeting up with the Finns today. They want me there to greet them."
Emil put some of his working equipment into the bag, took it up again, put some clothes in there instead, then decided that the working equipment was probably more important than the clothes and redid it. His mother came up to him and hugged him.
"You've grown up so fast, I'm not sure I like it."
He blushed, patted her arm.
"It's alright mum, I'll come back. You'll see!"
"I know, honey."
She ruffled his hair, he quickly pulled his fingers through it to make sure it laid correctly again. She gave him another hug.
"Do you need help packing?"
"No thanks, I know what I need."
He looked at the bag, took some of the working equipment out again, weighed it in his hand. They'd be gone for one winter, he'd need a lot of explosives and fuel, but he would need clothes as well. But what good was clothes if he couldn't defend himself when a troll or beast attacked? He put the equipment back in the bag and zipped it up, finally happy with what he had packed.
Emil lifted the bag, gave his mother a hug, said good bye to his father and hurried out. Today was the first day of his life's biggest adventure. His parents looked after him as he left, his father put an arm around his mother, she leaned against him.
"Our sweet, innocent boy, all grown up."
His parents had always described him as innocent. A bit stuck-up, a lot of ego, sure, but still innocent at heart. That's probably why they were the most surprised by his choice.
Emil waved at them as his ride passed their house. He would make sure to come back to them.