Henry decided to let the party sleep for almost seven hours. When he himself woke up, he joined Dalia in keeping watch for a while, before they took to preparing breakfast.

Henry fetched his cooking utensils and instructed Dalia on how to make sandwiches. He almost shook his head at the absurdity – back during the quest for the Prophecy of Gray he had refused to even prepare food for himself, now he had switched to babysitting the entire gang. Oh well, times changed, and so did people.

"Thank you for helping me", he suddenly heard Dalia's quiet voice and he turned around to her, after having lit the fire. "Don't mention it. I'm used to caring for myself, so it's not really a big deal."

Henry chuckled internally at the face his younger self would have most likely made if he could have heard himself say that now. Henry, the prince of Regalia – cooking. What a miracle.

While working, the exiled prince realized he had never even spoken to Stellovet's governess properly. "Hey, you like working for York and Susannah?", he asked, giving her his most enthusiastic smile.

She just shrugged. "It is... alright. Most of the time."

Only now Henry noticed the purple bags under her eyes and how she was so skinny he could have counted her ribs. An image of himself flashed in his mind, the face in the waterfall. But... Dalia was not an outcast. She had a roof over her head and most certainly enough to eat. He was just about to open his mouth to ask her if something was wrong when a voice interrupted him from behind – "Hey, morning to you. Need any help?"

Luxa was up, grinning at them and Henry grinned back. "Sure. Mind helping Dalia with the sandwiches? She's never made any before."

His cousin nodded and cheerfully skipped over to the young woman, who was only slightly taller than her, and they got to work. Soon, Henry woke up the rest of them and handed out breakfast.

"So, what's the plan for today?", Howard asked while chewing on his sandwich. "If I remember correctly, you said something about having to carry the fliers."

Henry nodded. "That's later though. First, ahead lies the Path of Styx." He smiled when he remembered how he and Thanatos had first traversed it, in search of Kismet.

The party quickly finished up their meal and got ready to leave. "Hey, listen, if you want, we can switch seats, Howard", Henry suddenly heard Gregor behind him. Howard snorted, "Why would I want that? And besides, Ares is your bond, is he not? Why would you want to ride on anyone but him?"

Gregor started stuttering and Henry had to suppress a giggle. Because he wants to ride with Luxa, you dimwit, he almost shouted at Howard but held back – barely.

The exiled prince sighed, seemed like he was up. "Howard, don't be ridiculous. You can ride a flier even if they are not your bond. Besides, I'd like you with me on Thanatos, throughout this next part, there are a few things we need to go over, concerning some details of the trip."

Henry was staring at Howard, trying to not let it show he was making all of that up on the go. But it was very obvious Howard knew exactly why Gregor wanted to switch and was deliberately trying to prevent him from riding with Luxa. And Henry couldn't just let him get away with that, could he now? He would come up with SOMETHING to occupy Luxa's cousin with. Probably.

Howard threw him a very accusing glance, like he had guessed why Henry had done this, but had no choice but to go along with it. "Sure", he muttered with gritted teeth and grabbed his medical kit and his bag.

From the corner of his eye, Henry saw Gregor throwing him an overjoyed glance, and he tried to wink at him – not an easy task, with just one eye – but he was fairly certain he had gotten the message across. Make it count, he wanted to yell at him, but couldn't, for obvious reasons.

They had been flying for about half an hour, and so far, Henry had managed to occupy Howard with minor planning problems, like the rationing of food, the order of watch, when they would go to sleep again, and what to do if they encountered pinchers.

Howard seemed to know exactly that it was all a scam to get him to let Gregor have his seat, but he couldn't do anything, which was most likely the worst part for him.

Henry found it beyond weird, being on a quest again. There was no prophecy or anything this time, but just having Luxa and Gregor and all of them around was... something he had almost not thought would ever happen again, Henry realized.

Last night, Thanatos had mocked how the tables had turned for him – from the baby to the sitter, the flier had said, and they both had laughed. Ripred would not believe his eyes, Henry thought proudly. Well, if he would find out it's me – which can never happen.

When he finally ran out of planning problems, he started simply asking Howard questions – if he was already stuck on a bat with him, he might as well make the best out of it.

"What's with the medkit?", he wanted to know, he didn't remember Howard ever showing interest in medicine before.

To his surprise, Luxa's cousin disclosed he had decided to become a doctor, after having survived the plague. "I want to help people who suffer like I have – not that YOU would understand."

Henry knew it had supposed to be an insult, but he realized Howard wasn't wrong. "I don't, but oh well, it's okay. I'm perfectly fine with being a great warrior instead, though I can totally see you as a doctor."

"How can you say that, you barely know me!", Howard claimed, and Henry just shrugged silently. He couldn't really say anything to that without revealing who he was now, could he?

"So, how did you sleep?" Gregor asked, trying to find a spot to hold on, on Aurora's back, without compromising Luxa's personal space. He had most likely stared a little too much, throughout breakfast, until Ares had poked him in the side, asking if he wouldn't want to switch seats with Howard for the next part of the trip.

He had had not really thought the question through, when he had asked, and hadn't the Death Rider jumped in, he would have embarrassed himself to the bone, Gregor knew that perfectly well. He had no idea why the outcast had helped him, but he decided he would try to keep that in mind, when – if – he would ever ask him for a favor.

Luxa simply shrugged. "Fine. I sleep best in my own bed."

Gregor couldn't really argue with that, after all, he felt the same, even if his bed was squeezed into what had supposed to be a storage room and way too small for it.

They spent the rest of the flight mindlessly chatting about random things, though Gregor enjoyed her company a lot. He always enjoyed Luxa's company more than that of others, in recent times, and suddenly asked himself why. Sure, they were good friends at this point, but he had many friends in the Underland. Why was she so special?

When the Death Rider finally signaled them to land, Gregor stared into a tiny opening, maybe three or four feet wide. Was that their way?

"From this point on we carry the fliers. I will take the lead, behind me Gregor, then Dalia, Howard, and Luxa will take the rear." He fumbled around at Thanatos belt pockets and fetched the litters York and Susannah had given them. The bats exchanged nervous glances before lying down at last. "Hey, this is much more pleasant than that thing you used to carry me around with when I had broken my wing", Thanatos addressed his rider and the outcast elbowed him. "Yea, because I didn't make this one myself."

He instructed Howard, who was the only one who would have to help carry two of the bats, to take the back of Ares' and the front of Aurora's litter with a hand each and walk sideways when Gregor fetched his flashlight. "Hey, you... might need this, if you'll walk at the front." He held it out to the outcast, demonstrating the way it worked.

The Death Rider took it, switched it on and off a couple of times, then grinned at Gregor. "Thanks, this will help. Alright, everyone ready?", he called, taking up the front of Thanatos' litter.

They formed a caravan in the previously announced order now, and one by one entered the narrow tunnel. The outcast led the way, shining the flashlight ahead so that they could see.

They had to take a break in between because the bats were heavy and the tunnel at one point became so narrow, Gregor's elbows grazed both walls when he walked normally. Thankfully, it widened again quickly, and after maybe half an hour of walking, they finally reached the end.

The Death Rider switched off the flashlight and Gregor was about to ask him why, when he walked out into the giant cave that lied at the end of the tunnel himself, and his jaw dropped.

The outcast had talked about a lake, but Gregor had had no idea it would be this beautiful. Apparently, there was a lava pool directly beneath the water and it glowed in bright, beautiful orange.

Everyone was now admiring the lake, Howard had approached to feel if the water was warm, Luxa was kneeling at the shore, staring at the scenery and Dalia's eyes were wide-open and filled with awe. Only the Death Rider was unphased by the beauty, presumably because he had been here who knew how many times before. He used the time to pack away the litters and fetch their dinner.

"Actually, we're having fish today. Howard and I agreed we should save the food, considering we have fresh fish right here", he answered when Luxa asked why he hadn't opened the supply stash yet. "And don't worry, I won't serve it to you raw!", he laughed, and Luxa giggled too.

Half an hour later, Gregor had eaten one entire grilled fish the bats had caught in the lake. He was stuffed and tired, suppressing a yawn he hoped the Death Rider wouldn't ask him to keep watch again.

"Don't worry, we'll split it between those who haven't kept watch last time", the outcast answered when Gregor asked him. "Howard will take first, Luxa second and I'll take third myself. We'll let the fliers rest, and in about seven hours we press on."

"We're almost there, aren't we?" Luxa's voice sounded from behind, and the outcast nodded. "The arena is maybe a half an hour flight from here."

Great, Gregor thought, today had been a rather peaceful day – for a quest – he could already tell that there would be trouble tomorrow. He sighed while spreading the blanket he had brought, to sleep on, on the floor.

"Not much of a fan of battles?", a voice asked from behind and he jolted around. There stood Dalia, with a couple dirty plates in her hands, that she was most likely about to wash in the lake.

Gregor chuckled. "Is it weird if I say yes, considering they call me the warrior?"

She smiled at him. "Well, kind of. Though... we often do not choose our fate, instead, it chooses us."

He suddenly found he liked Dalia more and more. "Tell me about it", Gregor sighed, then, quickly glancing at the plates, he added – "eh, do you need help with these?"

He looked around, Luxa and Howard were talking at the lake, Ares and Aurora had already cuddled up to sleep and the outcast and Thanatos had spread a map on the floor and were debating something – there was nobody else willing to help her.

Dalia simply shrugged. "If... it is not too much trouble..."

"Not at all", Gregor rose, "you can't just do all the work alone all the time. It's not fair."

"Oh, I am used to it", she smiled, but it was a sad smile. "Besides, the Death Rider helped me earlier."

"I saw. I still don't think it's fair. Hey, what do you say, next time we make Howard and Luxa do the dishes while we sit down to talk, okay?" He grinned at her, and she smiled, though averted her eyes, like in shame. "I... I don't think it's appropriate to sit on the side while a future queen does your work."

"And I don't think it's APPROPRIATE to let one person do it all, just because they aren't born special." There were quite a lot of things Gregor liked about the Underland and its people – but the whole monarchy part wasn't one of them.

Gregor had just finished the dishes, together with Dalia, when he heard Howard speak to Luxa – "You should really get to bed now, you all should. Tomorrow will be a hard day."

Gregor saw Luxa nod at Howard and stand up. He had first watch, so he remained at the lake, making it as comfortable for himself as possible, while Luxa took her blanket to the back end, close to Ares and Aurora.

Gregor helped Dalia pack away the plates before he wished her a good night, and took his own blanket to Luxa. There was something he had remembered he wanted to ask her.

"Gregor, aren't you tired?", she asked, but her face was friendly.

He shot her a smile while sitting down next to her. "I am. And tomorrow we'll be fighting, right?"

"Most likely", she nodded.

Gregor watched the Death Rider, he had at last rolled up the map and lied down himself, leaning his head against Thanatos' back.

"Do you... know what happened to him?", Gregor asked Luxa, still staring at the outcast.

"You mean that look in his eye?", he nodded and Luxa shook her head – "I have no idea. I have not asked him. Maybe Howard knows, or... Stellovet."

Gregor pondered. "They sure have seen more of him than we, these last months. He... he changed so much, didn't he? Or is that just me?"

Luxa chuckled. "No, he did. Something must have happened to him, something... bad, worse than bad. You can see those things, you know? Like I see in your face that you have braved the ordeals of three prophecies already. You talk about how he changed, but you changed yourself, from when I first met you. And quite a lot."

He smiled a little, "I mean, I think we all did. You too. For the better – I mean, not that you were BAD before, it's just now, you are... eh..." Gregor noticed his face flushed as he started stammering. Dear God, why was he always acting so awkward, lately, whenever Luxa was around?

She only laughed at him. "Thank you. I am quite pleased with how I have changed as well."

"Yeah", Gregor chuckled, "I mean, I still remember how you were with Henry. Making fun of the cockroaches and that thing with Boots..." He remembered all-too-well the two had almost acted like bullies, and how Henry had thrown Boots over the edge of the cliff, even if he had known the bats would catch her.

Luxa didn't say anything, and Gregor suddenly realized he might have overstepped. She probably didn't like being reminded of Henry at all, and here he was, trying to laugh about how she had been with him.

But Luxa was quiet for an entirely different reason. "I realize that we must have appeared like bad people to you now, and I am not trying to defend everything we did, but... please do not judge us... Henry... only by what you have seen."

She visibly gritted her teeth, "It is hard for me as well, remembering him for more than what he... did, in the end, but then again, there are so many good things to remember as well." She looked up at him, smiling sadly, "I try, you know? To remember the good things. Because who else will, beside me... and maybe Vikus?"

Gregor lowered his head. He suddenly thought about how little he had actually known Henry at all. Not even during the quest they had talked much, and shamefully, Gregor realized, Luxa was right – even he, when he thought of Henry, seemed to remember only the bad things. Him attacking Ripred when they first met, despite the orders, later trying to kill him in his sleep and then his betrayal.

Gregor tried, he desperately attempted to prove Luxa wrong, so he tried his best to remember something – anything – good about her cousin. His thoughts went back to when he had talked to Mareth about the two, about when he had found out the rats had killed Henry's parents like they had Luxa's.

You must not take what they say to heart, he heard the soldier's troubled voice say, when their parents were killed, Nerissa became as frail as glass, Henry as hard as stone.

He remembered instantly disliking them both less, after having found out what had caused them to become so mean.

But if they killed his parents, why did he side with them then? Gregor thought and shook his head slightly. This was not a memory to share.

An image flashed in his head, Henry with a torch on his head, imitating the helmet Gregor had worn on that trip, and Luxa pranking him his hair was on fire. The memory made him smile, and suddenly he understood what Luxa had meant – Gregor realized he had never given much thought to how close they must have been at some point.

Then, his mind reeled further back. The High Hall, his first dinner – his first encounter with Henry. Beware the fish, for Luxa plans to poison you directly! He remembered the friendly look he had shot him, how he'd grabbed his arm, his dramatically hushed voice, and the joke – it had been Henry, out of all people, who had actually taught him Underlanders had a sense of humor.

When Gregor told Luxa about that incident, she laughed. "I remember all too well, if I would have had the means, I would have actually poisoned you, you know?"

They exchanged smiles, and after a short while, she averted her gaze. "Thank you. For... for not judging me when I say I want to remember the good things, and even trying to remember them with me."

Gregor smiled back. Maybe Luxa was right, and things weren't as black and white as he had always thought. He opened his mouth to respond when a voice suddenly interrupted them from behind. "I am very tempted to quote Hamnet's "telling old tales out of school", right now, you two..."

Gregor and Luxa both spun around, only to see the Death Rider waiting behind them, hands on his hips. At first glance, he looked casual and confident as ever, but then Gregor saw he was biting his lip and his smile looked almost... forced. How much exactly had he heard? And why... did an old story about Henry even phase him? Had they... known each other, perhaps?

He glanced at the Death Rider once and realized they must have been around the same age. And he could also see them getting along, both had had that same cocky attitude, and both sure liked to show off.

"We... we were about to go to sleep, really", Luxa tried to argue, and all he did was raise an eyebrow – "Then do that. Good night, you two. And, you know, actually LISTEN to me this time, you know you owe me, Gregor!"

Gregor's face flushed a little when he realized the outcast had a point. "Let's go to sleep...", he mumbled, trying not to look at Luxa's confused face. When had the Death Rider even gotten up? Gregor thought he had seen him already having lied down.

"Good night, Gregor", Luxa whispered, one last time, and he replied "You too", in the dim light from the lake he could just about make out she was smiling.

The next morning it was Howard, who shook him awake. "Breakfast is almost ready, then we leave." He shot him and Luxa a last, highly disapproving, glance, concerning how close to each other they had lied out their blankets, and then left to help Dalia and the Death Rider.

Everyone ended up looking at the outcast during breakfast, expecting him to fire up some sort of plan, but he barely seemed to notice. This time, Gregor saw that Dalia and Howard had done most of the cooking, all the outcast did was sit on the side, poking at his fish, like he was deep in thought. Thanatos was always close by, he was pressing his head into his side, like in an attempt to comfort him – for whatever reason.

Gregor pondered what could possibly be wrong – did he know something they didn't? And if, why was he keeping it from them?

Eventually, Luxa was the one who broke the almost awkward silence – "Do we have some sort of plan, or are we just going to improvise?"

His head jerked up and for a second, Gregor thought he spotted a purple circle under his eye, but he wore a hood now and his face was barely visible in the shade it threw, so he wasn't sure.

"Eh, Thanatos and I gave it some thought yesterday", he started and fetched a notebook, where he had sketched the layout of the arena.

"As we have no idea where Longclaw will be, we will have to improvise for the most part. The only thing I do know is where they hold the prisoners", he pointed at an "x" on his drawing, a little south of the arena. "They will most likely be holding Stellovet there. I suggest we prioritize saving her and then go after Longclaw."

"So we take a detour to the prison first?", Luxa asked, and he nodded. "With some luck, they won't even notice us."

After they had finished their meal, everyone quickly packed their things and prepared to leave. Gregor didn't dare ask Howard if he could fly with Luxa again, after he had already seen them sleeping so close together, and thought Dalia was good company as well.

They mounted up on Ares together and Gregor's bond lifted off directly behind Thanatos this time, Aurora followed close by, with Howard and Luxa.

Thinking it might be rude to stay silent, he asked Dalia for her family and her life at the Fount. She seemed not in the mood for stories, like something was bothering her, though. Almost like the Death Rider, he thought.

All she said was, that her parents were dead and her little brother lived in Regalia, with other relatives. At the question about her own life she just shrugged and said it was alright.

Gregor had a feeling she wanted to be left alone, so he let her. She sat behind him and yet he still envisioned her clearly, her frail build, her intricately braided hair, and her big, deep, almost blueish-purple eyes. Was she looking forward to seeing Stellovet again? If so, she didn't let it show at all. Gregor knew that he himself wasn't necessarily, at least if she would behave the same way she had last time.

Then again, hadn't he told himself to try and stop seeing the world in black and white, yesterday, during the conversation with Luxa? What did he know of Stellovet even? He knew her even less than Henry, and yet he had already written her off as bad. Maybe, Gregor thought to himself, maybe she had a reason too.

The Death Rider lead them through a series of tunnels around the cave with the arena, and when they finally flew out into open space, he signaled them to land immediately. All three bats landed close to the wall and Gregor wanted to switch on his flashlight, but when he tried to pull it out, he remembered he had given it to Dalia earlier. She had wanted to take a look at it, and not given it back yet.

When he took the small one from Mrs. Cormaci instead, the Death Rider prevented him from turning it on. "They will spot us if we make light. Trust me, the prisoners are here. Remain in place and make no sound."

Gregor nodded, in the same breath he asked himself how they were supposed to free Stellovet in complete darkness.

A few moments passed and Gregor's eyes got used to the dark to the extent where he could make out shapes. The outcast signaled them to follow him and pointed to the left, where the shape of a tunnel entrance was located.

The group pressed on, Gregor saw Luxa had her hand on her sword, and he eyed the handle of his own, he might need it soon, if they got spotted.

Then, Gregor noticed Howard had taken the lead as the Death Rider had fallen behind a little. He focused his eyes and realized, the outcast was glancing backward.

Gregor had been walking directly behind Howard but now he looked back as well. He could just about see Luxa next to him, and there were the bats, circling above their heads.

It wasn't them, who the Death Rider was looking at though – it was Dalia. She had remained behind, Gregor noticed, she hadn't even taken a single step with them.

The outcast was so close to him now that Gregor could partially make out his expression, and what he saw scared him. It was with a mix of shock, anger and... something else, something Gregor couldn't read, that he stared at Dalia now. Gregor saw she was gripping something elongated firmly.

"Don't", he heard the outcast whisper, it was barely audible, but in the dark, quiet cave, his voice sounded loud and clear in Gregor's ears. "You don't –"

He never ended up finishing his sentence, when Dalia raised the elongated item, that turned out to be the flashlight she had taken from Gregor, pointed it upward – and switched it on.

No – Gregor wanted to scream, the Death Rider specifically told us not to switch on the... Then it clicked.

Rats were now streaming into the cave from all entrances, apparently, the light had been a signal. The rest of the party froze in their tracks, most looked confused, not the outcast though. His expression told, he knew exactly what had just happened – what Dalia had done.

A huge rat now stepped closer from behind Dalia, he was most likely around seven feet tall, had thick, brown fur and a huge scar across his chest. He placed a paw on Dalia's shoulder who averted her eyes and looked to the floor. "Bravo, well done – they are all here, the queen, the warrior – and my good friend the Death Rider too! Isn't it good to see you again", he showed a toothy, mocking grin.

The bats had realized what was going on as well, they had attempted to attack from above but were quickly restrained by some of the rats, and shackled. Thanatos threw the brown rat a death glare, and Gregor wondered if that was Longclaw.

The Death Rider had not moved yet. All he did was stare at Dalia, with that very same expression. When two rats grabbed his arms to secure him, he did not even protest.

Gregor saw they had gotten all party members now, he himself was lifted off the floor by a big grey rat too, before he could even think about grabbing his sword. He still tried to twist his head in Dalia's direction, she had given the signal to the rats, and they had not restrained her. She had... given them away on purpose.

A wave of despair and panic overwhelmed Gregor – this was impossible. The gentle, frail Dalia, who had always been so understanding, so caring, so modest – she was supposed to be... a traitor...?

He caught a last glimpse at her face, she was so pale her skin looked almost translucent. Next to the huge brown rat, who Gregor assumed was Longclaw, she looked even more delicate and small than ever, hands firmly gripping the handle of the flashlight, almost like it was a lifeline.

The last thing he heard, before being carried off by the grey rat, was the Death Rider's voice, he yelled – "This is not going to go the way you think, you know?", and Gregor asked himself if he was talking to Longclaw – or to Dalia.