He sighed inwardly and he ran an armored hand through his long spiky blonde hair. He was beginning to get impatient. The Basil soldiers were yet again, needing another break. This was the third time in the last six hours. Weren't soldiers supposed to be trained to endure this kind of thing? The King was far too kind for his own good. It's a good thing the King could defend his own country now, because these soldiers wouldn't stand a chance against an opposing threat. They were babied too much.

"Mr. Dart, the men are starting to doubt the mission…" Gale, the captain of the small band of soldiers had a look of uncertainty as well.

"I was called away from my home and from the most important person to me, because the King felt he needed this to be looked upon. Albert must feel something important about this, or he wouldn't have asked me to leave my sick loved one."Dart snapped. "Have faith in him. Now hurry up and get your rest, you have ten minutes."

He ignored the snide remark the captain made about him being a prick, and walked further ahead to scout the area.

This mission was becoming a pain. He didn't understand why Albert insisted that the band of soldiers went with him. He could have done this alone and much faster. He was the master of the Divine Dragoon Spirit after all. Now, instead of flying quickly to his destination, he had to walk with these pansies.

There had been talk for a long time about a growing group called the "Devil Takers." They opposed King Albert's ruling because he was too soft. He was not a solid leader. Though, up until a few weeks ago, that's all the group was. A rumor. They now have begun to take action. Rebelling against the country and Albert by defacing a shrine people had built specifically to honor their great and loving King. They left threats as well, claiming to start rioting in villages if the King did not step down.

This matter though is not why Dart was asked to go on this mission. It was because the group was supposed to be lead by a platinum haired man. This could be none other than a Wingly. These soldiers, even if trained to perfection like Lavitz, could not stand up to the might of a Wingly. Surely Albert should have known this. What is that man thinking? Maybe he wasn't thinking. After all, when Dart saw him, the man was practically pulling his hair out from the anticipation of his soon to be born child with now Queen Emille.

He knew he would be pulling out his own hair if this mission isn't done soon. They had been traveling for weeks. Which was a lot longer even when he had made the trip with Shana and Lavitz those few years ago. It had taken them four days tops to get to the Marshland Fort. He was really going to need to talk to Albert about his soldiers training regimen once they got this over with.

Shana.

It pained him to leave her. She was ill when he left. Plos, the mayor and Shana's adoptive father was taking care of her thankfully. He assured Dart that she would be fine and it nothing more than a stomach virus. Shana had even assured him she would be fine. He could still remember her face as he left through the door. Her brown hair plastered against her pale face in a cold sweat, her eyes were dull and tired, but her smile was a bright as ever. "I love you." She said to him. Then he left.

He had to get this mission done soon so he could go see her again, and make sure it was nothing more a stomach virus. Surely though, Plos would have sent a messenger if it were truly serious. Yeah, there's no way that Shana was in danger, otherwise he would have heard by now.

With a deep breath he pushed through the brush that had started growing since Nello discovered the mystery of growing green. The man and Albert had spread his cure everywhere. Even Seles had started to see the riches of greens and colors of flowers.

The mush under his feet hit a solid surface.

Stone.

He bent down and examined it, sure enough it was the broken path that led to the Marshland Fort. He opened his mouth to call for the Captain, but he quickly shut it. No, it would be quicker and easier for him to inspect the Fort himself. No worrying over the casualties the soldiers would give if they went.

He glanced over his shoulder to see the faint shadows of the soldiers huddled together in the darkened forest. One, two…four…six. They were all accounted for. Good.

Without another hesitation Dart headed further toward the Fort. Another ten minute walk and he would be there. Running, he would make it in five. He recognized the ruined walls and knew the Fort was right around the corner.

He slowed his pace though. He heard voices.

"…Is it safe though? He's a magic user…A Wingly!" The first voice said. The person sounded young, no older than twenty.

'Wingly!' Dart gritted his teeth. Guess the King was right after all.

"I'm not questioning him!" The second, older and rougher voice said. "That bastard killed three men opposing him!"

"What? How do you know this?" The younger man asked.

"My friend back in Denigrad saw it himself!"

There was silence for a moment. Dart almost thought they had left until he heard a scowl.

"You see! That's why we should get out of here while we can!" The young one hissed.

"And what of the rebellion, eh? You gunna give up on it? Hmph, youngsters these days have no back bone!" The older man growled.

"Albert isn't a bad leader Uncle Bowen…." The young man started.

"THE KING IS A PANSEY! A GUPPY! A SISSY! WE NEED A NEW, BETTER AND STRONGER LEADER!" The older man exploded.

"And who is going to take over? The Wingly?" The younger man snapped.

There was a noise that sounded like the start of an argument from the older man who didn't have anything to say.

"I'm out of here Uncle…If you're smart…You will be right behind me."

There was rustling in the brush and Dart quickly dashed behind a tree. The younger man was shorter than him. His hair was short and unkempt, and from his attire you could not tell he was a soldier other than the small dagger at his waist.

"Go on then! You PUSSY!" The older man shouted.

The younger man ignored his uncle's taunts and only when Dart could no longer hear the rustling of the younger man did he come out from his hiding place. He needed to know where the Wingly was. Without bothering to be discrete, Dart came out of the shadows and thrust his sword up to the man's neck.

The man was indeed older. He looked older than Haschel, but that didn't mean much considering Haschel was close to his mid sixties and looked younger than most forty year olds. The man's hair line had receded to the middle of his head and his face was sagged and tired from long laboring days of work. What he had left of hair was a peppered color and his mustache was comparable to Haschel's in length. Though, Dart almost felt guilty to comparing this low man to Haschel.

"Where is he?" Dart demanded.

"Wha-what? Wh-where's who?" The man stuttered from fear. His deep grey eyes were opened wide and Dart could already make out his forehead wetting from perspiration.

"The Wingly you spoke of. What is his name and where is he?" Dart demanded.

The man was getting twitchy now. He was scared out of his mind, which assured Dart that this man was nothing but hot air. He was not for battles.

"I-I-I don't know where he is! I've never seen him!" He insisted.

"A name. Give me a name!" Dart growled.

"I don't know! I-uh-…think it's something along the lines of Lloyd."

Dart froze. Lloyd? Surely not the same Lloyd…he died!

"Think harder! What's his name?" Dart shouted.

"I swear! That's all I know! Please don't kill me!" The man now was cowering in the muck, his hands covering his head.

Dart took a deep breath and nodded. "Follow your nephew old man. If you stay here, you will die. Basil Soldiers won't ask questions like I do."

The man was now crying. He nodded and bowed several times awkwardly before scrambling in the muck toward where his nephew ran off to.

Dart bit lips lip as he looked at the crumbling Fort. He could make out lights from inside.

"Well," He said to himself as he swung his sword onto his armored shoulder, "Time to go do more digging before they figure out I'm missing."

Shana wiped her mouth with quivering hands from the bile that had again come up. This was the third time she had vomited in the last six hours. Her body was exhausted to the point she could barely crawl back to her bed. And every move she made screamed pain. Even the little hairs on her arms screamed if breathed on.

Plos had sent a letter to a doctor in Basil a week ago requesting help. Even with the fear of the Rebellion group Devil Takers, the doctor agreed to come out and inspect her. Especially for the price he was being paid. Her father figure was now venturing to the woods to greet the doctor personally and guide him to the village.

She desperately hoped Plos would remember to bring the crackers. They were the only thing that would seem to calm her stomach.

Three weeks she had been in this condition. Three weeks she has had to suffer through it without Dart there to hold her hand or hum his lullaby to her. She missed him terribly. She cried herself to sleep every night, tired of having to suffer in this agonizing pain without the love of her life there beside her. She could feel the tears that very moment.

'Dart…where are you?' She thought.

The door opened and Plos came in bearing a big smile. "She's right over here. But do give her a moment. She's been so ill, I've had to carry her to the washroom, feed her…the strange thing is though, the fever vanished quite some time ago!"

A tall man well into his fifties walked into the little house and set his brief case down. He pushed his glasses high up onto the bridge of his nose and nodded. "Hmmm."

He was looking straight at Shana, almost completely ignoring Plos as he babbled about needing a moment to fix her something to eat, and vanished into the kitchen.

The doctor wore dull blue robes and grey pants. His shoes were remarkably shiny considering the journey he had to make here. His aging face was mostly hidden by facial hair and thick glasses that magnified his dark brown eyes.

Without waiting for Plos to come out of the kitchen, the doctor brought his suitcase over to Shana's bed and pulled a short stool over to sit on. Then after placing the suit case on his lap, he clicked it open and began rummaging through it.

Shana couldn't make out what he was looking for because the top of the case was in her way.

Plos finally came out and didn't say anything to the doctor as he handed Shana a small plate of crackers and fruits. The fruits were for if the crackers didn't settle her stomach, the taste of the vomit wouldn't be near as awful.

Shana didn't think she would ever eat another fruit again.

Before she could get the first cracker in her mouth the doctor shut his case and held a clear potion bottle out to her. The contents were that of a pale purple transparent liquid. "Drink this after you are finished eating my dear. This will stop any nausea you have guarantee. I will show your father how to make these potions for you."

He let Plos take the bottle and again opened his brief case. He pulled out two instruments. One was the gadget all doctors wore around their necks, but was used to listen to the heart. The other was a different device she had never seen before, but she didn't like it. It had a long thin silver tip, and a clear tubing.

"Now, I am going to listen to your belly and your heart. Refrain from eating until I get done listening to your heart please." The doctor pulled the first instrument up to his ears and put them in place. Shana awkwardly let the older man press the cold circular end onto her breast.

"Take deep breaths." She did.

"Gooood. Now slower.." She did.

The doctor hesitated and made a frown. "One more time for me, my dear." She did as told. This time the doctor smiled.

"Ok, eat away dear."

Shana immediately grabbed a handful of crackers and began eating them. She was almost completely unaware of the doctor, but the cold circular end would remind her. As she ate the doctor listened carefully to her stomach. As he did, Plos nearly chewed his fingers off every time the doctor muttered a simple, "Hmm…" or "Interesting."

The doctor took a deep breath and pulled the device out from his ears. "This part you won't like. This is a new technology I discovered myself and had been proven to be very effective. It should only hurt for a moment."

Shana was too tired to tense up, but she knew he was referring to the new device.

"Now, this is a needle. I'm going to poke it inside your arm to get a small sample of your blood for a test." The doctor assured.

He pulled out a cleansing wipe from his case and wiped the needle for good measurement and took Shana's arm. "Make a fist for me…okay good." He poked the vein in the crease of her arm. "One, two, and three!"

He shoved the needle into her arm at the count of three, not surprised by her cry of pain. As quickly as he could he pulled the little lever on the back of the clear tube. Shana could see her own red blood pour into it. Then quickly the doctor pulled the needle out.

"That's it." He stood up. "May I use your kitchen table to set up this test? The test should only take 30 minutes, tops."

Plos nodded. "Of course! This way!" They both vanished into the hall toward the kitchen.

Shana made a face as she saw a tear drop amount of blood oozing from where the doctor had stuck her. It really hurt too.

Her stomach roared and hurt more. That's right. She needed food. She didn't even taste the crackers anymore and she didn't want to taste the fruits.

"Here." Plos handed her the bottle from earlier. Shana jumped and frowned when Plos chuckled. "Doctor's orders."

Shana gave her father a dirty look, "That's not nice, scaring people." Then she quickly drank the potion. She was surprised with how well it tasted. A fruity, but minty taste at the same time.

"I wasn't trying to scare you dear. Go ahead and try to rest. I'll take care of the doctor and the dishes. I will wake you when it's time to eat." Plos bent down and kissed for forehead.

Shana momentarily wanted to argue, but she suddenly was so tired her vision blurred. "…Okay." She said softly right before she passed out.

Plos sighed. "My poor girl…"

"Well, I guessed it. There's nothing really wrong with her Plos."

Shana's head felt fuzzy, and really heavy.

"What do you mean nothing wrong? Why is she like this?" Plos's voice was on the verge of irritation.

The doctor laughed. "Every woman goes through this. Though, her case is most unusually harsh. Sometimes, many times throughout their lives. Your daughter isn't a little girl anymore."

"What are you talking about doctor?" Plos grumbled.

"She's pregnant."

Silence.

Shana wondered if she was dreaming. Pregnant? She was pregnant?

"Come again?" Plos finally said.

The doctor laughed, "She's going to be a mother. You're going to be a grandparent. She's carrying a baby inside her womb. How else should I break this down?"

A sound rang in the house, a loud rough groaning. Like a chair being dragged across the floor. "She's…pregnant?"

"Yes. Now, I've shown you what you need to make that potion for her. It will stop her sickness and she should be able to start eating healthier foods. Activity is also good for her. Daily walks around the village is what I recommend. The father should help you with these things until she gets better. Where is he?"

Plos was silent. Shana knew that he knew. Finally he broke the silence, "Away on a mission for the King himself. They are good friends with each other."

The doctor chuckled, "At least he's a good man! Friends with the King personally? Respectable! When he comes back he's going to be a very happy man!" He grunted. "Now. I shall leave a few things here for you just in case the potion needs an extra boost-which it shouldn't- and I will be on my way home."

Shana grew tired again. She hadn't been dreaming though. Pregnant. She was going to have Dart's baby. She smiled. Her weak hand went to her stomach and the she drifted off into the first peaceful sleep she had in weeks.