Glitch sighed as he shuffled through some paperwork. He had just sent several teams to the borders of Mazaila to search the smaller villages. Thanks to Technika’s help, they had a great way of communication so if they found anything, they could report to Glitch immediately.

Glitch looked out the window impatiently, feeling the same as usual. Depressed, impatient and hopeful. They just had to find Puzzle. They had to. He sighed, turning around and going back to his work.

~~~

Daniel wasn’t as stuck as he was before. He had found a way to contact the authorities but the problem was how he’d do it without being caught by Eldwyn. For some reason, the man had always kept a close on him. Daniel never knew why, but he did. It made him nervous for some reason. Daniel had never done anything special to have Eldwyn keep a close eye on him like this until recently, but it still freaked him out. He sighed. Whenever he was under Eldwyn’s radar due to the old man being too busy, Daniel went of to visit Puzzle. It was the only time he could, really.

Daniel got up from his bed, intent on taking a walk. He needed to clear his head and think about how he was going to do this. He headed into the forest, not really minding where he went. As long as he didn’t get lost, he’d be fine. The possibility of that happening was small though since Daniel practically knew these woods like the back of his hand.

After about 20 minutes of walking, Daniel froze when he heard voices. He narrowed his eyes, suspicious. He quickly ducked behind a tree, straining his ears to hear the conversation.

“...Village should be about 20 minutes away,” a voice spoke. Daniel peered behind the tree slightly to catch sight of who was talking. They didn’t sound familiar. He analysed the group carefully. There was five of them and it looked like they were… Venovians?

“Cool. Do you really think Puzzle could be here?” Another one of them asked. Three of them looked to be boys, while the other two were girls.

“I honestly don’t know, but I hope so. General Glitch is really depressed. So is Queen Pari too, I think. She doesn’t show it but it’s clear she’s worried about Puzzle too. Though is has been a long time since he was kidnapped,” The girl mumbled, looking downcast. Before Daniel even had time to think about what he was doing, he stepped from behind the tree, startling the group with his sudden appearance. They all reached for their weapons, ready to defend themselves. Daniel threw his arms up in surrender as his brain finally began to register what he was doing. Throwing away caution, he spoke up.

“I’m sorry, but did you say Puzzle?” Daniel asked carefully, eyeing them. Worst come to shove, he could use his Trait. One of them stepped up, eyes carefully guarded and his hand hovering over his weapon.

"Do you know anything about anyone named Puzzle?" He asked, watching Daniel carefully.

"That depends..." Daniel muttered. At this point, he decided to throw away everything and risk it. If this was the chance that Daniel needed to save Puzzle, then he'd damn well take it. "Are you here to rescue him?"

Daniel noticed how they all tensed up, alerted by his words.

"Rescue? Does that mean you know where he is?" The man narrowed his eyes at him. Daniel watched them.

"If it's the right Puzzle, then I do. How about we properly talk about this?" Daniel offered, beginning to lower his arms slightly. The man turned to his team, seemingly having a silent conversation with them.

"We can't risk it," one of the girls whispered. "If he knows where Puzzle is, then we can't afford to ignore that," She continued. The others nodded in agreement, before turning back to face Daniel.

"Alright," the first one nodded. "Tell us what you know."

"How about some introductions first?" Daniel asked instead, still wary.

~~~

The man who had speaking the most had been the first to introduce himself, introducing himself as Lucas and just as Daniel expected, Lucas was the current leader of this squad. Next was the girl who Daniel had heard whispering. Her name was Lana. The remaining girl was called Lune.

The tallest one was named Lawzus and the one who looked to be youngest was named Mason. (Ruined the all L-name squad.) Daniel nodded to them all and introduced himself.

After that, the group begun to talk about who they were and who they were looking for. It hadn't taken long for Daniel to confirm that they were looking for the same Puzzle Daniel was trying to help.

Daniel sighed out of relief, leaning back against a tree.

"Well, I can tell you that's definitely the Puzzle that I know. The only difference is that his Trait is broken. Not entirely, but still broken anyways," Daniel confirmed. Lucas sighed.

"I guess we should have seen that coming..." he mumbled. Regaining himself, he looked up at Daniel again. "How long has he been here for?" He asked.

Daniel thought about it for a minute. "About a year or so. He came wondering into the village one day, really beat up. At first, we took him in, but then Eldwyn, the leader of our village, found out about his Trait and pretty much enslaved him. From what I understand, Puzzle escaped his other captors and our village was the first he stumbled upon," Daniel explained. "He's got some serious bad luck, I'll tell you that much." Lucas nodded in agreement.

"Definitely. Alright, Lana, get in contact with Glitch," Lucas ordered. Lana nodded, pulling something from her pocket. Daniel ignored her, deciding to turn back to Lucas instead, confused.

"I thought Glitch was Puzzle's best friend?" He asked. From what Puzzle had told him, that was the case. Shouldn't they contact someone else? Lucas smiled.

"He is," he replied.

"Considering you know that, I'm even more convinced that we've found the right Puzzle," Mason spoke, grinning.

"But if Glitch is just Puzzle's best friend, then why are you contacting him?" Wasn't Glitch around the same age as Puzzle? What would he be able to do?

"Glitch became the general of the Venova army," Lucas explained and Daniel's eyes widened in disbelief, his jaw falling opening slightly. Jesus. That was unexpected. A few of them laughed at his reaction and Daniel just sighed.

"Well, whatever. Anyways, moving on, there is still more I have to tell you," Daniel started, turning serious. Lucas frowned.

"There's more?" He asked.

"If there wasn't, you really that Puzzle wouldn't have been reported to the authorities by now? From what I'm aware, I'm the only one actually trying to help Puzzle and if Eldwyn was to find out... Well, who even knows what he'd do at this point," Daniel sighed.

"How dangerous is he?"

"Unfortunately, very. He's... Been using Puzzle as a way to secure his power," Daniel bit his lip, feeling sick. Frowns were turned to him.

"Can you explain that some more?" Lana asked, looking up from her phone.

"Before I explain anything else, I need you to make sure this is kept quiet. If Eldwyn catches word of what I'm doing here, there's no doubt he'll move Puzzle. If he does, I won't be able to help you," Daniel continued. As much as he hated to be helpless, it was true. If Eldwyn decided to move Puzzle, Daniel honestly wouldn’t have a clue as to where he was. Lucas nodded slowly.

“Understandable. The last thing we need is for him to be moved after we finally found him. Of course, we’ll let General Glitch know and he’ll decide how we proceed. But Lana, you need to make sure you tell him everything of what we’ve learnt. If we miss even the slightest detail, the consequences could be severe,” Lucas instructed. Lana nodded.

“What else is there? You said that this ‘Eldwyn’ has been using Puzzle as a way to secure his power?” Lawrus asked. Daniel nodded.

“I’ll start from the beginning. Eldwyn has always been power-hungry. Why, I don’t know. Personally, I think it’s because of his Trait. Because of how power driven he is, he doesn’t care what he has to do to secure his power and gain more. He’s not exactly a stranger to torturing Puzzle for his Trait. Or anyone else, for that matter,” Daniel started. The small squad before him tensed up but judging from the look in their eyes, they had already expected as much. “Eldwyn uses Puzzle’s Trait in order to secure his power. He uses the information he gets from Puzzle to manipulate people. Almost everyone in the village is now blinded by what he does. He’s brainwashed everyone, including a lot of the nearby villages. Puzzle’s Trait has given him enough information for him to blackmail some people into obeying him,” Daniel sighed, rubbing his eyes. He felt tired. “Honestly, he’s just a manipulative bastard overall.”

“Then why aren’t you blind to it?” Mason asked, frowning deeply.

“The way I grew up, I suppose. I know what’s right enough to know that what he’s doing is wrong. A lot of the villagers don’t know what he does, but a lot of the squad members do. It’s when they’re in training that Eldwyn starts to manipulate them. He doesn’t bother with the normal villagers though.”

The group lapsed into silence for a few minutes, taking in the information and Daniel allowed them. His eyes widened and he quickly stood up, startling the group.

“Crap!” He yelled.

“wHAT?! What is it?!” Lucas yelled back, also standing up, his team following suit.

“I’ve been here for too long. If Eldwyn realises I’m gone, then there’ll be trouble.” The group nodded in return, understanding.  “However... “ Daniel thought quickly, nulling over his choices and the risks. The group stared at him, patiently waiting. “I might be able to take you to see Puzzle…” He mumbled.

“Really? You can?!” Lune burst, bouncing slightly, overjoyed.

“Not right now though, it’ll be way too dangerous. I won’t be able to sneak any of you in. However, around 12am tonight, I should be able to sneak at least one of you in. I’m not sure I’ll be able to take you all,” Daniel offered.

“That’s more than enough!” Lucas blurted. “If you can even take one of us in to see him, then that’ll be enough.” Daniel nodded.

“Alright. Keep hidden until then. I would suggest whoever is the most stealthy. I’ll meet you around here at 12am?” Daniel asked. Lucas nodded.

“Alright. We’ll be ready.” Daniel nodded back and turned around, heading back to the village. He didn’t realise how relieved he felt until he reached his house.

~~~

Glitch blinked when his phone let off a small beep. Tiredly, he stood up and walked towards the desk where he had left his phone. He unlocked it and read the message before him.

The first thing he did was let out a yell as a bundle of emotions hit him. Words couldn’t possibly describe what he was feeling in that moment. It only took about 30 seconds before Vex burst through the door, sword at the ready.

“What is it?! Who is it?! I’ll kill them!” He yelled, scanning the room for potential enemies. Instead, he was met with the sight of Glitch just yelling.

“Ahhhhhhh-!”

“Glitch?” Vex asked, confused, lowering his sword.

“AAAHHHHHHHHH-!” He continued.

“What’s wrong?” Vex questioned, both bewildered and confused. Glitch turned to face him, but continued to yell.

“AAAAAHHHHHHHHH!-”

“Okay, what the fuck are you doing?” Vex deadpanned, losing patience.

“AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!”

“WOULD YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP AND TELL ME WHAT’S WRONG?!” Vex demanded, glaring at him. Glitch stopped his yelling and took a deep breath. As he opened his mouth, Vex expected him to start explaining, but instead he just started yelling again.

“AAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

“WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?” Vex screeched but Glitch’s continued yell was his only goddamn response. “For fucksake…” Vex mumbled, stomping towards him.

“AaAaAaAaAaahhHhHhHhHhHhHhHhHhHhHHhh!” Glitch screeched, voice beginning to crack. Vex attempted to snatch the phone away from him, but he didn’t expect Glitch to have an iron grip on the phone. So instead of successfully taking the phone away from him, Glitch clung to the item and Vex ended up twisting Glitch’s arms to the point where the boy allowed himself to fall over, the only thing stopping him from hitting the ground entirely being his iron grip on the phone.

“What the fuck,” Vex deadpanned, staring at him in annoyance as he hung off his grip on the phone, as if scared that if he let go of it, the news would suddenly vanish. Glitch continued yelling. Vex sighed and just began to read the message, ignoring him. Once he finished reading the message, he began to start yelling himself.

“AaaAAaAaaAAaaAAaAaAaaAaAaaAahHhHHhHHhhHhHHhHhHHHhHhh!”

~~~~

Just as Daniel said he would, he returned to the same spot where he met the Venovians. He looked around, not sensing anyone. He frowned, guard going up. After a few more seconds, he heard a whisper.

“Daniel?” A female voice whispered and the mentioned person almost jumped out of his skin. At least they knew how to be discreet and hide. Daniel took a deep breath, calming his frantic heart.

“Yeah, it’s me,” he replied, keeping his voice low, just in case. Lune appeared from a bush, followed by Lawzus and Lucas. He breathed a sigh of relief.

“Lawzus will be going,” Lucas informed, nodding to the tall boy next to him.

“Alright. We better go now before we run out of time,” Daniel stated, turning around to face the village again. Lawzus nodded and began to follow him. No one attempted to start a conversation. It would be a waste of their valuable time.

~~~~~~

The two quietly snuck through the village, careful of anyone who could potentially still be up or patrolling the area.

Daniel gestured Lawzus to be extra careful and quiet as they approached the cell where Puzzle was being held captive - under Eldwyn’s building.

The two snuck down the stairs, careful not to make a single noise. Lawzus was tempted to ask the man why he had brought food and water but he had managed to put two and two together after a few minutes. It was likely for Puzzle, now that he thought about it.

Daniel took a deep breath, closing his eyes. He released it, eyes opening, determination glinting in his brightly glowing eyes. Lawzus tilted his head. Was that his Trait?

“He’s in here. But be warned, he’s probably in bad condition,” Daniel warned him quietly. Lawzus nodded. Luckily, he wasn’t very squeamish but he doubted that would prepare him for everything. Lawzus took his own deep breath, steeling himself. He nodded to Daniel.

“I’m ready.” Daniel nodded back and slowly opened the door, creeping inside. Lawzus followed suit, freezing immediately. Daniel sighed, expecting as much. He lightly pulled Lawzus into the room some more so he could shut the door behind him. Giving him some time to process the sight before him, Daniel instead walked towards Puzzle, shaking him softly to wake him up.

Puzzle had been tortured a few hours ago, Daniel concluded. He was drenched in his blood, heavy gashes across his body, one of his legs twisted at an incredibly weird angle. It didn’t help Lawzus that Puzzle was shirtless, revealing the extent to his injuries. There was a pool of blood underneath him, dyeing his legs red. Bruises littered his leg and Lawzus cringed when he also noticed that the leg that wasn’t twisted at a weird angle, had the bone sticking out. He had a black eye, several small but deep gashes across his cheeks.

“Puzzle. Puzzle,” Daniel muttered desperately, clearly concerned, shaking him awake. The boy groaned, eyes flickering open. His head flopped onto his chest and Daniel allowed himself to wince.

“I don’ know…” He mumbled tiredly, his words slurring.

“Puzzle, I need you to wake up, please. It’s Daniel,” Daniel shook him some more, trying desperately to wake the boy up. Puzzle let out another groan and attempted to lift his head up, staring tiredly at Daniel. Lawzus forced himself out of shocked state, taking a few steps forward. Right now, he had to push aside any feelings he had and make sure this went okay. He could already tell, despite how mashed up Puzzle’s appearance was, that this was indeed the person they had been looking for for so long. There was no doubt about it.

“Dani?” Puzzle asked, staring at the man before him, as if not quite believing the man was there.

“Yeah, it’s me. C’mon, I have a drink for you,” Daniel started, pulling the water bottle from his pocket. He unscrewed the lid and held the bottle to Puzzle’s lips, waiting for the boy to start drinking. It took Puzzle a few seconds for him to realise what was happening and he eventually began to gulp down the water slowly. Daniel made sure to be careful, not wanting to accidentally drown him or spill the water everywhere.

Puzzle seemed to wake up some more after he had drank half of the bottle and he moved his head away, signalling he had enough.

“Thanks,” he mumbled, giving a grateful look to Daniel who nodded back at him.

“I have someone here to talk to you,” Daniel stated. Puzzle blinked in surprise, straightening up slightly. Daniel noticed the pain in his eyes but decided it was probably best if he didn’t mention it.

“Who?” Puzzle asked and Daniel could see the fear and hope he had. Daniel smiled.

“Someone who should be able to help you.” Daniel looked towards Lawrus, gesturing him to come forward. Lawrus did so, walking towards them and crouching down so he was eye level with Puzzle. He forced a smile onto his face, though it was strained. The sight before him was just too much. To think that he had been going through horrors like this for seven years straight.

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Puzzle,” Lawzus started. Puzzle looked wary, taking a glance towards Daniel nervously, as if making sure the man was still there in case something wrong. Lawzus didn’t blame him. “My name is Lawzus. I work for General Glitch, or as you would know him, just Glitch,” Lawzus explained and Puzzle’s dull grey eyes lit up with hope, turning to a brilliant colour of green, completely surprising Lawzus. He looked exactly like how he was described to be. But Lawzus was sure that broken Traits were different. He mentally shrugged. He had never understood broken Traits anyways.

“Glitch?” Puzzle asked, leaning forward. He didn’t seem to care about the pain he was feeling from the simple action as he fully snapped awake, a feeling of desperation and hope sinking in. Lawzus nodded, his smile becoming genuine.

“You remember him?” Lawzus asked.

“Of course I do! How could I ever forget?” Puzzle asked, tears beginning to brim in his eyes.

“I’m glad,” Lawzus replied. Daniel watched the scene with a smile. “A lot of people have been looking for you for a very long time, Puzzle. Just wait a little longer, please, and we’ll get you out of here. Your parents have been waiting too.”

Puzzle isn’t sure of the last time he had ever been so happy before. For some reason, he even felt mended. He had waited this long, he could wait a little longer., if that’s what it took to finally see Glitch and his parents again. If that’s what it took to finally go home.