"There's a large group of lesser Grimm approaching from the south-west," Huntress Kadir said, placing her finger on a map in front of them.

Sergeant Tanners's tent was full as everyone crowded around the map placed on a small travel table. Reed and Seraphina stood at one end, while Phaedra somehow managed to lounge against the canvas wall behind them. Tamus and Ivory stood opposite them, their large bodies taking up an entire side of the tent. Tanners and Huntress Kadir leaned across from each other, each studying the map with a critical eye.

"How'd they get so close without you spotting them, Kiwi?" Phaedra asked. She was the only one in the group who dared use the nickname. Everyone else referred to the near-mythic woman as "Huntress Kadir," despite her protests.

"I've been focusing my attention on the horde in the mountains to the north," Huntress Kadir said, chagrin obvious in her voice. "The rolling hills to the south hid them from view until I did a circuit of the camp at dawn."

"What exactly do you mean by 'lesser' Grimm?" Seraphina asked. "Just Creepers and Beowolves?"

"Plus a couple of Ursai," Huntress Kadir added with a shrug, "They look pretty young, though."

"So what's the plan?" Tamus asked. "Are we going to try to out march them? Set up defensive positions on the road and take them head on?"

"Neither," Tanners answered. "You see this path here?" The sergeant placed a finger on a small hiking trail that split off from the main road. It went south for a ways, before looping back to the road a dozen miles from where it started. "We're going to break off from the expedition and take care of them ourselves."

"Who exactly do you mean by 'we'?" Phaedra asked, her tone neutral but with a hint of annoyance.

Tanners responded curtly. "Tamus's squad, Reed's squad, and yourself. I will personally lead the attack."

"You do realize I'm not a Guard, right?" she asked, her tone sour. "I've done more fighting than forging on this expedition already."

"Get over yourself," Tanners said, his voice hard and uncompromising. "You are a member of this expedition and more skilled at fighting than most of the Guard, you will go where you are needed."

Phaedra scowled at that, but didn't offer further complaint.

"Is it really safe to take so many capable Guards away from the expedition?" Tamus asked, concerned. "Without us, defense will fall largely on Gerstein's people. They may be strong, but they aren't exactly the best when it comes to cooperative efforts."

"They will do," Huntress Kadir said, waving a hand dismissively. "I will remain here to watch over the main force and coordinate any defense, should it prove necessary."

A murmur of assent went through the group. With the famed Huntress watching over the expedition there was little chance of anything bad happening.

Tanners cleared his throat. "Alright everyone. Pack your kits light, two rations and necessary supplies only. We will be marching double time, any unnecessary luggage will be packed aboard the supply truck. Dawn is already an hour gone, I want us on the road in fifteen minutes."

"Reed, can you come to the front? There's something I'd like to discuss with you."

Reed looked up from where he walked at the center of their line. The hiking trail was narrow, forcing them to march in single file. Thorny brush lined the path, snagging their clothes and scratching exposed skin. Tanners stood at the front of the line, looking at him expectantly over one shoulder.

He squeezed past Chase and Abbey, who marched ahead of him, a small army of burs latching onto the canvas of his pants. Reed bent to brush them away before straightening and nodding to the sergeant.

Tanners turned and continued hiking down the rocky trail. He was silent for a few moments, his usual straight-backed posture and perfect marching rhythm giving Reed no indication of what he wanted to discuss.

"How far out are we?" Reed asked, when the silence started to grate on his nerves.

"Hmm?" The sound was distracted, as if his question had interrupted the sergeant's train of thought. "Oh, we should reach the pack within the hour. Anyway, I wanted to discuss your tactics when fighting the Creatures of Grimm."

"Is there something wrong with how I've been positioning my squad?"

"What? No, I didn't call you up here to talk about your squad. They are performing admirably, all things considered. I want to discuss the way you personally engage the Grimm."

The clarification surprised Reed. He thought he was doing rather well in his bouts against the monsters. He hadn't been injured by a Grimm in weeks, and they hadn't so much as bounced off his aura the entire expedition.

"I've killed dozens of Grimm," Reed protested. "Everything from Creepers to Ursai."

"You spend too long engaging individual Grimm," Tanners continued, as if he hadn't spoken. "You think too much like a duelist, wearing your enemy down before going in for the finishing blow. Against the bigger ones that can't be helped, but a fighter of your caliber should be able to kill anything less than an Ursa in a single blow."

Indignation flushed through Reed, and the next words were out of his mouth before he could stop them. "How would you know? The only time you've seen me fight Grimm was during the Road Patrol, and I didn't have Halmvoulge then."

"Halmvoulge? Oh, your halberd. Good name. Anyway, I have my sources. I know about your little trips into the forest around Adigiar, and I've got it on good authority that it takes you an average of two strikes to deal with a Creeper and three for a Beowolf."

Reed bit back a retort, mostly because the sergeant was right. Under the right conditions he had killed a handful of Creepers with one strike, if their backs were turned or they left themselves open. He had never managed to do the same with a Beowolf, though.

"Why bring this up now? It hasn't been a problem in the past."

"Then we were only fighting small groups," Tanners said, finally looking over his shoulder to meet Reed's gaze. His eyes still looked distant, but they were focused enough on Reed to make him feel guilty for his petulance.

"Now, though, we are up against a small horde. There are somewhere close to a hundred Grimm where we are headed, you won't have time to fight each individually."

Reed sucked in a sharp breath. Compared to the horde north of the mountains a hundred Grimm was a pittance, but for only a dozen Guards it seemed an inordinately high number.

"If there's that many shouldn't we have brought more Guards?" he asked, worried.

Tanners just shrugged. "It shouldn't be a problem. Besides, this group needs some team building. I know you were just trying to help, but Tamus's squad was rather put out by your interrogation. Also, you have some problems in your own squad that haven't been addressed."

"Really?" Reed said, surprised. "Like what?"

"All in good time. For now, let's talk strategy. You're faced with three Creepers and a Beowolf, what do you do?"

"Well," Reed said, forcing his mind away from what could possibly be going wrong with the members of his squad. "I guess my first goal would be to deal with the Creepers so I could focus on the Beowolf. I would encase them in ice or cut off their forelimbs to hamper their movement."

Tanners tsked, shaking his head. "Personally I would go for the Beowolf first, but whether you start with the Creepers or the Beowolf is a matter of personal preference. Where you went wrong was wasting time incapacitating the Creepers. Rather than smack them with the end of your staff you should just strike them down and be done with it.

"The blade of your halberd is more than capable of cleaving straight through a Creeper's skull. It has the range to do so without them getting close enough to claw you, and they will dissipate well before any leftover momentum would reach you. Now, how would you face the Beowolf?"

Reed gritted his teeth. Not because he disagreed with the sergeant, but because he was obviously right. Reed had trained in wearing down an opponent, striking arms and legs until form failed and a weakness presented itself. Despite the days he had spent training in the forest, those instincts ran deep.

"Well, normally I would try and cut an arm off to expose the waist," Reed said, then rushed on before Tanners could correct him. "But I suppose I could go for the waist from the beginning, using the range of my staff to get around the arms. Or just go for the head, either with an overhand attack or by decapitation."

A small smile tugged at the corners of Tanners's mouth. "That's better. Going for the weakness from the beginning is a stronger strategy than wearing it down to further expose it. Precision and quick thinking have saved more Huntsmen than battles of strength and endurance."

"I think Captain Gerstein would disagree," Reed said, smiling at the chuckle the comment elicited.

"I bet he would. Still, I'd be happy if you tried things my way."

"Yes sir."

"Good. Now, get back to your squad," he hummed thoughtfully, then added, "and send Phaedra up here. I need to have a chat with her as well."

"Here comes the first wave, everybody get ready!"

Tanners call rang across the hills. They'd found a flat space clear of brush directly between the approaching Grimm and the expedition. As they watched, the first of the monsters crested the hill in front of them. They were composed of mostly Creepers with the occasional juvenile Beowolf mixed in, the faster Creepers outstripping their companions.

The two squads fell into ready stances. Tanners stood in the middle, with Reed on his left and Tamus on his right. Seraphina and Ivory stood next to them, the five of them making up the front line of their formation. Abbey, Delphin, Phaedra, Spines and Skittles stood behind them, ready to catch any Grimm that broke through or circled around their formation, while Chase and Camo made up the rear, rifles already firing on the approaching Grimm.

"Don't forget, Reed," Tanners said, "One strike, one kill."

The Grimm clashed with the Guards, Creepers coiling their tails and launching themselves through the air. Reed's instincts screamed at him to knock them down with the butt of his staff, leaving them frozen and immobile on the ground. Gritting his teeth, he pushed past the urge, meeting the first Creeper's charge by slamming Halmvoulge's blade into its mask.

The monster's momentum did most of the work for him, and Halmvoulge passed clean through its skull. The moment of terror as the monster's body approached was replaced with exhilaration as it exploded into black mist. Reed reversed his grip, slashing backhanded at the next Creeper and slamming Halmvoulge's spur into the side of the creature's head. Before it even dissipated he had already pushed forward and stabbed Halmvoulge's tip into the next monster's chest.

Creepers exploded into nothing one after the other, none getting close enough to even touch Reed's aura. Across the line the monsters fell like wheat to the scythe, ripped to pieces by spears, slashed through with metal claws, or battered into oblivion by Tamus's club.

"They're faltering, everyone advance!"

At Tanners's order the line began to walk forward. Reed fell into a simple figure-eight spinning pattern, each rotation accompanied by a step towards the Grimm. His instincts warned him to wait for the monsters to come to him, but with each explosion of black mist the smile that had crept onto his face grew wider. A dozen Creepers had fallen to Halmvoulge in a matter of seconds, each moment of resistance followed by a sudden release as the weapon cleaved the monsters into pieces.

Reed had to admit it was damned satisfying.

The end of the first wave was in sight. Only a handful of Beowolves remained, the slower Grimm bringing up the rear of the charge.

The first charged Tanners's position at the middle of the line. The sergeant dealt with it almost contemptuously, his spear lashing out, catching the monster's claws on its shaft and pushing the attack to the side even as the spear slipped forward and separated its head from its body.

The remaining Beowolves split, recognizing the danger of attacking Tanners. A pair of them charged Reed and Seraphina, howling as they extended clawed arms to either side. After sharing a glance with Seraphina, they both rushed forward to meet the charge.

The monster on the right swiped at Reed's head. Rather than catch the blow, Reed ducked underneath it. He felt exposed so close to the Grimm, but its thin waist was completely unprotected. Setting his feet, Reed brought Halmvoulge around to slam into the monster's gut. The blade passed clean through, and the Beowolf's howl was cut off as it burst into mist.

Seraphina's Beowolf followed shortly behind, one clawed hand stopping its attack as the other slammed through the monster's chin. Glancing to the other side, Reed saw Tamus smash one Beowolf's head into nothing while Ivory finished the last with a well placed shot into its gaping maw.

They came to a halt in the center of the clear ground, exchanging grins. No sign remained of the several dozen Grimm that had met their end, other than the light sheen of sweat on their foreheads.

"You picked that up quickly," Tanners said, clapping Reed on the back with a grin. "How did it feel?"

"Terrifying," Reed said, though the wide grin on his face refused to recede. "The hairs on the back of my neck were screaming at me that I had left enemies behind me."

"Ha!" Seraphina exclaimed. "The only thing behind you was a bit of Grimm mist and some gawking squad mates!"

Turning, Reed realized she was right. Abbey and Chase were openly staring, jaws hanging open. Tamus's squad was conferring with him, but they glanced in Reed's direction with grudging respect. Even Phaedra looked mildly impressed.

"No time for chit-chat," Tanners said. "Here comes the next wave, and there are some big Creepers with those Beowolves. Everybody back in formation!"

The Beowolves proved more challenging than the Creepers in such large numbers. The first two fell to a single strike a piece, but the third slipped through Reed's guard, its claws deflecting painfully off the aura around his shoulder. With an irritated grunt Reed activated the wind crystals behind Halmvoulge's blade, shearing the monster from hip to shoulder.

Using the full wind activation was dangerous while fighting in a line, so Reed advanced on the crowd of Beowolves. As the monsters surrounded him on three sides he was forced to activated his semblance, the spinning disk of Halmvoulge cleaving straight through limbs into bodies and heads as he swayed and stepped around attacks aimed at his back. Reckless in his new found competence, Reed pushed forward far beyond his companions.

"Reed, you idiot! You've opened up a hole in our line!"

Glancing back at Seraphina voice, he realized she was right. Abbey and Delphin had been forced forward to fill his spot in the line, their desperate stabs and shots barely holding a trio of Beowolves.

Reed spun Halmvoulge in a wide circle, forcing the Beowolves surrounding him to step back. Canceling the Wind Dust, he planted Halmvoulge's tip into the ground and launched himself over the ring of Grimm. He lashed out with a horizontal slash as he landed, reactivating the Wind and giving his weapon the power to pass through all three of the Grimm pressuring Abbey and Delphin.

"Duck!"

The shout came from his right, Seraphina's voice triggering an instantaneous reaction. He fell to one knee just as her clawed hand passed over him, burying itself deep into the mask of a full grown Creeper. She ripped through the bottom of the creature's skull, tearing off its jaw before the whole thing burst into nothing.

"Don't get cocky, Reed," Tanners said, destroying a Beowolf that tried to take the Creeper's place. "Quick kills are only good if they don't come at the cost of your team's safety. If you need more room, just tell us."

"Understood," Reed said, confidence rightfully shaken by the slip. "Sera, if you could fan out to the side a bit I would appreciate it."

The Beowolves pushed harder than the previous wave of Creepers, and they were forced to hold the line rather than advance through them. There were so many that the Grimm line was longer than their own, and the second line of defense was forced to spread to the side to prevent them from being surrounded. Phaedra threw up stone walls on either side to keep them from being spread too thin, and Chase and Camo took advantage of the high ground to get above the monsters and thin their ranks with volleys of well placed bullets.

Reed kept to the line, though each downed Grimm tempted him to advance into their midst. Instead he used any free space he had to shoot those that tried to pressure Abbey and Delphin. The new-and-improved fireballs that Phaedra had altered resembled brightly shining bullets, punching straight through masks and black flesh rather than exploding on contact.

When the pressure on his less skilled squad-mates lessened, Reed took the opportunity to observe Tanners. If Reed was a river, slipping through to find the enemy's weakness, the sergeant was the ocean. His sweeping strikes battered away attacks and killed Grimm all at the same time, his ornate gun-spear smashing into them relentlessly. Bullets fired from the tip mid-swing, slipping between the Beowolves that made up the front line and wreaking havoc on their supporting ranks. No crack was too small, and waves Grimm fell to him in moments.

Turning back, Reed's heart leapt into his mouth as an Ursa burst through the Beowolves and charged Abbey. Seraphina had her hands full with a pair of fully grown Creepers, and a trio of Beowolves rushed him before he could fire on the Ursa.

"Abbey, watch out!"

Abbey pulled her gun-spear from a Beowolf's chest, her face growing pale at the sight of the enormous Grimm barreling towards her. She extended her spear in a shaky guard, only for it to be smacked to the side by the monster's fore-paw.

Reed swore, ducking a Beowolf's claws as he tried to get an angle on the Ursa. To his shock, Delphin came to the rescue.

The almost lethargic stabbings of the simple man changed in an instant. His spear suddenly spun in a complex circuit, slipping past a Beowolf's claws and cutting its head in half at the jaw line. He spun with the movement, spear tucking in tight, then lashing out with three quick stabs. They were so fast that they appeared to blur through the Grimm, leaving gaping red holes in gut, chest, and neck.

Reed and Seraphina finished off the Grimm in front of them, the last of the wave, then everyone paused to stare at Delphin. Reed felt guilt wash over him as he realized he had barely considered the older man over the past several days. Delphin had taken his order to guard the rear to heart, his constant position at the back of their group and his silence causing him to fade into the background of Reed's mind.

"Good work, Delphin!" Tamus roared, wrapping his arm around the man's shoulder. "You've been holding out on us!"

Delphin stared blankly ahead, barely seeming to register Tamus's huge arm pushing down on him.

"Yes, good work indeed," Tanners said, but the words were muted. He was staring at Delphin with eyes narrowed, as if reassessing the scarred veteran. Delphin, for his part, stood at parade rest, single brown eye staring at nothing.

"Here comes the rest of them!" Camo's shout echoed down from his position atop the stone wall. "They look like their giving up on a frontal assault. There's a pack of Creepers and Beowolves circling to the east and… Hermit that's a King Taijitu to the west, along with a pair of fully grown Ursa!"

Tanners turned away from Delphin, gripping his gun-spear tightly. "Tamus, Ivory, you're with me! Let's go get that King Taijitu. Reed, you go take care of the east."

"Understood! Sera, let's go!"

"No," Tanners voice brought the two of them up short. "Seraphina, you come with us. Reed, take Phaedra with you. Everyone else, stay here and hold the center in case more show up!"

Reed stopped, panting slightly as he turned slowly, making sure none of the Grimm had escaped.

It had only taken them a couple minutes to catch up to the Grimm. They'd had a head start, but the tangled brush had hampered them significantly. He and Phaedra had followed the Grimm's path, using the walls her hammer summoned to hem them in and taking advantage of the trampled foliage to rush them from behind.

"That should do it," he said, retracting Halmvoulge's blade and letting the staff fall into a resting position. "Let's get back to the others."

"I'm not a part of your little squad," Phaedra snapped. "You don't get to order me around like a little girl not into her Maiden panties yet."

Reed, already making his way back down the path, turned to her in surprise. Phaedra always had a sharp tongue, but the words had more bite to them than usual.

"Is everything alright?" he asked, walking back to where she stood at the edge of the flattened circle of bushes that had been their battleground.

"Oh yeah, just peachy," she said with a huff. "I've been marching in this damned humidity, I've got a line of sweat tracing from my neck to my Maiden parts, and I haven't touched a forge in more than two days. Life is a fucking picnic."

Reed wanted to say that she should have known what the expedition would entail, but he held his tongue. Something about her words were off. They were genuine complaints, sure, but they were said with the air of someone trying to divert attention from the real problem.

"I know what you mean," Reed said instead, sighing when he realized it was true. "Honestly, what I want more than anything right now is a hot bath and a soft bed. Don't worry. After tomorrow, for better or worse, this will all be over."

"Tomorrow…" Phaedra said, and her shoulders slumped. The pose was so vulnerable that Reed had a hard time believing that Phaedra's body was capable of such a motion.

"Be straight with me, Reed. What do you think are our odds of surviving tomorrow?"

"I don't know…" he responded, still having trouble reconciling that he was having this conversation with Phaedra of all people. "Based on today we've got the lesser Grimm pretty much in hand, it's the Nevermores and Deathstalkers that have me worried…"

"Shit," Phaedra swore, and the expletive was so natural on her lips that Reed had to hide a smile. "Guess this can't wait. I'd rather not have the conversation at all, but if something happened to any of us tomorrow I would regret not doing it."

"What conversation?" Reed was thoroughly lost at this point. It wasn't like Phaedra to worry about things like death and success. Sure, she'd gotten scared that one time a Beowolf had nearly gotten the jump on her, but that had been in the moment.

"You… That is to say I…" Phaedra stumbled through the words, refusing to meet Reed's gaze. She turned and kicked savagely at a bush. "Fuck, this shouldn't be this hard!"

"What shouldn't be hard?"

"Shut it, you. I'm having enough trouble getting this out without you interrupting me. I made you a weapon, now show some gratitude and keep your mouth closed for a minute."

Her voice grew soft as she continued, "I made you a weapon… I worked with you for hours, spending time with you by choice. I hate people, I never do that. What I'm trying to say is…"

She groaned and turned away from him, practically shouting, "You're my friend, okay?!"

Reed couldn't help but laugh. "That's what you were having such a hard time saying? Phaedra, of course we're friends! You know everything about my past, and if I ever make it as a Huntsman it will be because of the opportunity you gave me by building Halmvoulge. Of course I am grateful for that."

"You have a funny way of showing it," Phaedra muttered.

"What?"

"Ever since Miss Muscles joined up you've spent every spare minute with her. I get it, she's a fighter, like you. You two work well together, I don't have any interest in getting in the way of your budding romance."

"R-Romance?" Reed stuttered, taken off guard by the statement. Phaedra finally turned to look at him, and a small, wicked smile touched her lips.

"Are you blushing? Maidens, Reed, get a hold of yourself. You are always there to prop her up when she is confronted with the mistakes of her past, and she can barely take her eyes off you for a second. When we get back to Adigiar you really should ask her out on a proper date."

"What… How… I mean…"

"Oh stop babbling," Phaedra said, though her amusement was still obvious. "Although the idiotic look on your face makes saying this a little easier. You're not just my friend, you're my first friend. I never got along with kids my own age-"

"Shocking," Reed said before he could help himself. Phaedra glared at him.

"I can still take it back you know."

"Sorry, continue."

"Look, my point is that since Sera joined us you and I have barely spent any time together. I meant what I said about not getting between you two, to be honest I don't like guys that way. I just… miss hanging out with you."

She winced at the statement. "Alright, that's it. Let's head back, you useless excuse for a bodyguard."

The barb had no bite, and Phaedra tried to brush past Reed. He caught her arm, and was surprised when she didn't pull away from the touch.

"Phaedra, I… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel ignored. To be honest, I just haven't known how to handle Sera until recently. I'm ashamed to admit I thought her change of heart was a front for quite a while, it happened so quickly. Then I was distracted by her asking me to teach her to fight Grimm, and then this expedition…"

Now that he thought about it, Reed couldn't remember the last time he and Phaedra had had an actual conversation. "Hermit, I'm a lousy excuse for a first friend."

"Yes, you are," Phaedra said, a smile forcing its way out. "But you'll do."

"You and Phaedra get everything sorted out?"

Reed marched with Tanners at the front of their line. The hiking trail had widened enough to walk two abreast, though Tamus and Ivory still marched single-file at the rear.

"Um, yeah," Reed said, glancing at the sergeant. "How'd you know something was wrong?"

Tanners shrugged. "I noticed that Phaedra was acting weird from the start of the expedition. Maybe it's just because I've only had a few interactions with her, but she seemed different than when I ran into you three at Komodo Curry."

"Is that why you asked to speak with her earlier?"

Tanners nodded. "She didn't really answer any of my questions, but when I asked her about you she told me to shove my concern in a very inappropriate place. I figured if I gave you two a few minutes alone it would work itself out."

They walked in silence for a while, the trail curving steadily to the north and back towards the main road. The afternoon sun dipped low in the sky, the air cooling slightly and bringing welcome relief from the oppressive heat of the day.

"Was Phaedra the problem within my squad?" Reed asked suddenly. The sergeant's comment had been bouncing around his mind since the fight.

"She was," Tanners confirmed.

"Phaedra's not technically a part of my squad."

"She is, for all intents and purposes," Tanners said, a frown crossing his face. "Regardless, that problem's been dealt with. Now something else is bothering me…"

"Delphin?" Reed guessed. "I saw you sizing him up after that sticky moment with the Ursa."

"Delphin was one of the first Guards put under my command," Tanners said. "No one else wanted to deal with him. He's an adequate fighter, under the right circumstances, but he's by the book. Stab, fire, pull and repeat. I've never seen him do anything half as complex as that move he pulled off to save Abbey…"

"Maybe Abbey just brings out the best in him?" Reed suggested. "They seem to get along well. Abbey never stops talking and he never says a word, they balance each other out."

The sergeant looked unconvinced, and the expression caused a knot of worry to form in Reed's stomach. "You don't think…"

"I don't know what to think," Tanners cut him off, casting a worried look over his shoulder. "Keep a close eye on him, though. There are too many inconsistencies there for my liking."