C Rank
Wallace: Tactician.
Mark: General.
Wallace: Fine day…
Mark: Yes, it is. A bit nippy for my taste but the air is fresh.
Wallace: Aye, reminds me of the cold spring mornings in Caelin. You didn't see Caelin in the springtime, did you Mark?
Mark: I'm afraid not, though I wish I did. I heard about the Spring Festival held during the week of the Equinox. How was it this year?
Wallace: I wouldn't know, I wasn't in Caelin for the last one.
Mark: Ah yes, how could I have forgotten…
Wallace: Been meaning to have a chat with you about that actually.
Mark: Yes, as have I. I suppose now is a good a time as any. General Wallace; I have had time to think about what I did that day and I am sad to inform you that I regret that decision.
Wallace: Aye, I thought you might.
Mark: During the early days, when my journey with Lady Lyndis was still in its infancy, we made a pledge. We promised to one day return to find the Taliver Bandits and make them pay for what they had done. Now that promise is broken, or at least I have ensured that it can never be fulfilled. I feel as if I shouldn't have given you their location.
Wallace: I understand, and here I came to thank you for tracking them down, it was a good day when I finally buried that hatred.
Mark: I can't exactly say I found closure.
Wallace: I didn't do it for closure, boy.
Mark: Then why did you do it, old man?
Wallace: Because… You don't think I wanted them dead too?! They killed my friend, Lord Hassar, and the Lady Madelyn! They butchered hundreds of innocents and left the Lady Lyndis an orphaned girl! None are more deserving of death!
Mark: Ok… at ease General.
Wallace: Mark… hatred is a powerful thing. It can make the weak powerful; it can make the broken like steel, it can set the slave free. But it can also go the other way; the wise can become mad, the kind can turn cruel, and the slave can become the slaver.
Mark: …
Wallace: Lady Lyndis, is powerful. She is graceful beyond compare. She is her father's daughter, and the idea of her heart being corrupted by hatred… well it hurts me deeply.
Mark: And you thought to save her from that?
Wallace: I did.
Mark: I don't like hatred, it tastes like bile and I feel sick when I see it. How are you so certain you can bare it in her stead?
Wallace: A knight is to protect his liege, no matter the sacrifice he must make. What I did, I did for Lady Lyndis' peace and sanity.
Mark: Well said… one last thing. The Taliver Bandits… did they suffer?
Wallace: Their deaths were quick but painful.
Mark: …Good
B Rank
Mark: Not a cloud in the sky… the heat might make the march unbearable. I'd hate for anyone to come down with heat-stroke.
Wallace: HA! The burn of the sun will toughen up the weak. Put me in front, Mark. I'll set the pace.
Mark: You must be on fire with all that armour on.
Wallace Nothing that a knight of Caelin can't handle!
Mark: Well at least I won't have to worry about one of us. I would have suggested removing any heavy armour but we're going into traitorous territory, I dare not weaken us in any way, we must be ready to meet opposition with every step.
Wallace: I wouldn't worry too much, lad. We've been through worse. Personally I think the wet weather is worse than the dry.
Mark: The rain does make it far more difficult to manoeuvre. Remember the march to Caelin Castle?
Wallace: Aye, I do. The rain just came pounding down.
Mark: How often does it rain like that in Caelin?
Wallace: Often enough during the summer. Good for the crops.
Mark: Hmm… tell me Wallace; did you ever imagine you'd re-enter service after you retired?
Wallace: Honestly? No.
Mark: And yet I know you to be one of the most battle-ready men I've ever encountered.
Wallace: Just one of the most?
Mark: Hehe, remind me to tell you about a former Clan Chief from the Western Isles I met once.
Wallace: I'll do that. But let me tell you that while I was on the farm; the land I called my home, I knew peace and serenity. Battle was the farthest thing from my mind, and it felt good, no, wonderful even, to just be where I was supposed to be.
Mark: That does sound wonderful.
Wallace: But after Lundgren's betrayal, and seeing the intensity in my lady's eyes. My fire was reignited, and now there is nowhere else I should be than on the field.
Mark: There was no wife, or little Wallaces running around the farm?
Wallace: HA! The woman who can tie me down has to be stronger than the entire Caelin military combined. But if I was lucky enough to become a father then I wouldn't be here, I would've stayed with my children.
Mark: Aw, I could picture you being the epitome of a sweet father.
Wallace: You thinking of retiring, lad?
Mark: Not anytime soon, though the thought did creep into my head not long ago.
Wallace: Aye, you've got the fire. The drive for battle and bloodshed, but still; when the embers of the furnace begin to die out, I hope you find a good place to put down roots.
Mark: Thank you, Wallace. Maybe I'll start a farm somewhere and think of you.
Wallace: You might find the life suits you.
Mark: The march will start soon, you'll take point. With me.
A Rank
Mark: …Victory… is ours, for now.
Wallace: …
Mark: I don't understand, did they really think they could take us with such few numbers?
Wallace: …
Mark: I suppose, at this moment, it no longer matters. Wallace! Let move out!
Wallace: A moment, lad.
Mark: ?
Wallace: Just a few, sit with me?
Mark: … Very well, but I'm not sure how much time we have, we need to regroup with the others.
Wallace: This won't take a few minutes. Sit.
Mark: …
Wallace: These men, they knew they couldn't win, yet they fought anyway.
Mark: …
Wallace: They deserve our respect and a few moments of silence.
Mark: …You're right, of course
Wallace: …
Mark: …
Wallace: I did this for the Taliver Bandits, after I slaughtered them. Those beasts caused no end of pain and suffering, and yet against me; they were no more than pups biting the hand that drowned them.
Mark: …
Wallace: So before I burned and buried what was left, I sat like I'm doing now, and I tried to prove that there was a better way than theirs.
Mark: …
Wallace: They had no respect for the death they dealt; I even asked them if they remembered the names of those they took away. Lord Hassar, Lady Madelyn, the innocent Lorca Tribe. They had no idea what I was talking about…
Mark: …
Wallace: But listen, son. It doesn't matter if you're killing a man or a beast. Death is death, when you deal it you must take responsibility for it, this means knowing just what you've done.
Mark: …
Wallace: No matter how much it hurts, or how much you hated them, you must know to bow your head and pray for their souls. That's what it means to have honour.
Mark: …
Wallace: Remember this, Mark.
Mark: …Yes, I will. Thank you…
Ending
Mark accompanied Wallace on his return to Caelin before resuming his travels, often disappearing for months at a time. But often enough he would reappear in Caelin in time for the Spring Festival and to help out on a local farm.