Disclaimer: Still don't own Fire Emblem...

Chapter 20: An Unexpected Encounter

I'm not sure how long it took before I finally saw the smoke on the horizon, but I immediately sped up and unsheathed my weapon. "There's the village! Let's get going!" I call back towards Myra. I receive a 'Hmph' in reply, and I have to stop myself from snapping at her. Seriously, what's up with me? I've gotten grouchy over headaches before, but never like this. It's actually starting to worry me a little… I really was an ass back there, wasn't I? Maybe I'm wrong; maybe this isn't just a normal headache-

Focus on what's ahead of you and worry about headaches later, I tell myself as I continue onwards. Some time later, I can actually make out the buildings of the village, as well as the fire that's causing the smoke to rise up. And of course, a small group of men clustered ahead of me – four of them, all carrying axes from what I can see. One of them turns around as I get closer and jumps back. Weird, he looks… terrified, and somehow I don't think its Myra or I that's made him look so worried.

"Guys, we got company!" he shouts, and the other three immediately turn around to face us, readying their weapons. "Hell, we didn't need this, not right now! Look, just get out of our way, and we won't have to hurt you!"

"Sorry, but that's not happening," I reply, leveling my sword at the man. "You're with Harker's Hounds, aren't you? And you had orders to attack this town, right?" He takes a step back and by the nervous expression on his face, I can guess I'm right on the money. Good. For a second I was wondering if these might have been villagers trying to escape. It'd kinda look bad if I attacked a bunch of innocent people. Wouldn't do any wonders for my headache, at the very least.

His face suddenly pales. "Oh hell! You're working with that swordsman, aren't you?" Swordsman? I doubt he means Marco… Did someone get here before us to take these guys down? I guess he's doing a pretty damn good job of it if they're this worried about the man. "…To hell with it! We can't go back there; it'll be certain death! You two, on the other hand, don't look too bad. We'll just tear through you and head back to camp!"

They let out battle cries as they charge, weapons at the ready. I frown and run towards them, a bit irritated that they really don't think I look like a threat. I mean, I know I'm not the best fighter in the world, but I can handle a few bandits! …Then again, I nearly got crushed by that one earlier – Screw it, I just won't block another axe strike.

I hear something flying through the air behind me, and a moment later one of the bandits is on the ground, on fire and screaming. The other three jump at his sudden combustion. Considering I'm still running towards them, not the best move. Before they can react, I raise my sword and bring it down on one of the bandits, catching him in the collarbone. He cries out as I grunt and pull down, leaving a nasty gash on his chest. He falls down, and while I'm not sure if he's dead at this moment, he won't be getting up from that one, I think.

The other two finally snap out of it and rush me. I jump back to avoid the first guy's swing, but I realize that, unfortunately, there's not much else I can do but block the second bandit's axe. I raise my sword as his axe comes down and – Damn, he knocked me down! Seriously, can I not fight these guys without them knocking me down in one hit? Before he can try and attack me again, a fireball catches him in the shoulder and knocks him back. Myra's going to hold that one over my head, I realize as rise up in a crouch. I lunge forwards and stab him straight in the stomach before standing up and kicking him off my blade. He stays on the ground, and I'm positive he won't be getting up.

Three down, one to go-

"Get back!" Oh, you've got to be kidding me! Spinning around, I see that, indeed, the last bandit made his way past me while I was dealing with his friend and, predictably, he decided the mage would be an easier target than the guy with the sword. Growling, I clench my fist and rush towards him. "I'm warning you! Get away from me, or else!" Myra, stop talking and do something, dammit! Finally she raises a hand, and I can see the fireball forming, which is good.

Except it seems the bandit saw it too and lunges forwards, surprising her. The fireball fizzles out and he tackles her to the ground, knocking her Fire tome out of her hands. An angry yell escapes my throat, surprising me by the sound, and I leap at the man, tackling him from behind. We tumble to the ground, with me somehow getting on top of him. Looking down at him, I can feel something tickling the back of my mind and the blood rushing to my head and I feel my fist rear back and-

"Kale! Kale, stop it!" I blink as I hear Myra. Looking up, I see her standing in front of me, her tome clutched to her chest. She flinches when our eyes make contact and she looks… Well, she always looks pale, but somehow she actually looks paler than usual. "W-why did you do that? What were you thinking! You didn't have to go that far, you idiot!"

I shake my head in confusion. "Wha- What the hell are you talking about? Just what did I do-" A groan from below me cuts me off and I look down- "What the hell!?" I scream, falling backwards off of the man. He looks like someone took a meat tenderizer to his face! I crawl backwards, only to lose my balance and fall back to the ground, smacking my head in the process. Groaning, I reach back to rub my head, only to feel something wet and sticky and-

Oh no. No. "Myra," I croak, my voice shaky, "can you come over here? I think… I think I just hurt my head. Can… Can you come and check if its bleeding?" I don't get a response, but I hear her run up to me. Sitting up, I feel her check the back of my head. "…There's no blood is there?" I ask as I bring my hands in front of my face. My hands covered in metal gauntlets.

Blood-covered metal gauntlets.

What the hell did I do?

Without saying anything, I stand up and dust myself off. Realizing the Blade isn't in my hands, I look around and see it's been planted in the ground next to the man. Slowly walking over to it, I give it a quick tug, freeing it. Turning to Myra, I see her flinch away again. I look away. "Don't say anything. Let's just go and finish this," I tell her.

"But… Kale-"

"Don't!" I snap, not realizing just how angry I sound until I hear the word come out of my mouth. Taking a deep breath, I try and calm myself down. "Myra, please. Just… please." A fresh wave of pain from the headache strikes me, making me grunt in annoyance. Without even looking at Myra, I march towards the village, ready to take these bandits down.

I only take a few steps into the town, however, before I realize that there may not be many left to take down. There are bodies everywhere, and while I think I see a few that might belong to peasants, I'm pretty sure the men with axes and lances lying by their bodies are the bandits, and there are way more of them. As I walk past one house, I see five bodies, all lying in their blood. Four of them are facedown, but one is… Well, I wouldn't say face-up since he seems to be lacking a face, but still.

Walking past the house, I hear a loud scream. Turning my head, I look at Myra. "You heard that, right?" I ask. She nods. "Alright. Now, I have two questions. Was that a bandit or a villager? And if it was a bandit, who made them scream like that?" Looking back towards where the scream came from, I frown. I don't know why, but I'm just feeling… anxious right now, like something's about to go horribly, horribly wrong. Granted, it's not the worst case of anxiety I've ever suffered through, but still, I can't help but feel a little paranoid when I see all of these bandits pretty much slaughtered all around me.

There's another scream, and before I can react, Myra runs past me. "Wha- Myra, wait!" I call, but she keeps running. Gritting my teeth in frustration, I sheathe my sword and run after her. I know what I said before, but I'm not going to let her get hurt on my watch; Marco would have my head. And various other parts of my body with it, I'm sure.

Thankfully, she doesn't run too far, and I catch up with her as she stops just behind a fence. "Myra, what are you doing?" I hiss as I walk up behind her. She doesn't say anything, but instead keeps staring at whatever's just beyond this corner. Curiosity gets the best of me and I slowly walk around her to see what's going on, while something in my gut tells me that I might not like what I see.

As I turn the corner and watch the scene before me, I decide I've never been happier that my gut was wrong.

"It's him," Myra whispers, a hint of awe in her voice. I just nod dumbly as I recognize the masked swordsman, standing in the middle of a group of bandits that must have been larger at some point if the bodies littering the ground are any indicator. He hardly seems concerned by the fact that he's surrounded; in fact, the bandits look like they're the ones who are surrounded. As for himself, he's just standing there, sword lowered as he looks at the people surrounding him.

"Are any of you going to make your move?" the man asks, finally breaking the silence, and I see a few of the bandits step away from him. "Or shall we just wait until we turn to skeletons from waiting so long?" I hear laughter, and realize that it's coming from him. "Then again, I don't like that idea so much. It'd be rather boring, don't you think?"

The first bandit falls before I even realize the man's moved, holding his throat as blood begins to leak from between his fingers. A second later, the swordsman slices through another's stomach. By this point, the bandits are finally getting their weapons ready. One man charges, only for the swordsman to spin around him and stab him through the back. Grabbing his sword with both hands, he pulls, and there's a sickening sound as he rips the blade from the bandit. Another pair runs at him, one wielding an axe and the other a lance. The man rushes the lance-wielder, jumping up and kicking off of his chest before driving his sword down though the shoulder of the axe bandit. They both fall to the ground, but the swordsman reaches to the bandolier on his chest and pulls out a knife. Hitting the ground, he turns around and throws it, catching the lance bandit in the arm. He lets out something that sounds like a mix between a roar of anger and a laugh as he rushes the man, pulling another knife out and driving it into his throat. As the bandit falls, he grabs the other knife and pulls both out in one clean motion.

At this point, I feel it's only fair that I say that my eyes are the size of dinner plates and my lower jaw has become well acquainted with the ground. I don't know whether to consider the man brutal or graceful, but he sure as hell gets the job done! Glancing over towards Myra, I see she's having a similar reaction to this, with her hands holding her tome so tightly I think I can hear the leather crack.

"Well, I must say, I am severely disappointed." Hearing the raven-masked swordsman snaps me back to the action. At the moment, he's just walking over to where his sword is currently buried in some poor saps skull, looking as casual as can be. Doing a quick headcount, I see that two more bandits are dead, including the one on the ground. "I'd heard that Harker's men could be something of a threat. I was actually looking forwards to fighting some of you as I passed through here, but I guess the rumors were all false." He sighs and shakes his head in disappointment. "Oh well. I suppose you were a bit of a good workout anyhow, and I'm sure I put on a good enough show for the two of you hiding behind that fence there."

…Wait, what? He turns to face the two of us and gives us a small nod. "If you don't mind, I'd prefer to save the pleasantries for later," he tells us as he lifts the blade from the man's head. "I've got a bit of a pest problem to deal with. Bunch of nasty rats, covered in fleas and filled with diseases, you know?" Somehow, I can see the smirk underneath the mask as he says this.

A bit of motion catches my eye and I see two of the remaining bandits rushing towards him. Before I can even think of warning him, he spins around. I actually hear the sword whistle through the air, and a moment later, he has two dead men on either side of him. The last three do probably the most sensible thing that they could: they throw their weapons down and run as fast as they can. Only, one of them hits the ground as a knife buries itself in his leg. His friends don't even bother to look back as he lets loose quite a colorful list of word, some of which I've never heard.

A few moments later, the swordsman walks over to the man, another knife in hand, and cuts off the tirade with a quick stab to the back of the head.

"Incredible," Myra breathes from beside me. I just nod dumbly in agreement. Seriously, I'm really having some trouble processing everything I just watched this guy do. Ten bandits, all dead, without even getting hit once! I'm not even sure if he let a single one of them attack. Whoever he is, he's got some insane ability when it comes to fighting, that's for sure.

And now he's walking towards the two of us, only to stop and hold up his hands for some reason. "Easy there. I don't plan to attack you." I blink, confused as to what he's talking about. He motions towards my side, making me look, and – Oh, that's a bit embarrassing. I move my hand off of the handle of my sword and look off to the side, trying – and failing – not to feel like a complete idiot. When did I even reach for it?

"Well, someone's decided to be rude – Oh, wait," Myra begins, and I feel my headache already starting to come back, "you've been nothing but rude lately." I turn to face her, and of course she has her arms folded over her chest and a smug look on her face, the little… "I'd like to apologize for his behavior. He's always been a bit of a pain, but it seems he's moved on to being a full-blown annoyance now." She casts me a little glance and smirks at the end of that.

I glare at her before turning back to the swordsman. "Sorry. I didn't even realize I'd reached for it. I swear I wasn't going to attack you. Unless you attacked first, I mean. Then it'd just be self-defense, though I'm pretty sure I wouldn't stand a chance…" Scratching the back of my neck nervously, I try and laugh it off. "Uh, like I said, I wasn't going to attack, and I'm sorry, so… yeah…"

The man just shakes his head. "Well, I don't have any cuts on me at the moment, so I'd say you don't have much to be sorry for." I let out a sigh of relief at those words. He doesn't seem too dangerous, but still. Stranger Danger, and all that. "So, what brings you two to Ponlac? And where are your companions?" he asks in a remarkably casual tone, like we'd been friends for years.

"We were going to try and stop Harker's goons from razing the village, but I think you beat us to it," I say, motioning to the corpses just in front of me. Huh. In another world, I don't think I'd be so comfortable around corpses. Well, maybe not comfortable, but I can at least look at them without feeling sick. "As for where the others are…" I trail off, not sure if I should really tell this guy where the rest of the group is. Stranger Danger, after all.

"Not entirely too sure if you can trust me, right?" I shrug and tilt my head slightly. He nods his head in what I'm hoping is understanding. "Fair enough, fair enough. After all, this is really our first time meeting without there being a pack of Risen around us, so we really don't know each other." He offers me a hand. "I go by Caine. Good to meet you."

Slowly I accept his hand. This Caine's friendliness is a little off-putting, I admit. I mean, one second he's toying with bandits, and now he's wanting to shake hands and tell us his name? It just doesn't quite feel right. Still, better to not upset the man who toys with bandits, so I grab his hand firmly. "I'm Kale, and this is Myra." I gesture to her with my free hand.

I cringe as she 'Hmphs' in annoyance. "I can introduce myself, you know." Yes, I'm sure you could. And he'd probably want to jam one of those knives down your throat from how annoying you can be. "Like he said, my name is Myra. Though, do you mind if I ask what you meant by this is our first Risen-free meeting? I don't remember meeting you before."

"Kale and I encountered each other near the Duke of Themis' former manor. I don't remember which one it was, but that's not really important, I guess. Later, I ended up helping him get inside when Malum's knight wouldn't let them past."

"Malum?" Myra and I ask at the same time. Immediately we both glare at each other.

It seems like he's about to answer when someone shouts. "Hey, the three of ya done yappin' like a buncha hounds chasin' a rabbit?" I turn in the direction of the gruff voice to see a small band of people, maybe ten in all, led by an old man leaning on a cane. Well, maybe old is a bit of a stretch; there's dark brown in his graying hair and he looks a lot sturdier than any old man I've ever met, besides the cane. "Ah, so ya are," he says with a grin. "Good. Then you three won't mind comin' with me, now will ya?"

A few minutes later, Myra, Caine, and myself are sitting at a round table, with the old man from before sitting in front of us. We got brought to a house that had what I was guessing a forge sitting outside of it, so I'm guessing the local blacksmith lives here, and were led to a dark room just big enough for us all. "The name's Keith, and I'm the local blacksmith," he tells us after a few minutes of him just looking at us. Any time Myra or I tried to say anything he'd just glare at us, like we'd just committed a horrible crime. I think I found someone whose glare overpowers Garrett's. And I don't like it. Well, at least I was right about the blacksmith living here. Probably. Might just be his workshop.

"Pleasure to meet you, Keith," Caine replies smoothly, and I glance over at him. He's still as calm as he seemed when we'd been talking, and he hadn't once said a thing while Keith was staring us all down. He's always pretty calm, now that I think about it. Even back at the manor, he seemed to have everything together. I frown a bit at the memory, wishing I'd been that calm then. "My name is-"

"I know yer name, Caine. Ya told it ta me when ya came to have yer sword repaired," the blacksmith snaps, shifting his glare towards the man in the mask. Of course, with the mask on, I'm not sure if it affected Caine or not. "As fer the two of ya," he turns back to Myra and myself, thankfully not with that glare, "I don't know who ya are. Ya got names, or should I just call ya Mister Goldie and Miss Pasty?"

While I just look down at the color of my coat – which, while the gold's not exactly a color I'm fond of, it doesn't look too bad – I hear Myra let out a little squawk. Immediately I wince, the sound piercing through my skull and adding onto my returning headache. I don't know why, but it came back not long after I sat down in the chair. Actually, thinking about it, I'm not sure if it ever left. I guess adrenaline could've just blocked out the pain. Doesn't stuff like that happen when someone's injured but they have to keep going?

"How dare you!" the albino harpy next to me shrieks. "Maybe instead of Keith, I should call you Mister… Mister…" I look over at her as she trails off, and admittedly feel a bit of satisfaction as I see her thinking, trying to come up with an insult. Failing at it, from the look of things.

Though, from the way he's staring at her, I think it'd be best to say something before Keith decides to strangle her. Of course, I did tell her she shouldn't expect me to come to her rescue…

"Girlie, I don't know who ya think ya are, raisin' ya voice like that, but let me warn you: I've dealt with my share of grandchildren, all of 'em little hellions, but I made sure they knew not ta act up around me after I gave 'em a good hard spankin'. So don't you think for a second I won't reach across this table, pick ya up, an' bend you over my knee just because yer older than they were."

…I'm half-tempted to clap for this old man, because the look on Myra's face after what he just said is enough to give him a standing ovation. She looks absolutely astonished, and her mouth's just moving up and down as she just tries to speak. I carefully lay my head down on the table so she doesn't see the massive grin I'm sporting right now, though the fact that I can feel my whole body shaking with laughter that I'm somehow keeping in might give me away.

"Now sit yer bottom in that chair and shut yer mouth. Yer lookin' like a plum idiot."

And that does it. I throw my head back and start laughing, holding my sides from how painful it is. And looking over at Myra just makes me laugh harder because of how angry she's looking! God, if I don't stop, I'm likely to fall out of my chair and-

"Just who're ya laughin' at, boy? I'll do the same ta ya fer laughin' at her like that. Didn't yer mama teach ya to respect a girl?"

And I'm just going to sober up now. Sitting straight up in my chair, I fold my hands on the table and nod. "Sorry about that, Mr. Keith. We-"

"An' don't ya start callin' me 'Mister', or I'll knock the word right out of ya skull!"

"…okay," I say in a very, very small voice. It's official: I've met someone who's scarier than Garrett. Clearing my throat, I try and pick up from where I was cut off. "We do have names, Keith. I'm Kale, and she's Myra. We're both pleased to meet you." I hear the girl scoff, and I close my eyes in frustration. Can she just stop acting so bitchy for a few minutes?

"Perhaps it would be best if you told us the reason that we were called in here for," Caine speaks up. "In the past, I've found that things usually go much more smoothly when people get right down to the matter at hand, rather than pad it out. That way, there's less of a chance of conflict arising."

Keith looks at the masked warrior for a minute, and then shrugs. "Fine by me. I'm ready to get to the meat of this problem, anyhow." Clearing his throat, he stands up from his chair and starts pacing back and forth, the click of his cane barely audible.

"Ponlac's a good place ta live. I should know; lived here my whole life, raised my kids here, and watched my grandchildren grow up around these parts, terrorizin' everyone and everythin' around here." He pauses his pacing for a minute, and I see his mouth move down in a frown. "Then that bastard's bastard Harker showed up and made a damned mess of everythin'.

"Now, we'd heard 'bout him before, from people from villages up the road. Tales of his cruelty, of how he nailed folks he didn't like to trees and left 'em to rot, but we didn't pay him no mind. He was there, and we were here.

"Then, he just swoops in one day, maybe five years back, and starts killin'." He stops and brings a hand to his eyes. "He killed my daughter and her husband right in front of me and their little girl. Somethin' 'bout settin' an example for us all. Ever since, we've just had to deal with livin' under his thumb, tryin' to survive the cold winters an' the cold bastard. An' the gods musta been helpin' us, 'cause it wasn't easy."

He reaches into the front pocket of the apron/smock/thing that blacksmith's wear and pulls out a piece of paper. "Found this a coupla days ago," he explains as he brings it to the table and slides it towards us. "From my granddaughter, Rebecca. I woke up, and she'd vanished, along with the weekly fee we pay Harker. She… The note says what she had planned."

We all just stare at it for a moment, before Caine slowly reaches over and picks the note up. He looks at it for a minute, and I hear him make something that sounds like an angry grunt at some point. "Well," he finally says, putting the note down, "your granddaughter certainly had more courage than some people that I've known. Quite a risky plan, but I suppose that it failed, seeing as how I just had to slay forty-or-so bandits." Keith just looks down at the floor and says nothing.

Curiosity gets the best of me, so of course I pick up the note.

And my gut wrenches with every line I read.

"Dear Grandfather,

"By the time you will have found this note, I will have already set my plans into motion. Please, do not send anyone after me, and do not try and follow me yourself. I don't need any more thoughts of home clouding my judgement, and I have to be focused for what I plan to do.

"I am going to kill Harker. I'll hide a knife in the sleeve of my dress and enter his fort pretending to bring him the weekly payment. One of the guards there has tried many times to 'charm' me into becoming his, and I plan to use this against him. Harker himself, the cursed bastard he is, is just as much a pig, and will likely try and place his hands on me. That is when I will strike, driving the knife into his black heart, our eyes locked as he breathes his last. It shall be the happiest day of my life to end his.

"However, I realize, as I right this, that I may fail. There are so many things that could go wrong – the guard could suspect something and finds the knife, I fumble for the weapon and waste my chance, my nerve gives out before I can do it, or I strike only to find that Harker has no heart, just a black pit where it should be.

"That last one seems to be the most likely.

"This is the true reason that I am writing this note: this is a warning. On the day that we are scheduled to bring Harker his gold, watch for me on the roads. If I do not return by the morning, prepare the villagers for a quick escape. Harker will no doubt attempt to make examples of you all, and I don't want to know that it was my fault that any of you die.

"Maybe it's selfish of me, this entire idea, but this has to end. Harker's reign of terror has to end, and soon! He's already managed to spread to Ponlac; who's to say he won't spread further and ruin more lives? I don't want anyone to go through what we have all been through, and if I have even the slightest chance of making sure that doesn't happen, then I will take it, no matter what may happen to me!

"I've left early to make sure that the sight of my home doesn't keep me from going through with this. You taught me how to live off of the wilderness, and I can survive for one day by myself. This is a painful choice that I have made, but I can only imagine how much pain I'll have caused by making it. Just know that I did it for the good of everyone, and if I am hated by the people I called friends because of the results, then I will accept it.

"Grandfather, when you read this, make a promise. Promise that you will believe in me. Promise that you will believe I can do this. And promise me that, no matter what happens, you will know that I've always loved you.

"Goodbye,

"Rebecca"

I slowly put the note on the table and cover my eyes with a hand. Dear God, I felt like I just read a suicide note! I'll admit that Caine's right about her being brave, but… Damn, I just don't know what to say about any of this. I run my hand down my face and shake my head, trying to… Just trying to comprehend what I've just read. Out of the corner of my eye I spot Myra reaching for the note. "You don't want to read that," I warn, my voice low and quiet. She looks at me like she's about to say something, but stops and turns away.

"As ya can probably guess… Rebecca didn't come home," Keith says. I can hear him fighting the urge to start crying, but if he did, I really wouldn't blame him. "An' now, Harker has sent his men to make us pay. Already I've heard the people of this village talk about what Rebecca's done to 'em. An' you know what? Ta hell with all of 'em!" He smacks the ground with his cane and looks up at us, fire in his eyes.

"She was willin' ta do somethin' hardly anyone 'round here's considered in years! If they think that she's done bad by it, then they're all idiots. Idiots and cowards, since not a one's said anythin' ta my face 'bout it!" I hear something crackling, and it takes me a minute to realize that he's twisting his cane into the wooden floor. "Caine," Keith begins, looking towards the masked man who leans forwards in interest, "I've been meanin' ta ask ya since ya dropped that sword off for me ta fix up, but I found that letter the day ya arrived. Like a gift from the gods, I thought, here's someone who might be able to cut that Harker down to size! So I beg of ya, please, help us all! Kill Harker for us and avenge my granddaughter! I will pay ya anything ya ask for, just name yer price!"

"No."

The reply's so quick that I nearly get whiplash from it. I turn to stare at the masked man, who has his fingers steepled in front of him. I just don't understand! He was friendly with Myra and me outside, when we were strangers, but he at least knows Keith a little, so why isn't he-

"An' just why the hell aren't ya!?" Keith screams, his face turning dark crimson. "I'm willin' ta give ya anythin' ya ask for, but yer not gonna take it? Ya bastard, yer just a chicken-shit coward! Ya might be able ta fight well, but yer cold hearted, and I'd love nothin' more than to see ya dead on the ground right now!" He finally stops, breathing hard and sending that terrifying glare towards the swordsman. Personally, I'm glad that he has, since it was murdering me with my headache. God, can this just go away already?

Caine shrugs and leans back in his chair. "Well, you'd have to get in line I'm afraid. I have a lot of people wanting to dance on my grave; a few more want to do more creative things to it. And I don't believe I'm a coward for not wanting to get involved with something that, really, doesn't involve me, and no matter how much screaming you do, it won't make me change my answer. Which is still a no." Keith stiffens up and looks like he's about to go on another tirade. I close my eyes and wait for the pain.

"As in, it's a no to accepting any form of payment." I open my eyes as I hear a chair move and look over to see Caine standing up, looking… kinda fierce, actually.

"I'm not going to object to the cold-hearted part of your rant. I think you're actually pretty close to truth on that one, to be honest. But," he brings a hand up to his chest, where his heart would be, "this thing isn't cold enough that I don't feel anything. I won't accept any payment because I want to see something done about his man myself. He's a threat to everyone, not just the people he's controlling but to any traveler who might stumble into his territory." He draws his sword from the newer looking sheath and holds it in front of himself vertically. "It'll be my pleasure to see his blood on this sword."

"And don't count us out!" I jump as Myra slams her palms down onto the table and stands up. She'd been pretty quiet, so it's a little jarring to see her fired up. Fired up and she's a fire mage… Really not the time for puns, brain! "The Exalt gave us a job, to take Harker down, and we're going to do it! When my brother and our friends get here, we'd be glad to help out."

"Though, we could actually use a bit of help too," I chime in, remembering something that Myra forgot to mention. "We found someone that Harker's goons were nailing to a tree and managed to rescue her. She's hurt bad, so we were wondering if you had any doctors around." As I'm speaking, I can't help but feel that I'm overlooking something… Something that I really should be getting, but its just not coming to me, even though it should be obvious. "She'd messed with Harker and-" And it clicks! "Rebecca's alive!" I shout, jumping out of my chair.

"What?" Keith breathes, his eyes wide. "D-Don't be tellin' me lies now, boy! I-I won't have that!"

"I'm not lying! She's alive!" I slap a hand to my forehead for not realizing it sooner. How could I be so blind! "Like I said, we found some of Harker's men nailing her to a tree, but we managed to drive them off, even the giant guy, er… Hugo, yeah, we managed to drive him away too!" I smile so wide I feel like I'm splitting my cheeks open. "She's alive, Keith. Hurt, but she's alive."

He stares at me, wide-eyed and open-mouthed, before he drops his cane, nearly falling if he hadn't caught the table. I make a move to help him when I see his shoulders moving up and down. "Gods… Thank the gods…" he sobs, tears of joy streaming down his face.

We were all so caught up in the moment of happiness, we didn't realize someone was knocking on the door until Caine finally went to answer it. When he did, a young man stood in front of us, a look of shock on his face. "S-some folks just came into town. One of them looked pretty mad, but another had a horse, and on that horse… Keith, its Rebecca!"

I've never seen an old man move so fast before in my life.

It wasn't hard for the three of us to find where Keith had gone; a crowd had already formed in the area and I could hear Keith shouting praises to the heavens from somewhere on ahead. We pushed our way through the crowd until we reached what I guess was the village's version of a town hall, considering it was the largest building around.

Upon entering the main room, which was pretty much completely empty save a few chairs here and there, I spotted some of our group immediately. Albert was sitting in a chair, his head on his chest, asleep. Beside him Genevieve seemed like she was planning on flooding the place considering how many tears she was crying. I didn't see Marco or Garrett, but I saw Daven at the same moment he saw me.

"Kale!" he said as he ran up to me. "We were all worried about you when we got back and saw you and Myra gone. Marco…" He scratched his cheek nervously. "Well, Marco… Just avoid Marco for a while, and you should be fine." I nervously gulp at the sound of that; I've seen an angry Marco. An angry Marco does not make for a happy Kale.

"Sounds like you've got yourself in a bit of trouble there, Kale," Caine comments from behind me, making Daven jump. "I remember you," the swordsman says. "Saw you falling down a hill into a pack of those Risen, if I remember correctly. Had to pull you out of there myself." Daven laughs nervously and looks away, making Caine chuckle. "Hey, it could've happened to anyone." Somehow, I think it could only happen to Daven, but I'm not going to say that one out loud.

"Eh, well… I was just lucky you were there. I've actually still got one of the knives you used to kill one of them with, if you want it back."

Caine raises a hand. "Keep it. I've got spares, and who knows? It could be useful someday. They're made out of a pretty hard metal, so they won't break as easily as most knives." He extends the hand he'd just raised. "It's Caine, by the way."

"Daven."

"KALE!"

Fuck. I spin around just as Marco stomps up to me, his face a stony mask. I can still see the anger in his eyes though, and there's a lot there. "Uh… Hey, Marco," I greet, trying to sound not-so-intimidated. "Good to see you. You were taking so long to get back, I was starting to worry something had happened."

"Apparently you weren't worried enough to wait for me to get back." I take a couple of steps back at the sound of his voice, but he grabs me by the collar and drags me back. "Just what the hell do you think you were doing, dragging my sister with you to take on all of those bandits alone!? She could have been killed! You could have been killed! I trust you to watch over everyone and then you go and do something like this? Just what were you doing?"

"My job!" I push myself off of Marco, nearly falling over in the process. I look up to see him looking shocked, and it takes me a moment to realize why. I'd just managed to break out of his grip with a single push. At least I'm guessing why he looks shocked. Shocked me at least. "The Exalt told us to stop Harker, right? Then if I'm told that some of his men are attacking innocent people, what am I supposed to do? Let it happen? And as for Myra, I didn't drag her along, she followed me!" He gives me an odd look. "Yeah, apparently she's a big girl and she can handle herself. She told me that herself, so don't go blaming me for her being here!"

We just stare at each other for a moment, not saying anything. He looks conflicted, and I'm a little on the angry side of things. And this was horrible for my head… Why is this one so bad? I haven't had one so bad since… since… I don't quite remember, actually. I know I've had one, but when? I frown at what I've just realized, and I hardly hear what Marco says, moving past him to find a chair.

I've got some remembering to do.

His world was covered in fire. Thick clouds of black smoke choked the air and himself. He screamed, desperate for someone to come and help him, to get him away from the heat. He stumbled through the house, crashing into everything in his attempt to escape.

Suddenly, there was a loud crack, followed by the sound of something crashing. He looked up and screamed as a wooden beam fell towards him, rapidly engulfing his vision until-

Hugo's eyes snapped open and he put a hand to his head. That memory… How he hated that memory. It wasn't his memory, yet it would show up in his mind whenever he would see fire, always tormenting him like some cruel ghost. Blinking once, he slowly sat up from where he'd chosen to rest. The battle before had taken something out of him, even if the gold swordsman had barely hurt him.

It had been the white witch that had caused him such pain.

He growled at the memory of her throwing fires at him, a cruel smile on her face. The gold swordsman had seen the weakness, that damned fear of fire, and had told her how to exploit it, yes, but she… She was the one who had attacked him with the thing he hated so much. She was the one who had made him flee out of fear.

She was responsible for him remembering the memory that wasn't his.

He struck the ground in anger and stood, a roar of anger already escaping his throat. There was a commotion in the brush near him, followed by a few muffled curses. Without a second thought, he ran over there, faster than a man of his size should be able to, and reached in.

"Don't – Don't kill me!" the man pleaded as he was drug from his hiding place. His face was a mess, bloodied and bruised. One eye had been swollen shut, his nose was broken, and several teeth were missing. The one eye that could be seen was filled with pure terror, only calming slightly when recognition set in. "Hugo! Oh, thank the gods. I thought you were that guy in the gold coat."

A spark went off in Hugo's mind. "Gold coat… White witch?" he asked, surprising the man.

"Uh, yeah, there was a really pale girl with him. She had a fire tome – blasted Jess with it. Burned him to a crisp." He shuddered at some memory. "But she was merciful compared to… him." He raised a hand and pointed at his face. "He did this to me, Hugo. Beat me senseless, screaming like a madman the entire time. The girl, she was screaming too, begging him to stop."

"Where?" The bandit said nothing, confused as to what the mountainous man was asking. Hugo growled and shook the man. "Where is witch!?" he roared, his lips pulled back in a snarl.

"P-Ponlac! That village the girl who attacked Harker came from!" the bandit rushed out, his heart pounding as he realized that he was close to dealing with an angry giant. He felt so relieved when Hugo dropped him to the ground. "Oh gods, will this day just end?" he muttered quietly. Hugo moved past him, quiet. "Hey, Hugo, where're you going?"

"Camp," the big man said, his voice surprisingly cold. "Get men." He stopped in his tracks and stared at the ground. "I… I…" Words had always come difficultly for him, yet now, he wanted nothing more than to say what he planned to do. "I… kill…" With a cry of frustration, he struck a nearby tree, rattling it.

"I'll kill… the witch," Hugo said, speaking his first complete sentence in over 10 years.

Hah hah! Only a month this time!

...Maybe not the best thing to be proud of, but oh well.

So, some of you may be wondering what's with Kale. Why'd he beat that man so badly, what's with the headache, and why can't he remember the last time he had a headache this bad? Well, I can tell you this much: The answer is very simple.

Of course, some of you can probably guess what it is already, and if you can, then that's great! Just don't tell me and keep it a secret to yourselves.

So, Chapter 20... I'd say that's a bit of a milestone, maybe not that big of one, but it should still count, right? Hard to believe I've been doing this for almost a year now, and even harder to believe that I didn't quit 18 Chapters ago. I will admit, going into this story, I was terrified of what the result would be. Would people like the story? Would they hate it? Would they just pass right over it and let it be ignored? All of that and so much more was going through my mind, and it still does every time I post a Chapter, even with this one.

Then I see the reviews that people leave. They aren't hateful, they're positive, even if it's only one or two words. And every time I get a review, even those small ones, I get more confident in what I'm doing. I get more confident in my writing, with my story, with my characters. 14 Chapters ago, Harker wouldn't exist. 10 Chapters ago, I wouldn't be planning the next mission, including what characters they'll meet and all the things that will happen. 19 Chapters ago, I wouldn't be sitting here typing this overly cheesy Author's Note, but hey, that's confidence for you. Well, really, its gratitude. To all of you who've left reviews, who've come and taken even a little peek at this story, who've given me the confidence to push past my own anxieties and write this story.

So to everyone out there, reading this story and this Chapter, thank you. Thank you for helping me create this story. I really couldn't have done this without all of you.

But, let's move past the cheesy stuff for now, shall we? I'm sure I'll bring it back in another... 20 or so Chapters, but that's for the future. What I want to talk about is the next Chapter, and what that means. As some of you may remember, I allowed people to submit OC's for this story. Well, I'd like to say that the window for entry is closing. When Chapter 21 goes up, or in the case it runs late, July 16, I will accept no more submissions. I'd like to thank those of you who have sent in submissions, and for those of you who may be on the fence, please go right ahead and send them in.

Alright, long A/N is long. So let's wrap this up, shall we?

I'd like to thank every one of you who took the time to read this. If you'd be so kind as to leave any thoughts or criticisms you have in a review, well... You already know what they're good for. On that note, I hope you all have a wonderful day.