A Story of Evil

After Sol mentioned his intent, it was as if time stood still. Nobody talked for a whole minute. Primarily because they found it difficult to process what he just said. All because there was a kind of inconceivability to it.

But this same stillness didn't last forever. And just like always, it was Hendrickson to break this. Arriving at his own conclusion as he shouted:

"FINALLY! MY KING HAS MADE HIS DECISION!"

"What are you talking about Rick?" Sol said in reply.

"Wait...you're not planning on starting a revolt against the current governing body?"

"Of course I won't. What would even lead you to that conclusion?"

"But why else would you want to have us all on the same Domain?" Hendrickson finally asked what was sensible. The same question in the minds of all those present.

It wasn't like they disliked Sol. In fact, if they were to choose a master, then all of them would undoubtedly pick Sol over anybody else. But that was not the point. The point was that, they could think of no reason for the boy to make such a request from them.

That's why Sol needed to provide an explanation first. Something that would make sense to everything.

"The thing is, there would always be missions where me and Alice would get dispatched in. I don't know what these would be but, I do know that the difficulty won't always stay the same. That's why I need people by my side. Those I can trust and those who are capable of fighting by my side."

This was the thing which Sol figured out during his solo training, He needed people. But not just any people. He needed those whose skills would be useful for the whole team. Those with skills that would complement the lineup he had in mind.

As usual, Jade was skeptical about this. All of them transferring to the same domain isn't necessarily a walk in the park. There were specific actions needed to be taken and, he started off by asking about the vary basic among these.

"Does your king even know of this plan yet?"

"No. But I'm planning to tell him tomorrow." Sol said, still facing everyone. His resolve not waning and, in fact, is only growing stronger.

"I want to have someone from every domain to be on this squad. It won't just be us. I want representatives from every domain. This is solely for the sake of creating an elite unit. One which would only be deployed for the common interest of all the domains."

The things which Sol was saying began to make sense. However it was still too grandiose for their liking. A good idea but, nevertheless seeming like a pipe dream.

But nobody talked back yet because, Sol wasn't finished in his explanations. And because of this, they knew that the paladin had other perks added to the idea. That Sol could potentially convince them completely if it went on.

"Think about it. If we have the same people for every mission, won't that make the tasks more bearable? If we have representatives from every domain, we'd be filling up on a lot of areas we lacked during our previous expedition. Not to mention we'd also increase the trust between the domains, increasing the probability of people migrating out of their own homeland."

As Sol continued explaining, Nathan went next to Jade. Hitting the wielder of green flames with his elbow as he murmured.

"Hey Jade, he's uh...starting to sound very convincing."

"I know."

"Why don't you sound concerned?" Nathan asked, knowing full well that Jade knew what he meant. That King Nova would definitely be furious if Jade left the fire domain.

"Like you said, he's sounding very convincing. So why should we be concerned?"

"That doesn't even make any sense."

"It does Nathan. Let's just see how this goes. Plus..."

"Plus...what?"

"Plus I'll address all our concerns. It's not like I'm allowing him to do as he pleases Nathan." Jade said, raising his arm and doing just this. Continuing with his questions which Sol was more than willing to answer.

"You do realize that we are high profile people in our respective domains right? And that's not even to brag. I'm sure that even Hendrickson's King Sylas wouldn't let go of him that easily."

"That's why I'm going to ask it through King Jubilee. If he approves of this idea, then I don't think your rulers would have much of a say about it." Sol answered. An undeniable fact which Jade had to accept.

Even if the rulers could deny King Jubilee what he wanted, this needs to be through a unanimous decision. Although there are a lot of things which the other monarchs agree on, the fact cannot be denied that, there are also things which they hold in conflicting interests.

With Sol's rationale and explanation, Jade knew that it would be impossible for all the domains to go against the paladin's idea. Especially because the Void could offer something which would really turn the soldiers into elites. That is, Pandora's Box.

But Sol wasn't done with just that. He needed to completely convince Jade because, he was the only one that stood in the way of both Nathan and Cinder's agreement. That's why he finally revealed all his cards at that point.

"Five each." Sol said.

"Five each?" Nathan parroted. Not understanding what this meant.

"Yes. I'd only take five individuals from each domain. We will then form platoons based on the skill set owned by the person we added. It doesn't necessarily have to be a fighter. We also need scouts, vanguards, medics, and those capable of explosive damage."

Sol's ideal team is a flexible one. A team which he could utilize for almost any situation. One that could be molded based on their current needs. That's what Sol wanted. That's what Sol needed. Because he wasn't just making a team that could take out a monster twice as strong as Drazon. No. What he wanted to make was a team capable of taking out a dragon.

He wanted to conquer the whole of the chaos areas and wipe out all the threats. He wanted to make it inhabitable for humanity once again. But more than anything else, he wanted to be useful. He wanted to be a person which could be continually relied on.

"There's a wide array of roles for the job and so, even those who don't shine on fights could be better for the team. Plus, other than you guys, we'll be selecting recruits based on the list provided by every domain. So I don't think the monarchs would be so against the idea." Sol added, his voice full of conviction.

"This has been well planned through huh?"

"Oh but I'm not finished yet Jade." Sol said, reaching his final point.

"This elite unit of ours won't last forever. We'll only exist for maybe five years or lower. Within that time frame, all of us will exponentially develop. Meaning, as soon as you return to your respective domains, you would be larger assets because aside from your skills, the achievements stacked up will assure a better future for you."

Everything that Sol said was for their benefit. In fact, it was so favorable that there wasn't a single reason to refuse anymore. They were completely outdone by Sol. With all possible escape routes being secured. That's why the only thing that Jade was able to do was to chuckle and offer his hand to Sol.

"You better know what you're doing Sol." 

"Oh I do." Was the male paladin's short response. Gripping firmly onto Jade's hand as they shook. An act which surprised Nathan who needed to confirm things as he asked:

"So does that mean we'll agree with his plan Jade?"

"That's up to you. But as for me. I'd like to see how far this elite team can go. Plus, having a sweet life after enlistment doesn't sound like a bad deal doesn't it Nathan?"

"OKAAAY LET'S GO TEAM SOLOMON!" Hendrickson shouted again.

With this the group finally agreed to join together as brothers in arms. In fact the night didn't even end there because, they already decided on the rankings and roles among themselves.

Sol was obviously the leader of the group. As for the vice, Alice was fine with giving the role to Jade since she thought it didn't fit her anyway. Instead, she declared herself to be the personal aide of Sol who has the job of protecting him from dangers. Hendrickson liked the sound of this role but, because he knew he couldn't defeat Alice in actual combat, couldn't do anything about it.

Then there was Cain who was given the role of the head of the utility unit. There was nobody under him yet of course but, nobody could deny that he is perfect for this job. Then there was Hendrickson himself who, as expected, was placed as the head of the vanguards. And lastly, Cinder was placed along with the medics. The reason for which was not yet clear to her but, Sol simply said that she should trust him on this and, that he did.

Lastly, Nathan was placed as the temporary head of the assault division. He didn't take this negatively of course because, he was also aware of the limits of his skills.

Thus, the team was finally solidified. All that they needed was the approval of the council which, lay on the hands of King Jubilee.