Chapter Ten: Found

It hadn't been too difficult to gather the supplies she needed. None of the monsters were particularly challenging, although admittedly the lack of food had slowed her down. Sodia's stomach hadn't stopped growling for hours and she thought she was going to go crazy if she didn't get some food soon. Thankfully, Minicoids were edible, although not very tasty.

When she'd gathered all the ingredients, crushed them together with her blade and then boiled them until they merged into a chunky, goopy stew, she declared herself done. It was far from a professional job and she doubted it would be quite as potent as a Cure Bottle made by a professional, but if it could just clear up Flynn's infection she would be happy. Her impromptu stew complete, she crawled over to Flynn to wake him up.

"Sir…" she gently shook his shoulder. "Sir, the medicine is ready. You should wake up and take it." She felt bad for waking him up, but she really didn't want him to go another minute without the cure. He was sweating and shivering at the same time, his face was whiter than paper and he'd lost so much weight she would have easily been able to piggy-back him up the cliff now.

Flynn slowly opened his eyes. "Mom…" he mumbled, staring at her with a faint smile.

"Um… no, sir, it's me. Sodia."

"No… you're Mom."

"I am not your mother, sir." She poured the gooey mixture into a cup and said, "Let me help you sit up so you can take it." She wrapped one arm under his shoulders and easily lifted his skeletal frame.

Once she lifted him, Flynn fell against her and draped his arms around her shoulders, pressing his face into her neck. Sodia's heart fluttered at the unexpected contact, and Flynn mumbled, "Don't go, Mom… I miss you."

Sodia sat frozen. Flynn was clearly caught in some feverish delusion and she wasn't sure how to handle that. She set the cup of medicine on the ground and used that hand to gently pry Flynn's arm loose. "Sir, this is Sodia. Your mother has been dead for over a decade."

Flynn dug his face deeper against her. "Don't say that… I can't lose you."

She sighed, realizing she might as well get this over with until Flynn went back to sleep. She patted his elbow and said, "Um, yes… Flynn. I'm sorry. You need to drink this now, alright? It will make you feel better."

He finally pulled back and she held the cup to his mouth and slowly poured the contents in. He made a face when he swallowed, but thankfully didn't spit it out. "Sorry, s- I mean… Flynn. I know it doesn't taste very good, but it will heal your infection, hopefully."

"If you say so," he groaned, and slumped against her supportive arm.

She easily laid him back on the stretcher. "Alright, just go back to sleep now. You'll feel better when you wake up." She hoped.

"Yeah, ok…" He closed his eyes. "Mom… thanks for helping me earlier."

"You're welcome. Now go to sleep."

He didn't respond, so she crawled back to her side of the fire and set about cutting up the rest of the Minicoid for her supper. The barrier would still work for the rest of the night, so for the first time in what felt like ages, she could sleep easy.

Flynn sat sideways by the fire with his broken leg stretched out. He supposed he should be grateful that his sprained wrist had healed enough that he could at least hold a stick with his right hand, even he had to rest it on his left knee for support. On the end of the stick was a chunk of Minicoid he was roasting over the fire. When he woke up this morning, the fire was little more than a few embers, but he'd added more logs and kindling and coaxed it back to life so he could cook some breakfast.

He needed breakfast, because he was ravenous. For the first time in over a week he had a clear head and a normal body temperature, and his appetite came back with a vengeance. He'd been munching on toasted mushroom since he woke up and it still felt like there was a monster in his stomach clawing at the walls and growling with impatience. The difference in his body from the last time he'd been awake was immeasurable. The Cure Bottle - though it was more like a Cure Cup - had wiped out the infection on his hip, cooled down his fever, diffused the ache in his gut, and cleared all the gunk from his brain. Lingering aches and painless red spots were all the remained, and hopefully they'd die down within a day or so. All his injuries from the fall still hurt, but without a deathly illness backing them up it was easy to deal with in comparison.

He was eating his toasted mushroom when Sodia woke up. She noticed the fire and sat up in surprise, wide awake in seconds. "Sir? How do you feel?"

Flynn finished chewing and swallowed before nodding. "I feel fantastic." He used his right hand to stabilize the giant mushroom and ripped off another piece, and winced slightly as the movement rocked his wrist. He shrugged and added, "Well, maybe not fantastic, but better than before."

"I'm glad to hear that." She smiled and shifted her legs to sit comfortably.

After spearing another piece of mushroom and sticking it over the fire, he said, "Oh! Forgive me, I should have offered this to you earlier." He pushed the remaining Minicoid toward her. "You must be hungry."

She eyed it, chewed on her lip for a few seconds, and then pulled it toward her. "I'll just have a little. I ate last night, and I know you must be starving now that your fever broke."

Flynn wanted to argue to split it equally, but the rampaging beast in his stomach overpowered his sense of chivalry and he agreed. "I can't thank you enough for going to the trouble of getting this cure."

"You don't need to thank me, sir. I only have a couple more weeks of being your subordinate, so I might as well save your butt as much as possible during this time, right?" She tried to laugh it off as a joke, though her heart wasn't in it.

Flynn watched his mushroom and carefully rotated it. "Sodia… we need to talk. About Zaude."

She swallowed. "Yes, sir."

When he woke up this morning, Flynn had finally known what he wanted to do with Sodia. If anyone asked how he came to this conclusion, he would certainly leave out the part with the talking trees and hallucinations of his mother, but he couldn't deny that seeing his inner turmoil played out like that had helped him figure it out. "I am glad you told me yourself. I realize it must have taken a lot of bravery to admit that to me."

She managed to raise her face and meet his eyes.

"However…"

Her face tightened.

"I cannot ignore that what you did. You committed a serious crime against Yuri and this was an enormous breach of my trust."

"I understand, sir." Her voice was so soft he barely heard it.

"Despite all that… I am not going to press charges."

Her mouth fell open and her eyes went wide. "You're… forgiving me?"

"No, I'm not forgiving you. Attempting to kill a civilian who was not presently threatening you is an unforgivable crime. More personally, Yuri is my closest friend and I cannot forgive an attempt on his life. However, I am choosing to work past that. You regret your actions, do you not?"

She leaned forward slightly. "I do, sir." Her eyes filled with so much sincerity it practically spilled over.

Flynn nodded. "Right. I don't see what advantage pressing charges would do. My mother said to choose the option that did the most good for the most people, and I cannot think of anyone who would gain anything from incarcerating you."

It would be different if the victim of her actions cried out for justice, but since Yuri had never bothered mentioning it, he doubted Yuri desperately wanted to see Sodia behind bars. It came down to the debate between the tree and the dragonfly. Was the purpose of justice to punish the guilty, or to protect the innocent? If he had to decide… Flynn would always choose protecting the innocent over anything else. Typically the two went together, so that by punishing guilty parties, innocents were protected. That wasn't the case in this situation, though. Punishing Sodia wouldn't help anyone, and since she already sincerely regretted her actions it wasn't as if she needed to be taught a lesson. He still struggled sometimes to figure out where the line between right and wrong was now that he finally realized justice wasn't a black and white issue, but he felt in his heart that Sodia was not a criminal. She was a good person who had made a terrible mistake, and giving her the chance to work hard and atone for her crime would do the world more good than kicking her out of the knights.

Flynn looked to Sodia's eyes, finding himself pleased that she was able to meet them. "I'm not letting you off without punishment, but think of your punishment as… community service. Work hard and be the best knight you can be. Help people, protect the innocent, and strive to make the empire a happier place. Don't go off on your own if you ever disagree with my orders; confront me and state your reasons for disagreeing. I don't care that it's nominally against protocol to openly disagree with your superiors. I want you to argue with me if you think I'm making a mistake. We said we would work together to change this country, didn't we?"

Sodia seemed to be struggling to hold in tears. "Sir, you… you're giving me another chance? You're actually letting me stay in the Knights?"

"Not just in the Knights. You are going to continue working directly under me, so that I can keep an eye on you and ensure you never stray from the path again. I'm giving you a second chance, but it will be your last chance. If you do anything like this again, I will court-martial you."

"Thank you, sir. Really, I - I can't thank you enough. I never dreamed I would still be able to be a knight after telling you the truth."

"I know," he said solemnly. "And that's part of why I'm doing this. You told me the truth about Zaude believing it would result in a court-martial or worse, but you told me anyway because you felt it was the right thing to do. Additionally, you went to huge lengths to save my life over the past week, at great personal cost. You did this knowing that getting me back to Zaphias alive most likely meant forfeiting your career and life's ambition. Had you left me to die, no one would ever know and your future would not be jeopardized."

Sodia stared in shock. The idea of leaving Flynn to die to prevent him from pressing charges when they got home had clearly never even crossed her mind. She'd even gone out of her way to hunt down the monsters to create a Cure Bottle.

"I will never forget your mercy, sir." She tightly folded her hands together. "I will do whatever it takes to atone for my sin. I'll support you until my dying day."

The intensity of her eyes actually scared Flynn a little, but he appreciated the sentiment. "I know you will. And… in the interest of being fair, I have a confession of my own I ought to tell you." He paused to eat he piece of mushroom while Sodia watched in confusion.

"What is it, sir?"

He swallowed and then speared another piece of mushroom. "A little while ago, you asked me about Cumore's death. I avoided the question. I've never been entirely honest with you, or anyone else, about the exact nature of his demise. If I expect honesty from you, it's only fair to show you the same courtesy." After all, it had factored into his decision to show Sodia leniency. He'd forgiven Yuri for worse. "The truth is that Yuri Lowell was responsible for the deaths of both Captain Cumore and Magistrate Ragou." He wasn't sure how to feel about the fact that she didn't show an ounce of surprise. Frowning, he said, "Did you know?"

She shrugged slightly. "I had my suspicions."

He nodded, not surprised. He didn't hire stupid knights, after all. "When Yuri heard that those men had been let off despite their crimes, he took it upon himself to punish them and to prevent them from continuing to harm innocents. To be honest, I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about his actions, but ultimately I let him off for the same reasons I'm showing leniency to you. I trust that he is a good person, and I know that he is not a danger to innocent lives."

"I see… I can't say I'm surprised, and this definitely doesn't raise my opinion of him. Nevertheless, it would be hypocritical of me to pass judgement in light of my own crime."

"There are still those in the Council who would press charges the instant they thought they found a culprit for Ragou and Cumore's murders, and there is little I can do for Yuri if charges are pressed, considering he is in fact guilty. Currently, only myself, Yuri's companions, and now yourself know the truth and I ask that you keep it that way."

She nodded firmly. "Of course, sir. I swear I will not tell a soul."

"Good. I trust you." He pulled the mushroom out of the fire and ate it.

"I will never again give you reason to doubt me, sir."

For the rest of the day, they hiked. Well, Sodia hiked. Flynn lay in his stretcher and cursed the fragile nature of bones that enabled them to snap. They didn't stop for lunch because there was nothing to eat, and by the time evening rolled around Flynn almost missed being sick because at least he hadn't been hungry. When they finally stopped for the night, Sodia gathered wood and then left Flynn to set up a fire while she tried to find something to eat. Flynn was a bit concerned that they only had a couple of matches left. It had been a while since he'd needed to start a fire without matches or at least a flint, and only vaguely remembered how to do it.

Sodia returned half an hour later with an armful of green stuff. "Here we go," she said, laying them out on the ground. "Delicious."

"Those look like weeds," Flynn said, poking the tiny fire and urging it to grow up big and strong.

Sodia sighed and plopped on her mat. "They are weeds, but they're edible. Probably don't taste very good, though."

"I'll take anything." He had never been this starving before, not even during his and Yuri's first weeks on the street when they were still trying to figure out how to live. He picked up a dandelion and twirled it between his fingers. He'd trampled dandelions under his feet and never considered them a potential food source, but he was too hungry to be picky. He felt hollow and knew his bout of illness had definitely left him worse for wear. He needed to eat a lot to get his strength back, but that wasn't an option. Desperate for sustenance, he popped the weed in his mouth. Biting down on the stem released an awful bitter juice that made him grimace, so he swallowed fast. Sodia was watching him, so he forced a smile and said, "Yum."

"It's awful, isn't it?"

The smile dropped. "I'd say it's the Cumore of food."

She sighed and picked up a leafy stalk. "Sorry. I can't believe I'm feeding the commandant dandelions…."

"No, I appreciate the effort." He picked up another weed to prove this. There were still dandelions left, but he hoped at least some of these things would taste slightly better. "We've got to eat to survive, after all."

Sodia chewed on her own weed and tried to hide a grimace. "It's better than nothing. Besides, we're knights. We can handle awful food. We got through the cafeteria at the Knight Academy, didn't we?"

Flynn quickly swallowed his bite - he didn't want to let it linger in his mouth any longer than necessary - and laughed. "Actually… I didn't mind that food at all."

"Really?"

"You know, we all wore the same uniforms, but you could always tell which students were from the lower quarter. They were the only ones who never complained about the taste or portion sizes. As far as Yuri and I were concerned, getting three square meals a day and all we had to do to earn it was go to class and train was a dream come true."

"Oh…" she thoughtfully chewed on the tough stalk. "I never considered that perspective. I'm sorry."

"It's fine. You're right - in retrospect, the food was objectively awful. We were just too excited to actually have consistent meals to pay attention to that." He eyed the pile of weeds and selected one with small, round leaves and tiny yellow flowers. Would this one taste alright? Seconds after putting it in his mouth, he winced and coughed.

"Are you alright?"

He swallowed quickly and then took a drink. "Sour," he wheezed. After clearing the taste from his mouth, he said, "To be honest, the promise of food is part of why I became a knight. I know that sounds petty."

Her eyes went wide. "Really? It was… food?"

"Oh, I'd wanted to be a knight since I was a little kid. But, after my dad died I went through a phase of not wanting anything to do with the Knights. My mother encouraged that, I think because she was afraid she'd lose her son the same way she lost her husband."

"What changed?"

"It was after she died. Yuri and I were starving and then one day he came home with a poster encouraging youths to join the Knights. He pointed out that the Academy was free to attend and provided room and board. Yuri had been itching to join the Knights as long as I had, and during my period of not wanting to be a knight he never stopped pestering me about it. He got to me when I was particularly hungry, and I agreed it seemed like a good idea. With the plan in mind to go to the Academy as soon as we turned sixteen, I started getting into the Knights again and by the time we were finally old enough to go, I think I was even more passionate about it than Yuri. But yes, at the end of the day it was the promise of free food that got me to become a knight."

"Huh." She grabbed a dandelion, and Flynn silently pitied her. "Just think about how differently life would have turned out if it was, say, a blacksmith's shop offering free food to apprentices."

"Heh. You'd be riding around on my very own horseshoes by now." Flynn had given up on finding a weed that actually tasted good, so he shovelled them in his mouth as fast as possible and tried to get as many nutrients as he could with as little taste. "Why did you become a knight? Given your status, I'm assuming it wasn't the food."

"No, it wasn't the food." Her grimace told Flynn she had fully experienced the joy that was dandelions. "It was… I told you that my family left our hometown during the Great War, correct?"

He nodded. "You said the barrier failed, so the town was abandoned."

"Right. Well, we left in a rush. We had the resources to just pack our things in a carriage and go. Many of the townsfolk, however, could not. They had nowhere to go, not enough supplies to live off during travel, or no means of transportation other than to brave the roads and monsters. A great many of them died." She looked down with heavy eyes. "I believe nobles have a duty to defend their vassals. The relationship between nobles and commoners should not be a one-way street. Commoners are supposed to pay taxes and tribute to nobles in return for protection and governance, but it seems that these days, most nobles have forgotten that and expect commoners to pay them taxes and receive nothing in return. My father was the magistrate of that town, but he abandoned them. I was furious with him for allowing our people to be killed, but the rest of my family scoffed at me for referring to them as 'our people'."

She grabbed a plant and viciously bit into its stem. "Hardly any nobles accept responsibility in return for their wealth or power, and that's not right. There's no justice in the system. I knew I would never inherit my father's power because I have older brothers, so I joined the Knights because I thought it was my best chance of finding a way to help people."

"That's an interesting perspective on nobility." They were almost out of weeds, and Flynn had mixed feelings on this. On one hand, they were disgusting, but on the other, he was still starving. "I admit that coming from the lower quarter I have a gut reaction to distrust nobles. Growing up, I was always told nobles were leeches who lived off commoner's backs."

"Hmph. Most of them are, these days. I don't have much hope of reforming the entire institution of nobility, but if we can change the Knights so that they at least aren't in the nobles' pockets, I think that will be a great step forward."

"I think so as well." He smiled. "It's lucky you ended up posted in my brigade. Our goals are similar and we have a much better chance of succeeding if we work together."

"Well… it wasn't entirely luck, sir. When I first joined, I was posted in Captain Cumore's brigade. This was… less than ideal." She grimaced at the mere thought of working under Cumore. "I applied to a transfer as soon as possible. They asked where I wanted to go, and I said 'anywhere but here'. I was told there wasn't room in any of the noble units, but I didn't care and told them to just put me with the commoners. So, they put me in a unit under a brand-new commoner lieutenant because no one else was trying to get into that unit."

Flynn reached for a weed, but found the stack empty. "What a good feast that was. Anyway, I'm glad you ended up in my unit, even if I was a last resort to escape Cumore."

She smiled. "I'm glad too, sir." With their food gone, she fell sideways on her mat and yawned.

Flynn pitied her for having to walk all day, and for the thousandth time he wished his leg wasn't broken so she wouldn't have to do it all herself. He also wished it wasn't broken because after two weeks it still hurt constantly, which was likely because it hadn't been set yet. It was probably already healing, and he didn't even want to think about how doctors were going to fix it when they finally got to Aurnion - and that was assuming they could. With no food left to sit up for, he lay down as well.

"Actually, sir…" Sodia said slowly, staring at the darkening sky, "if we're being completely honest with each other, I have a confession to make."

"Oh?" He didn't bother looking over and just lay on his back, trying to find constellations that looked like food.

"When I first met you… I didn't like you very much."

"You… didn't?" He wasn't sure why hearing that made his heart sink, because obviously she liked him well enough now. He couldn't help but be disappointed, though. "But… why not?" He sounded like a child who was upset that one of his classmates didn't like him.

"It's stupid. I… I didn't think you'd really earned your promotion. You were so young and a commoner and it seemed ridiculous that you'd already made lieutenant on your own merits."

Flynn twisted his torso on its side. "How did you think I got promoted, then?"

"It's rather embarrassing to admit."

"No, tell me."

"Well… I saw that you had a close relationship with Lady Estellise and I just… I jumped to assumptions. It's not unheard of, you know, for nobles to pick 'pet commoners' and grant them political favours in return for… you know…"

Flynn stared at her, not sure what she was talking about. She pulled her hands up to cover her blushing face, and the pieces finally clinked together in his brain. "You though I was sleeping with the princess?"

Sodia curled up like a turtle hiding from the world. "I'm so sorry, sir. It was a stupid assumption."

Flynn turned on his back again and watched the sky with shock. It had never even occurred to him that his and Estelle's relationship could be read that way, and now he worried if anyone else thought they were… physical with each other. "I'm not."

"I know that!" she said quickly. "I told you, it was stupid. I always do this - I get these first impressions of people and then refuse to let them go. I'm so sorry."

"That's… you don't need to apologize for that. It was years ago."

"I'm still so embarrassed by what a stupid assumption that was. I thought I had you all figured out as this noble puppet who did whatever you were told. I've never been so wrong."

Flynn frowned and folded his hands on his stomach. "Well… I was Alexei's puppet for a while, wasn't I? I followed his orders without thinking. It took him kidnapping Lady Estellise to get it through my head that he couldn't be trusted."

"Don't feel bad about that, sir." She finally let her head emerge from her shell of shame. "We all trusted Alexei."

"I suppose." He sighed and listened to the crackling fire. "If we're on the subject of shameful confessions… here's something I've never told anyone. When I was twelve, I - I stole a loaf of bread." His hands slid to his face and covered his eyes. "I feel so awful about it. I was so hungry, and it was just sitting in the windowsill, so I just grabbed it and ran. It ended up tasting awful because I was so sure the knights were going to come barging in at any second and throw me in jail for twenty years."

Sodia couldn't hold in a snicker. "I really don't think a twelve-year-old would get twenty years for a loaf of bread."

"You never know. I certainly didn't. I was so torn up with guilt and Yuri just laughed at me. We were starving, Sodia." He desperately needed to make her understand. "It was winter and there wasn't anything else to eat. I'm so ashamed."

"I wont judge you, sir," she laughed and then rubbed her belly. "Trust me, I understand how you felt. I'd steal a loaf of bread, too, if there were any in this forest."

"Mm… let's have a feast when we get back to Zaphias."

"Imagine a whole table spread out with food."

His mouth was already watering. "Steak and roast chicken and buttery garlic bread and apple pie…"

"Apples are a plant and dandelions are also a plant so that's almost the same thing."

Flynn's mouth twisted in distaste. "They're really not."

She laughed. "You just need a more powerful imagination, sir."

"Heh-heh, or a better cook. I bet the Wonder Chef could make those weeds delicious."

"Maybe we should have tried to cook them. I was too hungry to wait, though."

"Me, too. Besides, to be honest they'd somehow end up worse if I tried to cook them."

"I'm sure your cooking can't be that bad, sir. Nothing could be worse than some of those leafy things."

"Hmm, maybe. That can be my claim to culinary fame: not as bad as nature's most abhorrent edible weeds."

"I'm so proud of you."

Flynn smiled and then yawned heavily. He was still tired from being sick for so long, and wasn't sure how much longer he could stay up. "Sodia… why don't we ever associate outside of work?"

She turned her head. "Hm? What do you mean, sir?"

"We only ever talk about work. We should hang out more outside the office."

"Sir, with all due respect, we are both workaholics. When would we possibly have time?"

He snorted. "You may have a point there. But if I got you to hang out with me when I'm not at work, maybe one of these days I'll get you to call me 'Flynn'."

She smiled peacefully. "Don't count on it, sir."

It was mid-afternoon of the next day. Flynn leaned against a tree trunk, waiting for Sodia to come back with food. They didn't usually stop at that early, but they were both too hungry to keep going. The skies were clear and the day warm, and Flynn would have found it peaceful if he wasn't starving and his leg wasn't in agony. He carefully held his canteen against his chest and pried open the top. Being unable to use his dominant hand was almost as annoying as not being able to walk.

After taking a swig of water, he screwed the cap back on and leaned his head against the rough bark. He was considering taking a nap until Sodia returned when a shadow crossed the sun. For a second he thought it was a cloud, but then realized it was far too large and solid. Through the tree branches, he spotted an enormous flying monster, lazily skimming over the trees. His heart leapt - that was Ba'ul!

"Hey!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, waving his arms. "Ba'ul! Yuri! I'm down here!"

The Entelexeia kept flying, too high to hear him. Dammit! The tree blocked him from view. He needed to get to the creek bank where he could attract attention. This was going to hurt, but it was worth it if it led to being rescued. He threw himself forward and gritted his teeth as his leg twisted against the ground. Elbows dug into the dirt as he pulled himself forward. Ba'ul was moving away but he needed Yuri to notice him. His leg dragged behind him as he pathetically crawled forward, sending stabs of excruciating pain through his leg and up his torso every time it caught on a clump of dirt.

As soon as he got out from under the branches, he rolled on his side and waved his arms. "Hey! I'm here!" Ba'ul moved into the distance, and all Flynn could see now was his tail. "Yuri!" Flynn screamed, waving his arms so hard it hurt his wrist. "Come back, dammit!"

Ba'ul kept flying, and Flynn slowly let his arms drop. They'd missed him. He rolled on his back and panted while all the aches he'd ignored crept back to him. He could still see Ba'ul in the distance, but it had taken him too long to crawl into view and Ba'ul had passed him by. Dammit, he could not believe this! Rescue had been so close but flew right by. He wanted to scream he was so frustrated.

Sodia returned fifteen minutes, but she dropped the food she carried when she saw him. "Sir! What happened? Are you alright?" She ran to his side and immediately checked him for injuries.

"I saw Ba'ul," he said grimly, still infuriated with himself for taking so long to get visible. "You know, Yuri's friend's flying whale. They flew right by me before I could get their attention."

Sodia looked to the sky with a frown. "Hm… that's frustrating, but look on the bright side, sir: it means they're looking for us."

"Yeah, that's true."

"Let me get you back on the stretcher and then we'll build a fire."

"Did you get anything worth cooking?"

"No, just some wild mushrooms and more weeds. This isn't a fire for cooking, though - we're going to make a lot of smoke. I'm certain they'll see it from the air and come straight back here."

Flynn's eyes lit up. "Oh! Yes, that is an excellent idea."

Flynn sat in the shade and ate his portion of the weeds and mushrooms while Sodia started a fire by the creek bank. Expecting weeds and mushrooms to fill his stomach was like hoping a few drops of rain would fill a barrel, but it was better than nothing. All he could hope for was that the smoke signal worked, Ba'ul came back, and carried them right to a great big feast in Aurnion.

"That should do it," Sodia said, tossing a leafy bush on the fire.

The bush was still slightly damp and rather than going up in flames it turned into a plume of smoke. Flynn's hopes soared into the sky along with the smoke. Yuri would see this. Ba'ul would be back any minute now. Flynn sat in the shade and waited with anticipation while Sodia lay on dirt by the creek, where she would clearly be visible. Flynn allowed himself to fantasize about getting out of this damned forest today, of sleeping in a proper bed, of getting a doctor to straighten his aching leg, and most of all, of getting a decent meal.

They had to wait for a long time. The sun was starting to set and Flynn's hopes dwindled by the time he heard branches cracking behind him. Footsteps! Those were human footsteps, too, unless the monsters of the forest had learned to walk upright. His heart soared; I'm going home.

With a huge grin glued to his face, he watched in anticipation for Yuri to come bursting through the trees. The bushes parted and a person strode toward him, but then Flynn's smile dropped. It wasn't Yuri.

Flynn's hand went to his sword before the man could take more than a few steps toward him, but the man had a sword of his own. He swung at Flynn, who managed to block it. The blow was strong and his left hand wasn't nearly as strong or dexterous, and twisted to the side. A sharp kick to his leg and he sunk his teeth into his lip to muffle a scream. The sword dropped from his hand, and seconds later the man's sword rested on his shoulder, the edge barely scraping his throat.

This all happened in seconds, so by the time Sodia got to her feet and ran toward them, she had to stop when the blade went to Flynn's throat. She gritted her teeth and furiously tightened her grip on her own sword, but didn't take a step closer.

"Smart girl," the man said.

"Who are you?" Sodia demanded.

"My name is Simon Cumore." He kicked Flynn's sword out of reach. "I've been looking for you. Thanks for the smoke signal."

"Cumore, huh?" Flynn said. "Did your sister send you?"

"She asked me to come, yes."

"So you're here to finish me off."

"That was the plan. You, woman," he planted one hand on Flynn's hand and pulled the sword tighter against his neck. "Throw your blade away."

Sodia bit her lip, glancing nervously to Flynn. Simon's sword pressed against his neck and a bead of blood trickled down his throat. Sodia breathed out through gritted teeth and then tossed her sword to the side. "You're just going to kill him, then? Because your sister asked you to? Have you no pride?"

"Actually, I'm not very happy about this arrangement at all." Now that they were both disarmed, he pulled the blade away from Flynn's neck, though he kept it in his hand. "I was really hoping you would be the one injured. The commandant is my prey, but there's no honour in hunting a lame animal." He faced Flynn and pointed his sword at his face. Flynn leaned back slightly and defiantly glared up at him. "Look at you; you can't even stand. There's no sport in killing a cripple."

Was being crippled going to actually save his life for the first time in this whole ordeal? Flynn wasn't sure if that made it worth it, but it was an unexpected perk. "So… are you going to let me go?"

Simon frowned. "I can't do that, either. Letting my prey walk free at the end of the pursuit is a waste of my time. Hm… woman, what is your name?"

"Sodia," she said with venom.

"Very well, Sodia, I'll make a deal with you. I agreed to do this job for my sister for the thrill of the hunt, but the commandant's condition means there's hardly any thrill there. So why don't I hunt you instead?"

Flynn looked between Sodia and Simon in alarm. "Excuse me?"

Simon ignored him. "I'll give you a head start. You run into the woods and try to evade me. If you manage to last twelve hours without me finding and killing you, you win and I will let you and the commandant go unharmed. If I catch you, I will kill you and then return to kill the commandant."

Sodia eyed him warily. "And if I refuse to play?"

Simon shrugged. "It pains me to do so without any sport, but I'll just kill the commandant here and you can go. I have no quarrel with you and you were never my intended prey."

Flynn met Sodia's eyes and silently told her to leave. Simon would never give her the option of playing a game with him if he wasn't confident he'd win, and there was no reason Sodia should let herself be hunted like an animal. Both of them didn't need to die here. She had to get back to Zaphias and tell everyone what had happened to him. More than that, someone had to carry out their goal of reforming the Knights and she was the only one who could do it.

Sodia tore her eyes away from Flynn, and he already knew what she was going to do. "Very well," she said, "Let's play your stupid game."

"Sodia, no," Flynn said angrily. "Just get out of here."

"I told you already, sir," she said evenly, "I'm not leaving this forest without you."

"I'm ordering you to leave me and return to Zaphias!"

"And I'm disagreeing with that order, as you told me I could."

Flynn wanted to argue, but there was no point. She'd made up her mind to save his life, and all he could hope for now was that she managed to win this game. He met her eyes and frowned, but nodded minutely to tell her he'd accepted her decision.

"Very good," Simon said. "Well then, I'll give you half an hour to get ahead of me. Your time starts now. Go."

Sodia gave Flynn one last look, and then took off into the trees.