The Journeymen

Rangers Lead the Way

An overly tight t-shirt, slightly damp combat pants, flip flops, and a holstered pistol. These items made up Jack's uniform for his middle-of-the-night investigation. Perhaps it was late enough that the night could now be described as the early morning. Whatever the time, whatever the attire, the lawman was on the hunt.

Jack had joined Evan, refusing to leave Liza's residence in anything other than long pants, even if that meant they were still damp from the thorough washing done by Martin the butler. The two men had walked through the dimly lit streets, candles atop light posts providing only a flickering incomplete picture of the night.

The two men had walked in silence almost the entire way, both knowing that the only way justice for their fallen brethren would be carried out is through their discovery of the culprit or culprits. Determined, the experienced investigators headed to the only place where a lead might be found; the burned out ruins of the Meeting House.

With fire being a major danger for any city, Dumas had a well organized response, especially considering their lack of resources. The city guard had responded quickly and had prevented not only the fire from spreading to any of the surrounding buildings, but also from burning the entire meeting house down. The wing which held the Sunday school classrooms-turned-residences had come out of the fire mostly unscathed, aside from the immense amount of smoke damage and multiple shattered windows from the blast. The main hall, which had been the center of the explosion and subsequent fire, though had been burned nearly to the ground.

The only two surviving and uninjured master Journeymen in the city stood alongside the leader of the city guard, someone who everybody referred to as Colonel Villa. The man had actually been a colonel in the pre-Separation military before retiring to the town he had been born in. He had experience commanding troops in combat during the United States' conflict in Afghanistan and had been the obvious choice to lead what was likely the largest standing army in North America, the Dumas Guard.

"I'm sorry about what happened here. I won't try to say anything other than that. My men are here to support you however we can. Once we get Captain Turner here, I'll make sure he and his men help with your investigation. Then my assault troops are at your disposal to take out these cowards," the short, gray haired combat leader said respectfully.

Colonel Villa was not too differently dressed than Jack, except all of his clothes fit and they didn't appear to be soggy. He wore a white t-shirt, blue jeans, and to match the younger master Journeyman, he also wore a pair of sandals and a holstered pistol on his hip. His hair was worn short in a military style cut but he had allowed a short but thick beard to grow on his face. He was relaxed and appeared unimpressed, naturally slipping into the parade rest position, around the elite Journeymen. It was as if he had spent a significant portion of his professional life around deadly, elite warriors and these two men were no different in his eyes.

Jack stared into the smoldering remains of the place he had nearly died, not answering. He pondered how he could have been taken so off guard, so unaware. There was a small chance that the explosion was caused by a bomb of some kind but his theory, which he had not yet shared with Evan, was that the explosion was magical in nature.

"Thanks Colonel," Evan said politely, taking note of his younger colleague's silence. He continued, "Jack and I will be checking the area for signs of what caused the explosion. Maybe your men could help locate bodies and take care of them. We have a good idea of who was in there but we'd like to get a count and make sure they are all accounted for."

Colonel Villa nodded and turned to find Captain Turner, the former head of the Texas Department of Public Safety office in Dumas. The captain led the law enforcement side of the city guard and had several former detectives under his command who would be vital in the coming investigation.

"Where are you right now Jack?" Evan asked, stepping into his companion's line of sight.

The scruffy-faced man shook his head as if to clear away a fog before responding. "I don't know. I'm just trying to get a handle on things," he said hesitantly.

Evan nodded, patting his fellow master on the shoulder, "I know, buddy. I can promise you that I've been there. The best we can do right now is make sure that we catch these animals."

Jack's eyes met the eyes of the founding Journeyman with refocused clarity. They were the same hard eyes that had met his apprentice's earlier in the night.

"And we will catch them."

With another pat on Jack's shoulder, Evan turned to face the burned shell of a building. The roof had been burned away entirely over the main hall and the office where Jack and Anya had survived the blast was burned out completely as well.

"So the explosion sucked in before it blew outward and knocked you and Anya out?" Evan asked thoughtfully.

"Yep. I saw her hair whip back a half second before she got thrown on top of me," Jack replied, arms crossed, brow furrowed.

"So it's likely that all of the oxygen in the room was burned up as a fuel source. I know of a few bombs that would do that but I can't imagine one of those would have slipped through all of the bomb dogs here," Evan looked away from the building and back at Jack.

"That's what I was thinking. With everything strange that has been going on, I can't help but think this was magic. I'm almost sure that it was." Jack's eyes scanned the outside of the barely standing exterior brick wall.

"It would have to be some powerful fire magic. Didn't you say that wizard friend of yours was really good at fire magic?" Evan asked, tilting his head slightly to the side.

"Gabe? Sure, he's probably the most powerful wizard I've ever seen," Jack stated, his eyes moving to Evan inquisitively.

"Isn't that a little-" Evan began to ask but was interrupted by the arrival of Captain Turner whose ash-covered hands seemed to hold a few small items.

"Excuse me gentlemen, I think one of my officers found something you two might want. Did you know Charles R. Johnson?" the bulky, gray mustachioed lawman asked.

Jack sighed and blinked a long, slow blink before responding. "He was my partner," he replied, downtrodden.

"I'm sorry to hear that son. These were found on a body in the main hall. He was a Ranger, wasn't he?" Captain Turner, experienced in delivering difficult news, responded. He held out his open hand which held two small black stained metal pieces and one larger stained piece which looked to be the size of a large coin.

Jack took the items and examined them. The two stained metal pieces were identical, stamped sheet metal. The read simply JOHNSON, CHARLES R. 7274882289 B NEG PROTESTANT. Jack recognized these as Chuck's dog tags from his time in the army. The other item was a challenge coin from the 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. Jack thumbed one side which was marked with a shield and the inscription 75TH RANGER REGIMENT along the top edge and the Army Ranger motto RANGERS LEAD THE WAY inscribed along the bottom.

Closing the small pieces of scorched metal in his fist, the grieving man shut his eyes tightly, jaw clinched. A single tear dropped from his right eye before he opened them again. "These were Chuck's. He always had these on him. No matter what. You found these on his body?"

Turner nodded, "I'm sorry to say it but yes. There were also all of the metal pieces of a Glock pistol beside him. The polymer parts must have melted in the fire."

Jack nodded solemnly. He had known it all along but the guard investigator's discovery of some of Chuck's most prized possessions proved that his best friend and mentor was truly gone. He squeezed the coin and dog tags in his hand until his knuckles turned white.

"What were you saying about the wizard?" Jack asked quietly through clenched teeth, ferocity gleaming in his eyes.