Del Tali studied her hud, although rangers were primarily a range force, more than half of her group were dual-sword specialists. "Report."

The three scouts all bowed at the same time. Scout-leader Tru Dawn spoke. "Mountain Harpies Commander, the entire pack of them, are an airborne group."

Del cursed the decision to give Captain Locas and his company to Inferno; they were the strongest archers among the Ain'Dha.s.si. More than once, she wished it had been the Shadow Rangers (SR) that were sent to Loki, but with her in command of SR, her Grandfather would never allow it. "How many? And what type?"

"Thirty melee fighters and another twenty mages. Looks primarily like Ice users, but I did see at least three fire mages." True paused for a moment, unsure if he should continue.

Del noticed his hesitation. "Was there something else?"

Cora stepped forward from the scout group. "I sensed the traitor's presence. It was only for a moment, but it was there."

Del's pale face slowly turned red. "Did anyone else notice?"

Tru shook his head, "Cora is the only one, but I do trust her words."

After Saigon abducted Cora and two other trainees, it had been discovered that an Ain'Dha.s.si Ranger was feeding information to the Fir'Dha.s.si. His name was Rogar. Unfortunately, he was the previous commander of the Shadow Rangers. Del felt her jaw clench reflexively; it had taken everyone by surprise.

"If he is with them, then we'll deal with it. Our mission first is to destroy this camp." Del studied the terrain, the spot they picked was the most direct route to Ever Flame. All they needed to do now was wait.

[1300 Hours: Xai Clan Force, South of Ever Flame]

Raine read the scouting report that her clansmen handed her. "A mounted force? Heavy or light?"

The teen scout answered without hesitation. "Quick hit type, light armor." Like many of the Xai Clan, he was one of the trainees that were brought up to fill in the gaps that the Saigon/Raine feud had caused. He seemed calm on the outside, but inside he was scared. His first action was an a.s.sault in Everspire. The odds were that he'd face an enemy 10 or 15 levels higher than his.

Raine nodded and handed the report to Delyn. "What's your name, scout?"

The scout was short and slender, his hair much darker than most of the Fir'Dha.s.si. "Baran Quickstride."

Raine bit down on a smile, given the size of Xai Clan; she didn't know everyone. "Relation to Ti Quickstride?"

Baran nodded. "Ti is my elder sister, she's with child and has withdrawn from active service."

"Crazy Ti is having a baby?" Raine let the smile come out and gripped the young man's shoulder. "When we get back, be sure to tell her I said h.e.l.lo."

Baran bowed slightly and left at a quick trot, Raine and her mentor both watched him go.

Raine handed the report to her mentor. "He's young. So many of them are."

Delyn Xai nodded while glancing over the intel. "They'll be fine. Commander Nix gave us a fairly soft a.s.signment."

The Wrath trainer had learned a lot about Nix and his friends while teaching the Wrath course at Loki's VoTech. On the outside, it seemed chaotic and unorganized, but there were several strong leaders within Inferno.

"I agree." Raine grabbed her gear and headed for her horse. "Our mounted force against theirs, we'll wait for them to make a move."

[1300 Hours: Inferno Raid Force, Northeast of Ever Flame]

Jun Li stared at her raid sheet. They'd be outnumbered; she wanted to read the scouting report before deciding their strategy.

She didn't have to wait long, Semmi and Wind unstealthed at the edge of their camp and arrived in front of her a few minutes later.

The blond officer offered her childhood friend a crisp salute. "There are three Mid-Level Lieutenants in that camp; Vladik, Seino, and Rhaqi. Each of them has an entire platoon of range/melee members. No real magic users of any kind."

Jun Li's hud buzzed, and she received maps and pictures of the enemy camp. "Very good, anything else?"

Semmi nodded. "A boss is sitting by herself in the far tent. I believe she's the heavy-hitter in camp, there was a staff next to her, and her name is Milandra the Ice Princess."

"Probably an Ice Mage of some sort," Jun Li smiled at her friend and started setting up their groups.

[Main a.s.sault Group]

Sharl: Defender (Tank)

Semmi: Thief (DPS)

Wind: Thief (DPS)

Pon: Mage (DPS)

Gypsy: Heals

[Command Group]

Jun Li: Gladiator (DPS/Tank)

Milat: Trickster (CC)

Mina: Mage (DPS/CC)

Fajii: Mage (Buffs)

Saji: Heals

[Secondary a.s.sault Group]

Banzi: Defender (Tank)

Ronnie: Ranged (DPS)

Floyd: Trickster (CC)

Zhava: Scout (DPS)

Tess: Heals

[Sniper Nest]

Vooni: Defender (Tank)

Dalton: Sniper (DPS)

Darsi: Sniper (DPS)

Moki: Sniper (DPS)

Pinky: Heals

/Inferno: Jun Li: Our Main a.s.sault Group will take Lieutenant Seino; that's the one closest to the camp's main boss. Once the Main Boss is active, Sharl will have to hold her until the rest of us can lend a hand.

/Inferno: Sharl: I got it.

/Inferno: Jun Li: Set up the Sniper Nest at their max range, no one has seen what a Gemini Sniper can do, time to s.h.i.+ne. Make sure you protect them, you're bound to be charged.

/Inferno: Vooni: Understood.

/Inferno: Jun Li: Our secondary team will take Lieutenant Rhaqi. If Sharl goes down, Banzi will a.s.sume Main Tank duties.

/Inferno: Banzi: I'm on it, Junie.

/Inferno: Jun Li: The Command Group will take Lieutenant Vladik.

/Inferno: Jun Li: More than anything, we need to be reactive, plans are just a guideline, we'll adapt as it comes.

/Inferno: Pon: With a name like Vladik, you know he's a vamp.

/Inferno: Semmi: Yep, bloodsucker for sure.

/Inferno: Jun Li: Wonderful... Use AE attacks on the platoons. A lot of the fodder will get by us, but Nix and Morti are protecting the city. Questions?

/Inferno: Sharl: Nope. Let's go—prey waits.

/Inferno: Jun Li: Tanks get ready, as soon as you have the HoT (Heal over Time), head in and establish aggro.

Saji has placed [Blessing of the Sea] on Jun Li.

Gypsy has placed [Blessed Hands] on Sharl.

Tess has placed [Blessed Hands] on Banzi.

/Inferno: Jun Li: Mages put your AoEs down right at first contact.