"We can't fight. Not anymore."
When General Mitchell of the Benjas starts poking his nose into places it shouldn't go, he uncovers more than he bargained for. Can he enlist the help of the defeated army? Are the rulers destined to slowly take over a...
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Part 5 Rising and Falling
Chapter 5-1
"I swear, out of all the things I could lose," General Mitchell of the Benjas mutters as he fervently looks around his study, picking up and putting down books and pieces of paper. The dog tags are warm against his skin and his favourite dagger is at his side like usual, but it is not that that he is concerned about. The Amulet that was missing.
He had been looking for close to half an hour around the study and had decided that wherever the Amulet was, it wasn't in there. He leaves the study and swiftly goes down to the training area. Nad'ij is full of activity as he quickly walks through the main streets, appearing calm and unhurried to those who wander the city or run errands.
The storage rooms located near the training grounds are perhaps the busiest of all as multiple people with leather vests over their beige cotton shirts move this way and that, hammering and sawing and bolting things that Mitch can't even name into the roof of the rooms. The General pauses for a moment, watching the inventors work like workers in a beehive before shaking his head and continuing on.
As a newer batch of warriors watch with gaping mouths as experienced warriors duel using wooden practise swords, Mitch scans across the racks of training weapons, his hand lightly skimming across them. He can't see the gold casing or the purple gem and he glances around the training grounds, wondering if the Amulet somehow fell off while he was helping train warriors. It seems unlikely, however, as his dog tags have never fallen off and the Amulet, with its heavy gem, would be less likely to fall.
"What are you looking for, sir?"
Mitch starts at the voice and turns, breathing out a sigh as he sees Senior Commander Duncan standing next to him with a slight smile on his face. Not very many people manage to startle the Benja General and those who do get unofficial bragging rights.
"I've misplaced the Amulet," Mitchell tells Duncan quietly. Due to the tentative peace between the Pack and the Squids, Mitch has kept the Amulet hidden from his warriors, telling only his three Senior Commanders that he has it and stressing the importance of its secrecy.
Duncan's face becomes serious as he thinks. "You took it off when you were demonstrating the disarming move to Division Tiger," he says slowly. "It was hanging on the fence post under your jacket, but it was gone when you left, so I had assumed that you took it with you."
When Duncan mentions it, Mitch remembers the situation. He shakes his head, saying "I never picked it up, it wasn't under my jacket."
"So someone took it then."
Mitch rubs his chin slightly. Only four people in this camp knew about the Amulet, but Mitch was certain that none of the Senior Commanders would take it. After all, they have no reason to. But who els...
