Chapter 7 - Chapter 7 Annabelle's POV

I finally got my first mission since I transferred to Charlotte and it was a solo mission. The only problem was Eric, he had yet to get any experience as he had never been in a mission so I had to serve as his supervisor during the course of the mission. He had originally struck me as a haughty type that listened to no one else and does things at his whim, so I was shocked when he came up to me, asking what he should expect while on the mission. I helped him to the best of my abilities, relating my previous experiences while he listened. We kept at it, training while we prepared for the mission. A few days later, we departed to fulfill our mission together. While on the way, I tried talking to him about his family and his past but he was evasive, refusing to talk after telling me that he left his own family after awakening. That was the reason, he said, that he doesn't use a last name. After that, we travelled silently for a while until he suddenly stopped. "We're being followed" he said and I looked around. Sensing nobody, I dismissed it as being his imagination but he would not be convinced. I then said to him "Let's move forward. Time is of the essence" as I continued forward. Albeit disappointed, he went along with my instructions and we continued. We had barely left the area when we came in contact with them. Five guys, clad in a special material that allowed them to blend with their surrounding areas. As they circled us, I wondered how he found out that we were being followed but I couldn't ask him as he was about to attack. He went in with a punch but his attack apparently passed through his opponent. At that point, I realised why I couldn't sense them was because they weren't real, rather they were mirages. I recalled my experience with mirages, their strengths and weaknesses and called to Eric to come closer. He had taken quite a beating and I told him to take away the light in the area. Then, he seemed to realise and closed his eyes. A few moments later, the light in the area started dimming to the point I could almost feel the darkness. Smiling, I blazed through (literally) the mirages while Eric moved around. I didn't know what he was aiming for until he stopped abruptly, staring at something I couldn't see. He put his hand out and dragged an unseen material and a van came into view with a girl at the wheel. He smiled at her as he broke the door, dragging her out and placing her at my feet. "Who is she?" I asked and he answered "She's the one behind the attack" "But I didn't even notice her!" I exclaimed to which he calmly asked "Have you ever fought a Trickster before?" "No. I tend to leave that to the others". "Then," he said "you have yet to know how cunning they can be. They have generally low magical power and as such, when they try to hide their abilities, they tend to appear as regular humans. You don't want to take these set of people lightly" He said to me as he bent over the girl, all smiles disappeared from his face and he asked her "Who sent you?" She refused to say a single word until he looked her straight in the eyes, repeating the question. I could sense a different aura from him as he grabbed her by the throat, strangling her but she just laughed "If this is how you interrogate, I wonder if you've ever gotten any answers" "We could do this the easy way, the hard way or the evil way. It's your choice" Eric snarled as he dropped her, surprisingly gently and smiled at me "You might want to stay away for this one" he said and dragged her away. Barely half an hour later, he came back dragging the girl who seemed unconscious and he said "She finally talked. I have to confess though, she was a really tough one. Couldn't believe it took me a whole 30 minutes to get her to talk." He said as he grabbed her and laid her in the van, asked if I could drive which I affirmed and he got into the passenger side and told me to drive. "She'll get us where we need to go" he said and I moved. I kept thinking about what he said "It took me a whole 30 minutes to get her to talk" but I couldn't make light of it so I decided to brush it off and make small talk with him as we travel. Barely two hours passed when night fell. I thought of continuing the journey but he said it was better we rest and get our bearings, saying that it was harder to travel at night. While we set up our things to sleep, he turned to the girl and hit her on the head, waking her up. "What was that for?" I asked, turning towards him "A pressure point" he answered and said "I stimulated her pain receptors to make her very sensitive. Even the lightest touch was very painful to bear. Now imagine being tortured in such a state" he finished and turned away. "We have to make sure she's safe. That's the least I can do for her" he said and climbed a tree to rest. I looked at him, thinking he was acting weird but after a few minutes, went to sleep.