The next morning, Eric and Mia met with Michael, Justin, Erica at the Humint office. Eric sat at his desk, looking around like he was in a zoo. "You know, we've had this office for half a year, but none of us have spent more than a few days in here."

They all laughed and gathered around Eric. He pulled out some reports. "Alright, the plan today is to finish up the interrogation of that Veil captain. Justin, you will take point on that. Erica, you join him. If you guys need anything or he isn't talking, Mia and I will be on standby for assistance."

The young couple nodded in tandem as Eric turned to Michael. "Mike, I need you in coordination with Ricky and the team. Apparently last night Ricky found out where they are hiding the Dwarves. He said he would be touching base with us today after verifying some details. If we can get those Dwarves out, maybe we can stop Ark production, or at least slow it down."

Eric then looked at Mia. "Babe. You and I are gonna be sifting through reports from Dresken. There have been a lot of new people migrating through Dresken. I want to check to see if we spot anything fishy. Captain Rima has her hands full with trying to stabilize the city with all the Earth refugees fleeing every which way. Apparently, she had tanks outside the gates, and the Earth refugees are flocking to Dresken."

Michael chewed on his lip while sitting down at his desk. He didn't bother turning on his laptop. After Justin and Erica left, he looked up from his phone.

"You sure you trust the kids to take care of that interrogation, Eric? I don't get the warm and fuzzy feeling about leaving them alone to do it."

Eric looked up from his report. His eyes twitched in annoyance.

"Come on Mike. You and I have been in their ears for months now. Mia, who might I remind you is the best of all of us at interrogation and intel gathering, has been coaching Erica. I know they're still young, but they have the right coaching. Plus, think about it. Justin knew the dude. He was a Hero in the Empire, for what it's worth. Maybe he can crack that sumbitch."

Michael sighed. "Whatever you say, old timer."

Eric put the report down, glaring at the Captain. He opened his mouth to retort, but Mia spoke up.

"Would you two numbskulls shut the fuck up?" She groaned. "God, at this point I feel like you two are the married ones, with Ayeolla and I watching from the sidelines."

Both Eric and Michael instantly went quiet, and Mia snickered. She set the first report down and began taking notes. "I think I may have already found a discrepancy, Babe." She muttered. "There is a young couple claiming to be from San Francisco, but from what I gathered using satellite imagery, San Francisco is near where Austin used to be. That is hundreds of miles from where Dresken is now."

Eric walked over and read the report. "Did they have a vehicle?"

She traced her finger through the report, scanning the document. "No, they did not. They said it was destroyed by a large lion looking creature."

"Circle it. We may have to contact Captain Rima and have some of her soldiers detain that couple."

While Eric and Mia were sifting through reports, Justin was staring down at the captain of the Veil. He had prepared a few documents before walking into the room, and had just finished explaining what the terms were.

"Hisha, these people are not like the Empire. You know me. We worked together to capture those criminals. Would i lead you the wrong way?"

Hisha shook his head.

"Justin, Justin, Justin. Some hero you are. You abandoned the God that gave you a second chance at life. You left behind the chance of living in an immortal empire to come be a part of a country doomed to die. You have no idea the hatred Lord Mithrael has for you Justin. I'm not signing your fucking agreement. You can go wad it up and shove it up your ass."

Justin crossed his arms and looked down at the document.

"So your pride and loyalty to the Empire is worth more than family? I saw how you acted with your kids, Hisha. Your wife cooks that lovely stew..."

Hisha tried to break the shackles. He writhed about to no avail. His teeth clenched and his face went red with effort. Justin sat there unamused. "You are not getting out of that chair, Hisha. This is your new life."

Hisha glared at Justin. "Do. Not. Touch. My. Family." He said through glitter teeth. "My children and wife have done nothing wrong."

Justin sighed. "Did you even read the paper, you fucking moron? Listen dude. They're going to kill your family. We are offering to save them, and even throw in the added bonus of you maybe getting to see them from time to time. You know as well as I do that once they find out you are in custody the Empire will do what they always have done."

Justin's eyes met Hishas, his glare icy.

"They will get rid of the loose ends."

Hisha's eyes widened, and he looked down at the document. "They wouldn't, right?" He muttered. "They wouldn't kill my..."

He paused.

"They would."

His eyes flashed with recognition as he remembered something he told Justin before the Hero had defected.

Hisha looked down at Justin as the Hero continued to sift through various psychological evaluations of the prisoners. His eyes narrowed as he read the report Justin wrote. "You always have to remember not to leave behind any possible loose ends, Justin." Hisha said as he traced a finger over one of the lines Justin had written.

"Even if the loose end seems to barely effect the mission, we cull it. It may seem unnecessary or cruel, but that is just how things work in this job field."

Hisha felt tears begin to roll down his cheeks. They pooled up near the corners of his eyes as he looked down. "Justin, I swear on my life. If you are able to get my children and my wife out of the Empire territory, I will give you everything. I will tell you anything you need to know. Just please..."

Hisha couldn't speak anymore as he began sobbing. "My boys are worth more to me than life itself, Justin. You're right. The Empire will kill my family. Please don't let that happen."

Justin leaned forward. He didn't offer reassurance, but logic. "Hisha. That depends entirely on you. The ball is in your court, Captain." Justin said coldly. "This isn't mercy or kindness. We need intel. You have that intel. So, start talking. If you don't give us something we can verify quickly, we can't help you."

Justin stood up to leave. "I'll give you an hour to collect yourself and think about what you will tell us. Just remember, this will not be kindness or mercy. You give us what we want, and we will help you."

Justin left the room and Hisha began sobbing again. Once he was in the other room, Erica was smiling up at him. She clapped when the door was shut. "Good job sweetheart. I didn't think you would break him in the first few hours."

Justin looked off to the side. "I don't think I like the term 'break'." He murmured. He had incidentally looked up to see Hisha crying again. "After all that hellos training he put me through, I thought I would get some payback, but seeing a usually emotionless man crying is throwing me through a loop."

Erica wrapped her arms around him, hugging his back. "I know it is hard, but from what we saw in that meeting room, he could have done a lot of damage. Think about if one of those guys goes out into a public space and does what Hisha did. A lot of people would die."

Justin didn't meet her gaze.

"Are we really the good guys though? Using their own tactics against them?"

Erica sighed, stroking Justin's hair.

"Are we better than the side that wanted to use a super weapon on a city of millions, enslaved entire countries of people, and used slaves as pleasure tools? I would honestly hope so."

Justin cracked a grin. "Yeah. I guess when you say it like that."

"Now come on, we should go get some lunch. When we come back we can get some information from Hisha."

Justin followed Erica out of the room, and they headed to their apartment. Justin took one last glance back at the interrogation room, shaking his head before being pulled away by Erica.

"Don't look back at him." She said calmly. "He will be here when we get back. For now? Lunch time."