It was afternoon by the time Reginald's group reached their destination.

Behind a steel gate was the figure of a village, with a bell tower rising above the buildings. The whole place was built under the shade of the mountains.

"We're here." Reginald announced.

"Wait a minute…" Leah squinted. "Are those…guards at the gates?"

"What?" He drew a little closer for a better look. "You're right…"

"Is something wrong?" Hart asked worriedly.

Reginald scowled and drew his spear. "I don't know, but we have to find out."

He ran towards the gate, and Leah and Hart quickly followed him.

The guards blocked their way when they approached.

"Halt!" The one on the right ordered.

"Who goes there?" The other one asked.

Reginald stepped up to them, chest puffed out to show off his cross. The guards gasped in surprise and stepped back.

"Wait…y-you're…" The first one stammered.

"Captain of Camelot's elite guard." Reginald finished. "May I ask what's going on here?"

"Er…nothing!"

"Really?"

The guards cowered under Reginald's glare, but they didn't answer.

"Fine, suit yourself." He glanced at Leah. "Leah, could you help me out here?"

Seconds later, they opened the gate and rushed into the village, leaving the pair of knocked out guards behind. They stopped when they saw what was happening.

"What's…going on?" Leah asked in shock.

Around the village, people could be seen building structures for war. Catapults… battering rams…swords, shields, bows and arrows, and spears as well…

The distant sounds of mining, groans and shouts could be heard as well. In the distance, a few kids watched the scene with fear in their eyes.

Supervising all of this were soldiers, who stood over the villagers with their weapons drawn, ready to strike in case somebody tried to run away. Archers stood atop the buildings, and it looked like someone was at the bell tower too.

"What's going on here!?" Reginald demanded.

Everyone turned to him. While the villagers grew hopeful, the soldiers immediately took to surrounding Reginald's group. He and Leah had their weapons ready, while Hart hid behind her. Their enemies closed in, ready to strike.

"Hold it!" Someone from the back commanded.

They crowd parted to reveal a tall man with long red hair. He wore gold plated armor, and a longsword hung at his side.

"And who do we have here?" He asked. Then he saw Reginald's cross and smirked. "Ah…a captain, I take it?"

"Of the elite guard, yes." Reginald confirmed. "My lieutenant and I were asked to escort this child to the orphanage." He gestured to Hart. "Then we saw the state this village was in. So tell me…" He glared. "What is going on here?"

"Isn't it obvious?" The man opened his arms wide, gesturing to the whole village. "We're preparing for war!"

"Against what?"

"Why, against the whole kingdom of Camelot!"

"What!?" Leah and Reginald shouted in shock.

"Yes!" The man confirmed. "The riches we could acquire! The tales that would be told! The reign of Arthur's family has been going on for far too long! It is time for a new ruler to take their place!" He his smirk turned into a crazy smile. "And that ruler will be me! Etzel!"

Reginald scowled and pointed his spear at him. "You're crazy if you think you can get away with this! As captain of the elite guard, I am authorized to eradicate any threat to the kingdom!"

"What can you do? Take a closer look, you're outnumbered! Even if you put up a fight, the chances are next to nothing for you to survive!"

"That's just a risk I'm willing to take!"

Reginald yelled and swiftly swung at Etzel. The man drew his sword in the blink of an eye and knocked the spear away.

"What…" Reginald muttered in shock as he stumbled back.

"I warned you." Etzel pointed out. He sheathed his sword and walked away, raising his hand and snapping his fingers. "Get them boys."

The soldiers let out battle cries and charged towards the party. The only thing Reginald saw before blacking out was a swarm of armored bodies trampling him.

He when he came to, he found himself tucked into a bed. He groaned and slowly sat up, touching his throbbing forehead.

"Gah…I can't believe this…" He said angrily.

He looked around and saw several other beds like his, and a curtain obscuring one of them. A desk stood at the back of the room.

"Where I am I?" He whispered to himself.

Then he saw the curtain jerk a bit, and froze.

(Am I seeing things?)

It jerked again, and he slowly got off the bed. He looked around for his weapon, but couldn't find it.

(Where did it go?)

The curtain gave another jerk, and he shook his head.

(Forget it, I can do this myself.)

With a look of determination, he tiptoed towards the curtain. His pulse began to quicken from the anticipation. When he reached the curtain, he hid behind it and listened. Shuffling could be heard behind the wall of cloth.

(What is it?)

He crept out of his hiding spot and took a look. What, or rather who he saw made him begin blushing bright red. He made a strangled gasp, and a shriek followed a second later.

"Don't look at me!" Leah shouted. "Get out!"

Reginald scrambled away, embarrassment written all over his face.

Later, they sat on opposite beds, looking away from each other. Things were completely silent, and Reginald was thinking on what to say. Once he thought of something, he looked at Leah.

"Um…sorry about that." He apologized. "I didn't think there would be somebody changing behind that curtain."

Leah sighed. "Well, what did you think would be behind it?"

"An attacker…or another monster."

"Oh Arthur…Reginald, I think your fighting instincts have knocked away some of your common sense."

He groaned. "I really need to learn…."

"I-it's alright."

"So…" Reginald tried to change the subject. "Where are we?"

"We're in the orphanage. The caretakers came and dragged us all in here. I just woke up not long before you did."

"What about Hart?"

Leah smiled. "He's made a new friend already." She put a hand over her mouth, stifling a laugh.

Reginald raised an eyebrow. "What's so funny?"

"Just see for yourself."

She grabbed his hand and led him out of the room, entering a hallway. She pulled him along to a set of stairs and they walked down. They entered a room with a couple dozen boys and girls of varying ages, with the youngest being five and the oldest being sixteen.

The younger ones lay huddled on the floor while the older ones walked around, handing out food and drinks. Reginald looked around the room until he spotted Hart in the corner, chatting with a girl around his age. He appeared to be quite happy to be there.

"Do you see him?" Leah asked, grinning.

"Yeah, I see him." Reginald said, chuckling.

"Oh goodness!" An elderly lady approached them. "You're awake! Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Reginald assured. "Thank you for taking us in."

"It's my pleasure!" The lady smiled kindly.

"Leah! Reginald!"

They turned to see Hart and the girl running up to them. A smile was plastered on his face,

"You're awake." Hart said with a sigh of relief.

"And better than ever kid." Reginald ruffled his hair, then turned to the girl. "And who is this?"

The girl looked down shyly. "Um…my name is Elya F. Nagorm."

"Wow, that's rather mouthy." Leah noted. "How about we just call you Elya?"

"Y-yes, Miss Leah."

"Now," Reginald looked at the caretaker. "Onto business. We heard from Etzel that the soldiers here are planning an uprising. But when did all of this start?"

The lady sighed sadly. "It was just last night, actually. Around that time, a strange boy came here and talked to Etzel. Whatever he said must have caused the man to begin this conquest and hold us all prisoner. Now the people are mining for the metals our part of the land is known for so they can be forged into weapons. Everyone's oppressed, and the children are scared."

"That's horrible…" Leah said sympathetically.

"These actions…" Reginald grit his teeth angrily. "They are not what an honorable knight should do. We need to get out of here and stop Etzel's plans!"

A rather pretty looking man with pale skin and white hair was listening to them, smirking. He wore a simple blue shirt and pants.

"But there's a big problem…" Leah said. "Our weapons were taken, so we have no way to fight him and his men off. The liberation will be impossible."

"I think I can help with that." The man walked over to them.

"Who are you?" Reginald asked in suspicion.

The man chuckled and flipped his hair. "My name is Ghirahim. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Oh this gentleman came by an hour earlier!" The caretaker said fondly. "So sweet and charming, and the children seem to adore him."

"I came by to see if I could adopt a child. Sadly, I saw what was going on in the town, and was thrown in here."

"Well, what can you do about our dilemma?" Reginald questioned. "You're about as helpless as the rest of us."

"Not quite. I think I can help free everyone here, but you will need to listen to me."

"Okay." Reginald nodded. "Speak."

"I snuck up to the bell tower and found the guard sleeping. So I took the time to examine the town thoroughly. People are mining nearby, and beside the site is where Etzel's quarters are. I saw my weapon being taken there, and I'm sure yours are there as well."

"Okay…then how do we get them back?"

"Simple, we cause a distraction, and one of us can sneak into the building and steal the weapons. Then we can start our liberation."

"It's our best shot…but what do we do about the guard at the bell tower?"

"Oh you don't have to worry about him." The caretaker cut in. "We'll have him covered over here, you just focus on the guards outside."

"I'll take your word for it." Reginald complied.

"Then are we all in?" Ghirahim asked.

"Yes."

"I'm in." Leah said.

"But what about me?" Hart asked sadly.

"Hart…" Leah put a hand on his shoulder. "You aren't strong enough to do this, I'm sorry. You'll have to stay in here, and be safe. Just help the lady, that'll be enough."

"Okay…"

"Then rest up everyone." Reginald said. "Our operation starts tomorrow, and we'll need the rest."

"Then I'll bid you good night." Ghirahim said, walking away. Once he was out of sight, his smirk turned devilish. (Yes…it's just like Master said. The heroes came here, and now the plan pushes forward. Will his bride show herself here?) He chuckled. (I certainly hope the circumstances make her.)