ShadowBound: The Need For Power

Serah made her way back to the hideout she shared with her team, her boots striking a steady rhythm against the cobblestone streets. From the moment she left the restaurant until the very step that brought her here, her mind had been turning over Marcus's words, searching for the perfect way to present them without drawing the slightest suspicion. If her team sensed that the idea had come from someone outside their circle—especially from Marcus—it could place his identity in a dangerous position.

By the time she reached the hideout's door, she had the answer. The key was to make it all sound like her own thoughts. If she could rephrase every piece of his advice into her own cadence, her own reasoning, then no one would suspect a thing. The truth would be masked, and the team would never know Marcus's involvement.

She pushed open the door to the main hall, stepping inside to find Kael lounging on the couch, twirling a knife lazily in his fingers as though the blade itself were part of his hand.

Across from him, Jorin lay sprawled along another couch, one arm draped across his face, the other hanging limply toward the wooden floor, fingertips brushing it with idle weight.

Near the circular war table, Elira sat with a journal open in her lap, pen scratching across the page with meticulous focus. A short distance from her, Mira stood bent over the table's spread of papers, her eyes locked on the sketched layout of the warehouse they had searched the night before.

The moment Serah entered, Kael's gaze found hers. "Well, you're late again," he remarked, his tone as flat as the blade he was spinning.

"Yeah, I know. Had some thinking to do," Serah replied, matching his tone with ease as she crossed to where Myla sat and placed a small parcel of food beside her.

"Thank you, princess," Myla said softly, giving Serah a warm smile before returning her attention to her work.

"Don't mention it." Serah shrugged off her coat, draping it neatly over the back of a nearby chair. She rolled up the sleeves of her shirt, unfastened the top button, and moved toward the center of the room—toward the seat that marked her as the leader.

Kael's eyes narrowed at the sight. He knew she only sat there when something needed to be addressed. Myla and Elira seemed to recognize it too; they both set aside what they were doing and began making their way toward the center to take seats of their own.

As Myla passed Jorin, she gave his feet a firm smack. "Up."

It took him a moment, a groggy groan escaping before he lowered his arm. When his eyes landed on Serah in that seat, his posture shifted. With a quiet grumble, he pushed himself upright, making room for Myla to settle beside him.

Once everyone was in place, Kael leaned forward slightly. "Seems like you've got something to say."

Serah didn't answer right away. She let her gaze travel slowly from one teammate to the next, measuring their attention. Only when she was certain she had it did she speak.

"Since yesterday," she began, her voice calm and deliberate, "and again today, I've been thinking about this whole operation."

"These past six weeks, we've been circling the same places—his manor, his warehouses, his public businesses. We've searched them top to bottom and come up with nothing but dust and locked doors. That tells me one thing—if Drosmir is hiding something, it's not where we've been looking."

Jorin rubbed his face. "So you're saying we've been wasting our time?"

"Not wasting," Serah corrected, leaning forward, her elbows resting on the table. "We've been eliminating the obvious. That's still progress. But think about it—if you had something that could ruin you, would you keep it in plain sight? Even hidden in your own territory?"

Kael shook his head. "No. Too risky."

"Exactly." Serah nodded. "He wouldn't store anything incriminating in the city at all. Not in his manor, not in his public warehouses. He's too smart for that. Which means… he's got somewhere else. A place only his most trusted know about. Maybe miles from here."

Mira crossed her arms. "Then where do we even start looking? It's not like he's going to hand us a map."

Serah allowed a faint smirk. "We don't need him to. We just need someone lower on the chain—someone sloppy enough to make a mistake. Dock workers, guards, servants… the kind of people no one notices. If we stop acting like wolves chasing him directly, and start setting traps like spiders, the little fish will swim to us."

Kael tilted his head. "Bait."

"Bait," Serah confirmed. "We stir things up in the right places, at the right times. Let rumors slip into the wrong ears. If Drosmir's people think someone's sniffing too close, they'll panic. They'll move whatever they're hiding. And when they move it… we follow."

Elira's brow furrowed, but there was a spark of interest in her eyes. "You're talking about forcing their hand."

"Yes," Serah said simply. "We've been playing their game, following their rules. Now we make them play ours."

Jorin chuckled under his breath. "And here I thought you'd finally given up."

"Not even close." Serah leaned back in the chair, her voice steady. "But from this point on, we stop wasting nights searching empty buildings. We go for the cracks in his walls. And the first place we check…" She paused, scanning the room. "…is the docks."

Mira's eyes narrowed slightly. "The docks?"

"Think about it," Serah continued. "If he's moving people or contraband, that's where it'll pass. Quiet shipments at strange hours, paperwork nobody double-checks. It's the perfect place to hide something in plain sight."

Kael smirked faintly. "You're starting to sound like you've done this before."

Serah just gave a half-smile. "Let's just say… I've been thinking differently lately."

"Well, let's hope this new way of thinking actually gets us somewhere, because honestly, this whole operation is starting to bore me," Myla said, stretching her arms over her head.

"I get your frustration, Myla," Serah replied evenly. "And I hope just as much as you that this leads us closer to catching that sick nobleman."

"So," Jorin cut in, "when are we hitting the docks?"

"Tonight," Serah answered without hesitation. "I know we just spent the whole night tearing apart that warehouse, but with the little time we have left, we can't waste a single second." She rose from her seat, her gaze steady on each of them. "I understand you're tired—I'm just as worn out as you. And believe me, I want this operation done as badly as you do. But right now, rest isn't a luxury we can afford."

The room fell quiet for a moment, until Kael's low chuckle broke the silence. "Tonight sounds fine to me. The faster we set this bait and catch a lead, the faster we get our hands on Drosmir."

"I'm in," Jorin said, leaning forward.

"Same here," Myla added with a small shrug.

"Well, if we're doing this tonight," Elira said, closing her journal, "then I'm getting some beauty sleep first."

"Yeah," Serah said with a faint smile. "You all should get at least a little rest. I can't have you dozing off in the middle of an operation."

With that, Serah had delivered Marcus's insights to her team without a hitch. In truth, she'd used almost the same phrasing he had, and it made little difference—perhaps because her team already knew her as someone who thought several steps ahead, someone who could weave strategy as naturally as breathing. She was Serah Magna, after all.

And yet, she'd kept one detail to herself—the possibility that the Drosmir they'd been tailing for six weeks might be a double. Laying that out without proof would feel… off. Maybe it wouldn't have raised suspicion, but Serah wasn't ready to put that card on the table. Not until she had studied Drosmir closely enough to know for certain.