When they left the plaza the next morning Mark thought their trip back would be full of detours and fighting, as it usually was. However, he had severely undervalued Chloe's assistance. She performed a weaker yet similar spell to what she had done for him yesterday and gave them the exact times a directions they would need to go to get the best possible outcome.

She revealed that predictions, used closer to the casting of the spell were more reliable. This meant the longer she went without using the spell, the more her 'prophetic' abilities would deviate from her predictions. At the same time, the closer the event got, the easier it got to predict.

Mark also learned that her spells worked in a similar fashion to a supercomputer running simulations, taking thousands of unknown variables into account and seeing how they would interact. The further into the future, she wanted to look the more powerful the spell she would need to use. Sam had grilled her on her method and Chloe surprisingly seemed only happy to talk about it.

"Yes, I do use spells nearly constantly, for example, I have a spell called [Predict] this allows me to understand what will happen within the next minute, but if I wanted to know what was happening in the next couple of hours I'd need to use a more powerful version called [Forsee], then there is an even more powerful version that allows me to see day or even weeks into the future. However, that one comes at a price higher than just my Mana, as you all saw"

It quickly became apparent as to why she was fine with sharing this information.

That was because Chloe was, as she put it 'a little good at calculations'. This turned out to mean, one had to be some maths prodigy to use the magic. If someone couldn't multiply in the thousands and come back with an answer in less than a second, then they would have a hard time even casting the simplest version of the spell.

The path back would normally have taken them around four or more hours of travel to get back, but because of her reliable predictions, they clocked in at under three hours. They may have even gotten there sooner if they hadn't needed to make a short detour for people to rest. This combined with the large fighting force they had, cleared the streets of any that got in their way. The journey was honestly one of the easiest Mark had made through the city in… well ever.

Last night they had left a hot zone, so some issues were to be expected, but now this almost felt too easy. Their group was large so Mark traveled up and down the line several times but when they broke through a belt of sparse Corrupted and the walls came into view, Mark paused for a second to look around. Expecting more Corrupted to jump from the shadows and reveal this to be some elaborate trap.

The longer he waited the quicker he came to the conclusion that they weren't coming this time. Because of this, they arrived at Prospect Park a little after nine in the morning.

Pulling up to the wall caused a commotion.

Mark was near the rear, and like a caterpillar, their procession slowly came to a halt just outside. Mark continued to weave through the mass of people to get to the front and by the time he got there, he realized something was wrong. There was no opening to allow them in just yet and Jonathan seemed to be shouting something at them.

Mark caught the end of his sentence through the murmur of the crowd.

"Under whose orders?!"

Mark then heard a voice he recognized.

"Under Major Liam Grantwood's orders. All members of SAGE are to report for duty near the training grounds. A dissolution order has been given for SAGE to be divided up into divisions and spread through the different units. HQ will decide what becomes of the entity SAGE upon arrival." Captian Martina shouted from the top of the wall.

Sam stepped to the front of the group next to Chloe, Henry, and Jonathan.

"Major Karter Dureal is in charge of the SAGE division and as such Major Liam has no right to make such orders, even under the Coronels-"

Captian Martina shouted over Sam.

"I'm sorry Samantha but Major Karter has been relieved of duty and is under investigation"

Sam froze, as did the whole area around her, a look of burning resentment ignited in Sam's eyes. The surrounding temperature plummeted, causing several of the nearest people to take a few large steps back.

Mark walked up next to her, as the chill cut through his clothing. He turned his head just slightly to look at her out of the corner of his eye.

Looking up at her, Sam spoke again, her voice was as cold as the tiny shards of ice that were appearing in the air around them.

"Am I to understand that Major Liam Grantwood is currently in control of SAGE?"

Captain Martina frowned at her display and said.

"That would be correct"

Sam's cold glare relaxed by a degree

"Then as one of the acting heads for SAGE, I have a right to call an emergency meeting with my superior officer"

Mark didn't let it show on his face but he was impressed, she had managed to think rationally right now and come up with a plan on the spot, like father, like daughter. And by the look on Captain Martina's face, she had hit the nail on the head.

"On what grounds?" she demanded.

"A fighting force gathered to aid him" Sam gestured to the two hundred people waiting silently behind her.

Captian Martina looked back and then took out a handheld radio and spoke into it.

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The whole area was silent, like the calm before a storm.

Mark noticed Sam was shaking almost imperceptibly next to him, though whether it was from rage or fear, he couldn't tell.

When she glanced at him, he sent a reassuring nod, showing her he would back her up like she had done for him so many times.

After a couple of minutes, Captain Martina shouted out once more.

"Alright, wait for our signal, then approach the wall"

Sam gave her confirmation and waited with a cold look.

Mark knew that this was something that the two of them needed to do on their own, but Sam needed allies right now.

"I'm coming with you guys,"

Sam didn't look away from the wall but said.

"You realize that if you follow us in there I can't guarantee your neutrality, Mark, nor our safety,"

Mark figured that would probably be the case, but he always knew this was a delicate balance. This would be no better than stating outright that he was on their side, but by now he already was.

"Course I get that, but some things happen so fast that there's no time to hesitate. I've seen both of you on multiple occasions, risk yourselves to help people when others would have left them. So yes I see the risks and I still want to support you"

A chuckle escaped Jonathan.

"After all this, you finally want to join us when we are about to be disbanded,"

Mark rolled his eyes at Jonathan and shot right back.

"Who said anything about joining, I just figured you guys are half-decent people and to watch all your effort go down the toilet would be a shame,"

Now it was his turn to roll his eyes at Mark's jab.

A signal went up from the wall.

With the time he had left, Mark went over to Franklin.

"Dude do me a favor and watch Donny for me, I'll make it up to you when I get back"

Franklin looked towards Donny and then back at Mark.

"Sure thing man"

Just as he walked after them Chloe reached out and grabbed his wrist.

"Whatever happens don't let him rile her up, not when she's so close to working this all out. We'll wait for you until I see there's no path forward, then I'll have to call for a retreat"

Mark's eyebrows furrowed. He wanted to ask what their chances were but his window was closing, so all he could do was nod and head over to the now-open wall.

Falling in line with the other two they crossed the threshold.

What came into sight was the equivalent of five units surrounding them.

The major had sent some of his strongest men to 'guide' them. On multiple occasions, Mark had seen these men on the wall fighting and gaining exp. The major had sent a party that could contend with them. Or at least he thought they could.

Captian Martina stood at the front waiting for them.

"Don't worry I'm taking you where you need to go, they are just here as a formality"

When she spotted Mark she paused but didn't say anything. Choosing to begin leading the way.

So that's how they walked, over fifty soldiers escorting three individuals through the camp. Many eyes fell on them, most held confused looks, while others didn't look happy at all.

Arriving at the soldier quarters they passed through a small gap that was quickly closed after them.

Huge changes had been going on behind the scenes. The normal cluster of tents and equipment was nowhere to be seen. Only the absolutely necessary infrastructure was left as more than half the space was completely empty, with only a skeleton staff hanging around.

It was because of this that Mark could see where they were heading. The area he had once visited with fancy civilian tents came into view. Their section was the only one that still looked completely untouched.

There was another group at the entrance to the section, they were probably another twenty men strong, and as their two groups got closer Mark saw a face he really didn't want to at this stage.

Mr. Joseph Grantwood stood there smiling in one of his tailored suits.

Coming to a stop their groups joined, putting the three of them, Captian Martina, and Mr. Joseph Grantwood in the center.

Captian Martina approached and spoke up.

"Mr. Grantwood what are you doing here? I have orders to bring them to the Major"

The man nodded to her politely.

"And we will get to that Miss Garcia but I convinced my brother to send me here to ascertain their intentions. This is a busy time and bothering him with trivial matters is beyond his station"

Captain Martina seemed to disagree but didn't call him on it either.

"Now Miss Samathan Dureal, you called a meeting with the Major but what is this about? I hear it's to do with the small army of fighters outside our walls, what are your intentions?"

Sam clenched her jaw at this.

"Mr. Grantwood, this is above your station, now I need to see the Major and I have every right to do so."

The man didn't seem affected by her attitude, simply shaking his head.

"Normally you'd be right… Is this about your father's situation? Don't worry he is completely safe, he's simply been confined to his quarters, when we leave he will be brought to HQ under charges of treason.

Sam was pissed and she was struggling to remain calm. Jonathan took a step in front of her as she'd once done for him, it seemed to calm her but only just.

"Please…Move out of our way while I'm still asking politely"

False shock crossed Mr. Grantwood's face.

"Threats Samantha? Well, I suppose it's to be expected. But don't worry, these are hectic times so I'm sure we'll be able to talk them down from a death penalty"

Sam's breathing hitched for a moment but was quickly becoming more ragged by the second. The earlier cold that surrounded her then switched to a burning heat that pulsed off her in waves. Mark felt like he was standing directly next to a bonfire. While Jonathan had also gone still.

Now Mark wasn't knowledgeable on these types of laws but while the death penalty was possible in extreme circumstances, it was very unlikely now.

The man was trying to rile her up and get her to react, possibly to stop them from seeing the Major in the first place. Chloe's warning rang in his mind, Mark had thought she meant the Major but he'd been wrong.

Mark placed a hand on her shoulder. Sam barely even registered it.

His action seemed to draw the attention of the man.

"Ah Mr Young, finally picked a horse? I always saw you as a bigger-picture kind of man. How about I get you a space in the convoy tomorrow"

Mark's dislike for the manipulative man, really reached new heights.

"Joseph we all know what you are playing at here, move and let us through"

He shook his head gravely.

"I'm sorry Mark but from the looks of it she is not stable enough to talk to the Major, perhaps we should reschedule this for a time when she's feeling more herself"

Sam was one of the most rational people Mark had ever met because even now she managed to compose herself.

It turned out that she wasn't the one he should worry about because the next thing he heard was Jonathan muttering a soft.

"Fuck it"

And in a blink, he had closed the distance between the two and put his fist through the guy's face before anyone could even react. Joseph went down like a sack of flour with a bloodied nose.

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