After a two-hour roped-off discussion, during which Shinon and Gatrie constantly make inappropriate jokes (because the question of who or what General Ike slept with during the Mad King's War is still Crimea's most well-kept secret), Ike and Ranulf emerge from their tent, and Ike calls a meeting of his father's mercenaries.

"We're off to war," he says. "We've been contracted to fight for Gallia. Pack your things, we march in the morning."

There is a sound of approval, but nobody moves. "If anyone has any issues with fighting with the laguz against Begnion, come speak to me. Otherwise, dismissed."

The pack of kid-soldiers disperses, each to his or her own pile of things, but Shinon stays behind: both because he already has all of his things on him (his bow and his arrows and the clothes he is wearing), and because he feels sometimes as though he's the only rational human in the whole stinking group.

Ike turns to him. "Do you have a problem with this, Shinon?"

"I'm of two minds," Shinon growls, not bothering to hide the sneer in his voice.

(The first is yes, I have issues with fighting for some stinking sub-humans. The second is I'd follow you off the face of a cliff, Commander.)

Ike seems to either not notice, or not mind, the sneer. "And those two minds are…?"

"This isn't a mad war-king. This is the Apostle. Surely –"

" – If you can't give me your all, I've no issue leaving you behind, Shinon."

(And Shinon is of two minds, again. The first is that's who I was missing, Commander, when I left you three years ago. The second is you numbskull, you idiot, you worse-than-laguz, if you keep acting like that, Titania will never stop mourning.)

But this is the one man in the entire stinking world that Shinon knows could cut him to pieces; that's the sword-hand that took down the Black Knight and the Mad King of Daein, and if anyone knows how to get the world into and out of a mess, it's Ike. They stare at each other, hot anger meeting cool anger, until Shinon acquiesces. "Keep your smallclothes on, I'm coming," he says, shrugging. "Just wanted to make sure you know what you're getting yourself into, that's all."

"I do," says Commander Greil.