Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, just the plot.

Chapter 11: Like Our Faces

Rayne, J.D, and Hyuga traveled contently for the next day. They had little reason to believe that Angelique was in any danger, but, for Rayne at least, he didn't want her to remain in Wodon alone for long.

The grass was dry, but patches of brush indicated that pockets of water were her or there.

Rayne glanced back at the two behind him: Hyuga with his rifle, and J.D looking blissfully unassuming yet strong.

"What will you do when you get to Wodon?" he asked them.

The two glanced at each other.

"I-I don't really know," J.D replied. Taking off his bowler and scratching his head. "I sort of acted brashly leaving Pharian and Sheriff Yorgo's service, but I'd like to think I can find something on my own. Perhaps Wodon is the place to start."

Rayne couldn't argue with that. He had doubts as to what would happen after he had finished this mission. He knew a part of him wanted to settle down and live the life of a civilian, while a part of him wanted to traverse the country, ridding the land of criminals. Hopefully, things would be clearer when he achieved his goal of getting Angelique to Celestizm.

"What about you, Hyuga?"

There was a longer pause than was expected. Hyuga's chest expanded as he inhaled. He settled the rifle in his lap and adjusted himself in his saddle.

"Don' know. Go back, fix my destroyed home, find somewhere else, or…"

He trailed off, leaving his thought unfinished.

"Or?" Rayne pressed.

Hyuga smirked, "Or head straight to the goddamn ocean."

Rayne gave him an incredulous look, "The ocean? To take a final plunge?"

Hyuga scoffed. "I've seen enough of land. I think its time I take a trek on water."

Rayne chuckled, "Fair enough. Then I wish you the best of luck in gaining your sea legs."

"I wish the same in you getting your aim straight."

Rayne was about to retort when something among the brush ahead caught his eye. Upon closer look, what looked like tall grass were bodies—around 20 of them—littered with arrows sticking from them.

"Oh boy—" Rayne murmured as a confused and clearly distraught J.D approached the corpses.

The men dismounted and approached the scene of the massacre, crows scattering from their feasting of the bodies.

J.D felt sickened. From here it was obvious. The Dragon Clan had ambushed and killed these people. And, to everyone's horror, women were among the corpses.

"Shit," Hyuga cursed under his breath nudging a rigid corpse.

"What were these people doing here?" J.D asked aloud, trying to find some justification for a Dragon Clan attack, "Here in the middle of no where. No horses, no camp. Nothing."

As J.D was speaking Rayne was staring down at a body, trying to pull some pieces together. He took in the clothing of the man, from his jacket down to his boots, thinking that the uniform looked familiar. He reached down and pulled the hat from the ground from behind the dead man's head. He turned it up to look at the front. It had a flat top and a rubber and cloth front bill with a gold insignia on the front. The insignia was a hollow triangle with an arrow pointing up on the inside.

"I think I found something," he called. J.D and Hyuga gathered around him.

"What is it?" Hyuga asked. Rayne pointed to the insignia.

"I've seen this sign before. It's on some of the trains. Some of the train attendants and conductors wear hats like these with insignias."

J.D glanced around, "These people…were from the trains?"

"Looks like it."

Hyuga glanced out at the corpses and walked towards a few others, "I see…"

"What?"

The other two followed the veteran. Hyuga pointed to an arrow sticking out from a corpse.

"Some of these arrow wounds aren't bleeding."

"And…?" Rayne said.

"A live man bleeds no matter what hits him. These arrows were inflicted several minutes after the heart stopped beating," Hyuga explained and he pointed to some bloody holes on the corpse's torso, "What killed him were bullets. Arrows were put in long after."

"So…" J.D paused, trying to contain his ecstatic relief, "The Dragon Clan did not do this?"

Hyuga spat on the ground, "Not likely. It's possible that bandits boarded a train, killed some of the civilians, dumped them on the side of the track and went back to make it all look like a massacre by the Dragon Clan."

"But it could be that the train that was attacked was Angelique's," Rayne said, his voice portraying every ounce of concern. There were other trains that came by this track before and after Angelique boarded the train. Still, he didn't like the odds.

"Well," Hyuga placed his hands on his hips, "Luckily I did not see her body among here, but who's to say that there aren't more massacred up ahead."

Rayne grit his teeth.

"Hyuga," J.D chided.

"I speak speculation of course, but I cannot deny a distinct possibility," Hyuga replied with a casual shrug, even though on the inside, he too hoped that the worst had not come to pass.

Not much was said between Nyx and Angelique as they rode for the next day. Soft cantering by Erwin and the occasional buzzing of insects or birds cawing were the only things breaking the silence. It was hard to tell if Nyx was angry with her for what she did last night, but Angelique thought it best that she assumed that was the case.

Regardless, they made it out of the woods and found themselves perched on top of a hill overlooking a large gulch filled with small houses and what looked like small railroads crossing through the dirt.

It was such a small rickety looking town and it certainly didn't have the splendor of Pharian or, heck, even Blackwater.

"Is this…?"

"An unnamed town. It's a mining settlement. Hence all the cart tracks," Nyx answered for her. "Miners settle here to work. With it comes small business. It is every inch a town, but not as large or as well developed as the towns you have encountered."

"Are we going to stop here?"

"Yes. I need to restock on supplies."

Angelique glanced up at her captor, a worried look on her face, "I thought you said you had no money."

A scoff erupted behind the face cloth, "I said no such thing. I said I'm using you for money, which I need, but I do have some notes on me to sustain my travels. I didn't kill that idiot Lucky What's-his-name for no reason."

His blue eyes stared pointedly at her as if to say, 'You were there when I killed him.'

Once again, Angelique was quickly reminded that the man she was with was deadly. She remained still, afraid to move, even as they descended into the gulch.

Erwin trotted slowly into the town full of workers and miners. It wasn't so much busy as it was a constant going to and from mines for these people. The dust, however, was unbearable. Not only did dirt kick up from the ground, but the dust from the mines seemed to linger forever in the air. So much so that Angelique coughed quite a few times.

Nyx stopped Erwin by a wooden shop, with General Store emblazoned in big dark block letters on the paint chipped sign over it.

The store was owned by one middle-aged man with spectacles and a handle bar mustache. He glanced up at the two and smiled, though a little perturbed at Nyx wearing a cloth over his identity.

"Welcome," he said, but Nyx went immediately to the dried goods area. Angelique was left to gaze at the various trinkets and wares the owner had. Most of the goods on display were exotic in some nature. Fur clothes, Dragon Clan weaponry and pipes, and even carved whalebone canes and coat buttons.

"How about you miss?" the owner asked looking to take advantage of Angelique's wonderment over his wares.

"Oh," Angelique laughed and shook her head, "I'm with him."

The owner glanced over at Nyx who was now scouring his aged whiskey selection.

"Strange…"

Angelique paused. Should she tell this man that she was technically kidnapped? If she were honest, she had forgotten all about her prisoner status. Nyx was still cold, but perhaps she was so used to riding on Erwin with him behind her that she had forgotten that this wasn't where she was supposed to be.

Still, she couldn't get far in this gulch, and Angelique didn't have the heart to get this man in trouble.

"Is he your brother or fiancé?"

Her jaw tightened and she didn't get a chance to correct him when Nyx put down some items on the counter. The owner forgot about Angelique and went about counting up the items.

"Whiskey, beef jerky, tobacco. Off for a long trip?"

"Sure," Nyx replied distantly reaching in his back pocket for some notes.

The owner bagged the items up. "Is that all?"

Nyx glanced at the man and nodded to the back wall, "No, I need a few cartridges of the 40s and a couple boxes of the shotgun cylinders."

The owner reached over on the shelf behind him and took down a few of the matchbox-like boxes and put them in the bag as well. Meanwhile, Nyx laid down a few of the notes on the counter.

"Keep the change," he said as he grabbed the bag and left the General Store with Angelique close behind.

Outside, Nyx began packing his purchases on Erwin, and adjusted the saddle. As she was waiting, Angelique spotted something out of the corner of her eye. Three figures were heading their way down the main street. The middle figure was wearing all black and bore a flat-topped wide-brimmed hat. They were coming at them fairly fast. Angelique tugged on Nyx's vest to grab his attention. He turned to glance at her before seeing what she was staring at.

"Oh boy," he whispered to himself.

The figures stopped. The man in black was obviously no ordinary man. He had a stern, yet open face and a silver cross dangled heavily from his neck and his black high-necked tunic bore a white collar. All three held pistols at their waists.

"Erebos," the man in black called.

Angelique could hear Nyx sigh in exasperation. He backed away from Erwin, facing the man directly.

"I'm sorry, you have the wrong person," there was a sense of humor in Nyx's voice.

"The Good Book says the Devil has a silvery tongue. To bad for you true men of God won't fall into your slippery lies," the man said. "I'm here to take you in Erebos. I will not bring any harm to you if you come peacefully."

Meanwhile, the man's had twitched near his pistol.

Angelique could tell by Nyx's posture that he was agitated, "Look, I don't want to have to kill a preacher man over a mistaken identity."

Angelique glanced at the man in black. So he was a preacher. She bit her lip, thinking of Father Mathias. She had no idea what he looked like and a deep part of her brain worried that this man might be him. Unlikely, but it worried her. What worried her more that was that a man of God would walk around with a pistol at his waist.

Angelique walked up to Nyx's side, hoping the preacher would not shoot with her present.

"Kill a warrior of God and you bring naught but hell upon you. Though knowing you, you'd probably relish it. Step away from the lady, and come with us."

"I'm telling you have the wrong guy. You can be so sure of my identity and you have yet to see my face," Nyx bit back.

"Enough of you fit the description. If you'd like, you can reveal your face to me so we can settle this," the preacher slowly with drew his pistol, but held it loosely in his hand, showing that he wasn't going to shoot it unless provoked.

Nyx didn't say anything in response and his shoulders just slumped in resignation. A part of Angelique's heart stuttered, as she thought that he was finally going to reveal his face.

"Come," the preacher said softly, "if you wish to absolve your sins with me later, you can."

The preacher sounded genuine, almost sympathetic.

The distinct sound of Nyx aggressively inhaling could be heard. He let out a sigh.

Quick as lightning he unsheathed his pistol and pulled the trigger. With a loud bang, the preacher fell onto the ground. Immediately, Nyx shot the man to the preacher's left and aimed the gun at the remaining man, who staggered. He halted his movement in getting his own gun.

"Don't," Nyx said deeply, holding his gun with a steady hand.

The man swallowed, and ran away.

Angelique was visibly upset. Nyx killed a preacher. She knew that it was all a mistake but why kill a man of the cloth? Bitterness settled in her stomach. That is until the preacher began writhing on the ground, clutching his thigh. The other man however lay unmoving.

Slowly, but surely, Nyx strode over the preacher's writhing body. The man had a glint of fear in his eyes as he stared up at Nyx, but his face remained firm.

Meanwhile, Nyx holstered his gun.

"For a "warrior of God" you sure have trouble recognizing the devil," he crouched down to stare directly into the preacher's face. "If I were the devil, I would've killed you once you dared to speak. But since I'm not, I will allow you to try to ask God to prevent these mistakes."

As Nyx stood and walked away, he "accidently" kicked the preacher's leg. Angelique flinched away as he grabbed her shoulder and dragged her to Erwin.

As they rode off, Angelique could feel something akin to frustrated anger festering in her gut. Such lack of consideration for people made her uncomfortable. Yes the preacher was threatening their lives, and she supposed defending himself was the only thing Nyx could do. But he seemed so casual about it.

"Was it necessary to shoot him?"

A soft chuckle erupted from his chest, "And be shot myself? Would you find more pleasure in that?"

"Why does anybody have to shoot anybody?"

She could feel the hollow rumble of laughter through Nyx's body.

"Not every place can be paradise. Which is ironic, because people kill and put themselves in danger just to see paradise. It's this desire to conquer virgin land that drives men to violence. I quickly found myself swept up in that violent fever."

Nyx's voice was cutting, as if he held some sort of anger within himself for…something. For Angelique though, she paused. He made it sound like he wasn't always this cruel. Was he once a simple law-abiding citizen as well? As odd as it was for Angelique to imagine, perhaps circumstances did change the people who traveled to this part of the continent. Was it possible to change back? Angelique hoped so. If she too ended up falling into this rapid madness, she wanted to know that there was a way out. But, she prayed, that she would never have to harm someone in her life, even if it was for protection.

Angelique remained silent, watching the land speed past them as Erwin galloped across the dirt ground and into a rough forest once again. Unfortunately, as the trotted into the woods, the light was dying and nightfall came upon them too quickly.

Angelique didn't exchange more than a few words with Nyx as he instructed her to find some kindling as he round up some wood. She didn't wander far from Erwin or Nyx, getting nervous every time she heard a rustle.

As the nights before, Nyx and Angelique sat in front of the fire, but this time the silence was too heavy. Angelique sat across from the man who was busy stripping leaves from braches to place on the fire. She glanced over at Erwin, who was pawing at the ground, trying to stay awake.

She could have used some comfort. Something to ground her. She's seen people get shot before, but it was twice that she had seen the man she was with casually draw a gun and shoot someone without a blink.

How did she end up like this? All she wanted was to meet with Father Mathias in Celestizm. But now, she remembered, she was likely to be given to a mad man. Supposedly madder than the man she was currently with.

Angelique breathed in and bit her lip. She reached into her jacket and pulled out the letter she held so dear. Perhaps what little remained of her family could grant her comfort. As soon as she started re-reading the letter, she became very aware that Nyx was staring at her. She tried to concentrate on the words rather than the man, but his stare was paralyzing.

Finally, he spoke.

"What do you have there?"

Angelique frowned, "A letter from my father."

"Oh?" the question was almost teasing.

"Yes, it's…" she paused wondering if she should reveal any more, "It's all I have left…of him."

Angelique could hear the man practically sigh. Afterwards he shifted in the dirt and stood. She tore her attention away from the letter and focused it on the man as he stepped towards her, his boots thudding against the ground. Soon he was looming over her, his face obviously unreadable, and she stared up at him with fearful wide eyes.

It seemed that the forest went silent for a moment. The only noise was Nyx's breathing. She swallowed.

He quickly reached down and snatched the letter from her hands.

"Hey!" she cried, trying to grab at him, "Give it back!"

Her protests fell upon deaf ears. Nyx unfurled the letter and began to read it. As he read it silently to himself, he casually strolled towards the fire to get a better light.

"So…" he paused, with a small amount of amusement in his voice. "To Celestizm you go."

He faced her, his eyes smiling, "What's so important about this letter that you have to keep it with you?"

Angelique's lips thinned, her eyes narrowing on the man. Was he mocking her? Surely he read it all the way through to know how she felt about it. Could he not read her father's calmness in his words.

"Well?"

"It's none of your business."

A chuckle erupted in Nyx's throat, "Come, now. I was just curious, that is all."

Angelique inhaled deeply as Nyx folded the letter back up and took a few steps back towards her

"It's all I have left of home."

As much as Angelique wanted to sound stern, her voice wavered as emotion filled her chest. Trying to hide it only made her feel worse. Nyx didn't say anything. He waited as if he was willing to hear more.

"My mother passed away, and not long after father was killed by a mugger on the street. At least that's what the police said. After Mother died he apparently had plans to move to Celestizm, but he updated his will and testament after her death in the unfortunate event of his death I should be properly taken care of."

Angelique heard a sigh. Nyx raised the letter in his hand, "So you hold on to this because of a memory?"

Nyx didn't wait for a reply and shook his head, "Why bother. You won't find your family in Celestizm. You won't find comfort there. This is a different beast, Angelique."

Angelique flinched when he used her name.

"If you truly want to start over," he said, something catching in his throat, "You can't hang on to the words of the past."

With that he moved towards the fire. As soon as Angelique saw him extend the hand with the envelope, a cry flew out of her throat. Before she could even think, she scrambled on the dirty ground to Nyx's legs in desperation, her heart thumping, hoping he didn't throw the letter in the fire already.

"Please, don't!" she wailed, tears bursting from her eyes, her hold on Nyx's calf tightening. Nyx paused and stared down at her in surprise.

"Please," she continued, her voice a shaky whisper that could only break a normal man's heart. "Just give it back. I beg of you."

Nyx's blue eyes were wide in a mixture of concern and astonishment. Her desperation shocked him. He figured she would cry or be even more angry at him, but to crawl to him weeping, both stunned and disgusted him. If this was how she responded to adversity, how the hell did she survive this long in the west?

He dropped his hand. Angelique was still crying into his pant leg. Taking mercy upon her, he gently patted her head.

"It's alright. Alright. You can have it back."

When she heard his voice, she felt it was surprisingly gentle, as was the hand upon her head. Her tears softened and her heart flooded in relief as she saw the hand with the letter still in it, fall to his side.

Angelique swallowed her tears as she stared into his eyes, looking for any sort of sign of falsehood or approval. Nyx held the letter out to her and she immediately snatched it away, as if she were afraid he would snatch it away again. Angelique shoved the letter back into her bodice, next to her heart as Nyx stepped away from her and sat down by the fire. In silence, she too shifted into a seated position and began drying her tears. Nyx was busy playing with a twig, the brim of his hat hiding his eyes as he hung his head.

He inhaled deeply, "I too come from out east."

Angelique blinked when he spoke.

"Where?" she replied, not wanting to leave his sentence hanging.

"Rhys," he answered. "North of Fleur."

"I see. Why come out here?"

There was a soft pause.

"Money. My older brother and I lived well, until he decided to turn his back on morality and steal all I had and establish himself here."

"Wait," Angelique's eyes widened, "'Older brother?' I thought you were Erebos' twin."

There was a sigh from the other side, "I am. He was just spat out of hell before me. I don't remember what he did before he turned to a life of crime. For twins, we weren't terribly close, but I do indeed know he lived for a time in Fleur for business. Then, I come home one day to find that all my money was gone and all my stocks sold. He bled me dry behind my back in what seemed to be one night."

Nyx shook his head, "I was either to live as a bum in the harrowing streets in Rhys, or try to scrounge up something to reside here. I foolishly chose the latter."

"So that's why you want money. You want to use me as a bargaining chip to get it back."

"Exactly," Nyx's voice sounded hoarse.

Angelique felt an odd sense of relief. He was opening up to her. It may not have been what she wanted to hear, but knowing more about Nyx and a little more about Erebos made her feel not so blind about what was happening.

"Why does he want me?"

Nyx, disappointingly, shrugged, "I have no idea. All I know is that he has it out for you, or someone like you. He's sending his men on goose chases and even a few of the other bands will more than likely want their hands on you to gain Erebos' favor or for money. No doubt those Silver Knights want to use you to draw him out."

Angelique sighed, not sure how she should feel, "All I want is to get to Celestizm. I never did anything to Erebos. Maybe he's mistaken."

"Are you sure you never encountered him before? You both being from Fleur more than likely cannot be a coincidence."

"You think? I'm just a student. Or I was. How could I possibly have any connection with him?"

Nyx's chest expanded a little as he sighed and he shook his head, "I can't say."

Angelique nodded more to herself and watched Nyx as he stoked the fire. If he opened up a little about his past, why did he still hide his face?

"Can I ask you something?"

A grunt was the response.

Angelique wrapped her arms tighter around her legs as she worked up the courage to ask, finally.

"I would like to see your face. I mean…I suppose I already know what you look like, but—"

"Why do you care?" Nyx snapped. "What does it matter what I look like?"

Angelique couldn't really explain why. At least not to his face. She was just curious, mostly.

"To put a face to the name I suppose…"

Nyx shook his head, "I shouldn't have told you anything. Very well…"

He shifted in his seat, dropping his twig. One hand drifted to his scarf while the other touched the brim of his hat. Angelique held her breath. It seemed to take forever as he removed his hat and pulled down his scarf, finally showing his face.

The flickering of the fire made it tough to see his face in all its glory, but she could see enough. His hair was long and dark and thick. His face was fine, handsome, appealing, if not a little tired and haggard. She knew he had blue eyes, but now that his face was unscathed, and she could piece it all together, she could help be drawn to them.

Hell, she couldn't help but be drawn to his face. It looked similar to the drawing of Erebos, but it didn't give out the same feel. His face, moreso, exuded a gentleness that she never would have anticipated. She was certain that when she would ever encounter Erebos, she could be able differentiate the two.

But that still left something nagging in the back of her head. She couldn't help but think that maybe she had seen this face before. Either one of them. Maybe its because she had been so transfixed on the poster. Or she had been with Nyx for quite some time. But it was still an odd feeling.

Nyx scoffed, "Not very impressive, is it?"

Angelique blinked. Should she answer?

"Of course you should be aware why I hide my identity. To prevent misunderstandings between belligerents who think I'm my brother. At lot of good that has done me, if today is any indication."

"I suppose that has made it…hard," Angelique replied, not taking her eyes off him. She realized she was staring when Nyx glanced back up and narrowed his eyes in a curious stare.

Immediately, she tried to cover her embarrassment by rubbing her eyes, as if a bit of dust got caught in them.

Nyx didn't seem to care as he just said, "You should get to sleep."

Rather than argue she did as she was told and lay down by the fire. Nyx, however, remained awake, standing vigil to keep watch over odd creatures or bandits. Or if his trade-in thought to escape.

"Thank you," Angelique said softly, as she lay on her side facing away from the fire, "For telling me everything and giving me the courtesy of seeing who you are."

No surprise, Nyx didn't reply.

But she didn't see a small, smile play on his lips.

A/N: Been forever since I updated. While this story is far from finished, it won't take another ten chapters to finish. I promise.