"You're doing wonderful. Not one more movement."

'Queen's brown eyes watched as Kane worked the strokes into the canvas, his gaze coming to her figure each time his hand left the surface. She was resting comfortably on a red blanket in one of her gorgeous dresses, surrounded by an arrangement of her favorite flowers. She was wearing makeup for this occasion, carefully-applied lipstick as well as golden eye shadow. She had been posing for a couple hours now, with a few breaks he allowed for her in between.

She slightly bowed her head, feeling a cramp in her neck. She refused to complain. It was an honor to be the muse of his next artwork - she asked him specifically if he could paint her. He put in a lot of effort to make enough time for this in his schedule. She shouldn't sound too impatient. Works of his must take careful time to accomplish.

"...How long will this take?" She asked.

"It's almost finished, I assure."

She adjusted herself only slightly. He didn't mind if she moved a couple inches - though it was integral she didn't move her arm that held her mask. She exhaled slowly as she thought of conversation. They'd spoken plenty in this time, of course - but now that it was nearly finished, perhaps he was feeling comfortable enough to pick up their discussion from last time…

She attempted to bring the subject up casually. "Did your father have you paint many women in your time?"

He noticed her tone and glanced at her. "Mostly the wives of rich men. They paid handsomely for my pieces."

"-Any as beautiful as me?" She grinned flirtatiously, batting her eyes. He relaxed his shoulders. Just as she hoped.

"None could simply compare to you, mio caro . You are my masterpiece."

His words made her heart flutter, but she couldn't get distracted. She soon cleared her throat. "Did he also inspire you to paint?"

He kept quiet, much to her dismay. She waited a minute more before trying again. "He was an artist as well, wasn't he? I imagine you were raised with such talent."

He was still silent. He seemed to be focused more on the artwork than her, now. She didn't let this discourage her. "Did he make any paintings himself? Or did he just-"

She was interrupted by him setting down his brushes and palette roughly. He stopped painting altogether as he shifted himself on the stool. He rubbed a bare finger across his temple slowly. He discarded his gloves earlier and wasn't wearing his usual uniform - he wore a black apron that was tied tightly around his form. Even she couldn't help admiring the way it hugged his chest, despite the way he exhaled in frustration. He soon forced a chuckle, which made her heart swell nervously.

"-I appreciate what you're trying to do. Truly . But...please, stop asking." He held his hands together and looked at her. "I would rather not talk about him."

"Your father?" He nodded impatiently. "But, why? I only want to know because you've spoken with my mother...I want to get to know your family just as well."

"You've already met who you needed to." He replied firmly. "I promise there's no good reason to meet my father."

She frowned as she thought more about it. He sensed what was going to happen and busied himself again, collecting more paint and adding the finishing touches. He knew her determination for answers at times. She tested that early on when they first met - demanding such from him when he questioned her. Regardless, she wanted to make it clear their conversation wasn't over just yet.

"Did you two have a fight?"

He tapped his finger on the wooden handle once or twice. Through clenched teeth, he answered. "Something like that."

She pried no more; that was the best she was going to get out of him. He finished his work in silence and barely looked at her this time. She felt guilty and realized she owed him an apology. She'd been pestering him with questions about his father for a week now - hoping to get information out of him in some way. She did it sparingly not to raise concern, until now. And even then, she didn't learn anything new. She soon sighed in regret.

"I'm sorry, Kane...if you wish not to talk about him, then I'll respect that."

"Thank you. I apologize if I seemed harsh." He sat back in his seat and admired his work. "I believe it's finished."

He motioned for her to finally stand. She obliged almost thankfully, stretching her arms and legs while cracking her neck. She happily strolled over to observe what she'd been waiting for in these hours...and her jaw fell open.

It was more beautiful than she could have ever imagined. He captured her image so well, even if half of it was obscured by a mask. She was lying peacefully on the blanket with her hand delicately laid over the petals of the flowers. He got the colors and folds of her dress just right, even adding highlights that complimented everything in the picture.

She almost believed she didn't look this good in person.

"My god.." She said in astonishment. "It's wonderful!"

"I think it's my best work to date." He continued to stare at it. "A masterpiece…"

"Why do you say that?"

'It's you ." He replied as if it was obvious. "You are the perfect muse...so gorgeous and precise - even nature can't match the beauty."

Her cheeks heated immensely at his words. "Really?"

"Truly." He stood from his seat and untied the apron. "Give it the rest of the day to dry, and it is yours to do with as you please."

She wasted no time embracing him, clutching his form tightly. "I can't thank you enough for this…"

"Easy." He replied as he held her back. "We should play a game of chess tonight."

"Of course."

Their lips interlocked for a minute or two until they pulled away. He cupped her chin to position her gaze to his, and they stared into each other's eyes before he dismissed himself. 'Queen' was left staring at the portrait in his absence, mesmerized and delighted. She must've observed it for several minutes before she snapped back to reality.

So Kane wasn't upset with her...but he still didn't give her any answers. She knew she should respect his words and drop the subject entirely...but she couldn't shake the question at hand. What could have transpired between Kane and Gazpaccio to make things the way they were? He was tense every time she brought him up, and refused to answer anything. It felt unfair he was so closely acquainted with her mother, yet she didn't know much about his father..

She rubbed her chin in thought. She might have a way of knowing without ever having to ask him again.

'Queen' waited until her informative session with the upper hands of the Armada was finished. Kane excused himself after he was done monitoring them. He tended to be more busy nowadays - constantly leaving to work for several hours in secluded rooms and in his workshop. She wasn't even allowed to follow him at times. But in this case, it didn't bother her. She expected for him to leave right away, clenching her gloved palms as she watched him go through the door. She waited several minutes to ensure he disappeared down the hallway. She couldn't afford for him to overhear her next conversation. After a few seconds, she finally turned her head to the other figure in the room.

"Bishop? Are you preoccupied?"

A startled noise came as a tall figure nearly hit his head on a shelf. 'Queen' stood immediately and bit her lip in guilt, knowing she scared him with her sudden voice. He glared in her direction before bringing his attention back to his work, which was mixing some solutions he'd been messing with for several minutes now. He always resorted to his own work the moment their lessons ended. A gesture intended to let her know she had to leave.

"As busy as I usually am." He replied patiently. She went ahead and made sure the door was firmly shut.

"I promise I will not bother. I just have a few more questions for you."

She approached him with a hand behind her back, the other carefully holding her mask. She leaned forward to observe what he was doing and he motioned her away. She realized he was doing something with chemicals and that the space was necessary. He groaned in irritation, hearing her presence was going to prolong. She must make this brief and not waste any more of his time.

"Do you...ah…" She started, unsure how to ask him exactly. "Would you happen to know anything about Kane's father?"

He looked up after experimentally dripping some substance in a tube. He waited in anticipation for a reaction. Nothing happened. He sighed and wrote something down. 'Queen' was about to repeat herself until he answered her question.

"I don't know anything about my grandfather."

"What? How can that be possible?"

"I am the youngest child, so to speak." He turned to address her. "Therefore, I never met him. Deacon and Rooke might know more. Phule especially would."

"So, they've met him?"

"Likely. I was born in our new home where our grandfather did not reside. But the rest of my kinsmen were."

She held a thoughtful finger to her mask. "I see. And, are you telling the truth?"

She had to ask. He had a habit of being dishonest with her at times. She assumed it was because she was nosy and there was plenty the tinkerer insisted on concealing from her, for the sake of 'confidentiality' . He sounded annoyed that she brought this up with this particular subject. It eased her suspicions.

"Of course I am."

"Thank you. That is all I needed to know."

He shooed her away with his hand. She wasn't even offended by the gesture. She followed his wish and left the room as soon as she could, determined to make her next move in learning about Gazpaccio. She'll have to pay a visit with Kane's other sons, in hope to gain any more information about this.

The War Marshal was currently out on the Valencian docks outside, helping to load his ship. It was an extremely heavy warship that exceeded the size of most Armada vessels. There were various amounts of cargo, ammunition, and gunpowder for it to carry. They were handled by large Armada soldiers and dragoons. It would take plenty of time for everything to be loaded on, so he could depart tomorrow. He was currently overseeing his men handle the crates and boxes, carrying anything that they couldn't. He also made sure nothing was missing from the list held in his brother's hands.

Deacon watched intently from beside him. He noticed they were almost done. "How long will you be gone for?"

"I have a lot to do. All of this time away has been… distracting ." The larger man confessed. "You'll oversee the training for me, right?"

"I'm sure she'll be fine. She had her time with you before. I'm confident I'll do a good job."

"Great." He noticed a figure approaching from afar and lifted his masked head. "Speaking of which.."

The two figures watched as a dressed woman approached them on the docks. She was not at all dressed for the occasion, having to hold the ends of her gown up and being mindful of the rocks and dirt outside. She was careful of her footing on the floorboards and politely greeted the soldiers currently moving around her. She excused herself until she reached the two Elites - who looked both confused and curious as to why she was there. Regardless, she was welcomed as they customarily tipped their hats.

"'Queen.'" The spymaster greeted bluntly. "What a surprise to see you here."

"It is, isn't it?" She turned her head and observed the massive warship sitting several yards away. "What are you two doing?"

"Rooke is preparing to deliver shipments to our bases." The man replied easily. "He sets sail tomorrow."

"You mean... that is your ship?"

She pointed timidly at the huge structure as she gawked at it. It was massive in size, its build making the dock look rather puny. It was equipped with large cannons and sharp figureheads that could easily pierce any galleon. It matched the colors of his own armor - a dark red and black, covered in equally dark grays. Her eyes got swept up in all the movement around it, watching such large boxes being transported on. She couldn't imagine sailing something that gigantic. She would've inevitably ended up on one of these, wouldn't she? If she had truly gone through her training for the navy?

"It certainly is." The General confirmed behind her proudly. "I always have to be prepared, lest we run into pirates or some other rogues on the sea."

"...I see." She painfully tore her gaze away. As much as she'd love to ask more, she had to stay focused. "Do you two have any time to spare, at the moment? I have something I'd like to ask of you both."

They exchanged glances. Deacon read through the list he held and muttered something about them being good on supplies and time. They allowed her to bring them both to the side, away from the nearby ears of soldiers and dragoons. As soon as they were out of earshot, she began to ask the question she'd had such little answers to thus far:

"Would you guys happen to know anything about Gazpaccio?"

Rooke rubbed his chin under his mask at the question. "You mean-"

"-Nota good subject." Deacon butted in firmly, staring at her intensely. "You mustn't ask about it."

"And, why not?"

"You must already know Kane doesn't like to talk about it. And he certainly wouldn't appreciate us talking about it, either." He passed a glance at Rooke, who audibly shut his jaw. "You should drop it for now."

"Can you at least tell me what happened for it to be this way? I don't have to know anything about him ...just, why does Kane's father seem to be a bad subject?"

"Is it really forbidden?" The general turned to his brother. "We imprisoned him so long ago…don't you think-"

Her jaw fell open. " Imprison !?"

The spymaster passed an irritated glance to his twin, who shamefully looked away. He rolled his eyes and brought his stare back to 'Queen'. "-Yes, he is currently locked away. Which should tell you just why we can't talk about it."

"I didn't know Kane still cared. He must, if it's still bothering him after all this time." The large man muttered. "I apologize..."

"Wait, why would you put him behind bars? What did he do?" She began asking frantically. "I did not think it was anything this bad-"

He held a gloved hand to stop her rambling. "You'd better not get any more curious, because we're not going to tell you."

"Alright, then." She pressed her hand on her hip and breathed slowly. She'd have to play some cards to get any more meaningful answers. "Deacon, you can keep a secret from Kane, right? You don't have to tell him EVERYTHING?"

"It is my job to do so. I'll have to tell him you even asked."

"Consider...notdoing that, then?" She chewed on her lip, thinking on the spot. "And helping me instead?"

"Suppose I do you the favor and not tell him. What would I get out of this?" He leaned forward on his cane in interest. Rooke remained quiet in the background as he watched this unfold.

"I would be in debt to you. Whatever you'd like me to do, I'll do it for you. No questions asked."

He thought about her offer and how useful 'Queen' exactly was to him. He came up with a few interesting prospects, but none worthy enough to spill something like this. However, the pleading look in her eyes begged him to consider otherwise. He'd never heard of anyone being this curious about Kane's past. Even the women who gossiped and wished to court him did not care about the Supreme Commander's missing story. They admired who he was now, a strong and powerful commander whom everyone respected and feared. No one cared to learn anything more about him. And despite all this time...Valerie was still here.

He leaned back and cleared his throat, tapping his cane firmly on the ground.

"He was arrested for the crimes he'd committed over the years. The toy-making businesses weren't without shady practices. He'd been in stiff competition and did unlawful things just to make some money, while knowing it was unlawful. Kane deemed it necessary to turn him in for these actions, and we did exactly that."

"But, how could you bring yourself to put your own grandfather behind bars? Wasn't that hard?" She asked weakly.

"Not exactly." Rooke shrugged. "Gazpaccio took care of us as infants, but we were only children by the time we moved on. He's a distant memory to us. By the time we arrested him, we'd already been separated for years."

"-And that's all we're telling you." The spymaster finished.

'Queen' had a troubled look on her face, hiding it with her mask. Some of her questions were answered, but she still felt unsatisfied. So, Kane's father was in prison? By his own request? How could his children lock away their own family so carelessly like that? Were they truly disconnected with their own grandfather? She sensed something more about this situation, but decided not to press any further. She's fortunate he even promised not to blab about this as it is.

"Thank you. I think that answers my questions."

"I won't tell Kane, but I advise you not to dig any further. I can tell you he would be upset if you did."

She placed a finger to her lip, wondering when he'd ever been angry at her. It must've been when she was still a cadet, and demanded to know about the test he'd been running...it was the only time she ever heard him infuriated, beyond the instance she had her nose broken. Would he really get that angry again? Possibly, even more? She just couldn't picture it, after knowing him as the gentleman and honorable man after all this time. She hummed in thought and bid goodbye to the Elites, her mind swarming with thoughts at this new information.

Knowing Gazpaccio was arrested only made her more curious. What illegal things did he practice to warrant such a thing? How could toy-making somehow be an illicit business? She felt slightly agitated that Deacon wasn't willing to tell her more. Maybe if she had caught Rooke on his own, she would've learned what she actually wanted...she huffed as she approached Kane's mansion, and threw open the doors inside. She stormed up the stairs paying little attention to her surroundings, and plopped down on the floor in frustration. The floors weren't normally dirty in here, but she didn't care. She just wanted a moment to herself.

She held her head in her hands. Why was this bothering her so much? Was it that he was keeping such information from her? Sure, she wasn't owed any bit of it, but it felt unfair to be kept from such a personal thing she wanted to know. If only this family of his wasn't so peculiar...she wished she could just meet Gazpaccio already, and learn everything about him that she could, just so she could get to know Kane a little better. That's all she wanted from the start. He's been relatively quiet about his past, the entire time she'd known him.

'I know he's hiding things from me,' She thought to herself. 'I just wish I knew more about him...and his family…'

As she groaned loudly, a sudden voice caught her by surprise.

"Are you alright?"

She snapped her head upwards, only to find a colorful man looking down at her. She realized she wasn't holding her mask and grabbed it to conceal the frustrated look on her face. The last person she expected to find was Phule, but at least that made sense. He was always around when it was most unwanted. She sighed at his words and weakly motioned her hand in the air.

"I am fine...just feeling a little annoyed…"

"I'll say." He replied in a deep tone. "You're sitting in front of my door."

She looked behind her and noticed she had set herself down in front of his room. She stood to her feet right away and muttered an apology, wiping the dust off from her dress. He moved past her and twisted the knob open. As she stared at his back, a realization suddenly struck her. Phule is... also an Elite! One of Kane's sons! He was the oldest, wasn't he? And Bishop said something about him knowing Gazpaccio the best..!

Before he could close the door, she moved her hand on it to stop him. This took more strength than she expected it to. He jumped at the noise and looked at her as if she was crazy.

" Phule ! Wait just a moment." She moved herself into the doorway and he gave her an impatient scowl. "Would you - uh - mind telling me about Gazpaccio..?"

"My grandfather?" He replied in confusion. "What on Earth for?"

"Well, none of your brothers seem to want - or can - tell me about him…And I was wondering if you could ?"

He crossed his arms and leaned on the wall. "Now, why would I want to do that? Kane gets furious about this sort of thing."

"I know he would be upset, but he doesn't have to know! All I want is to learn about his family a little more. It is harmless, isn't it?" She shrugged.

Something changed about the jester's expression. Something dawned on him in that moment. Things have been so boring as of late, and Kane being outraged is the exact type of amusement he'd been begging for. And it would be from his own girlfriend..! That itself sounded like a show he'd love to enjoy. He always relished the drama in his own family, especially the conflict between his relatives and even the annoyance of his own brothers...he grinned wickedly at this picture. Oh, how delicious it would be for Kane to find a reason to finally kick this girl onto the streets…! He wondered why he didn't do it sooner.

It was almost too tempting with the way she held her hands together and begged.

"You are my last hope, and all I ask is to know what he was like. What happened between him and Kane...Hell, Deacon said he was imprisoned but I don't even have a clue as to where! If I could just visit him-"

"You'd like to see him?" His heart started racing in exhilaration. This sounded almost too exciting! She nodded sadly.

"I do. You can't do that, can you? I imagine only Deacon knows-"

"Oh, no. I know where he is. And I can take you there." He leaned on the doorway coyly, twisting his marotte in his hand. "But you have to promise me you won't tell a soul. And we'll have to do this secretly."

She appeared hesitant at this idea. "Is it forbidden to see Gazpaccio?"

"Visitors of his are highly frowned upon. Especially by my father. But, I know a way we can get there without anyone ever knowing..! You just have to trust me."

She frowned, mulling this idea over. He was growing impatient with her reluctance to agree. "I guess we can do that...if you can take me right to him, then I don't have to ask anyone anymore questions…"

"All the more reason to do it." He looked around in the hallway to ensure they were alone before ushering her in his room. "Come, let's plan this out..!"

She was almost surprised to be invited into his room, but followed his hand. He slammed the door behind her and she jumped in surprise. She looked around and noticed his decor was sort of as she expected - there were lots of playing cards, instruments, and colorful things laying around. His bed was messy and the floor was littered with crumbled paper and miscellaneous items. She stepped over them to sit in one of the chairs, which was in front of a lone table that had an unfinished game of solitaire sitting on it. She admired the purple tablecloth regardless.

He followed after her and sat across the small table, giving her a smile she found hard to recognize. Something about this felt... wrong . Especially since Deacon told her to drop it. But she couldn't shake the opportunity to finally meet Gazpaccio. And she figured she could learn more about Kane's eldest son while she was at it. She'd been looking for an excuse to spend more time with him. He leaned forward and animated himself theatrically with his hands, which pulled her in like a moth to a flame.

"My grandfather is imprisoned in a tower on a lone island that is occupied exclusively by the Tortellini family. Remember that name - they'll be important when you learn more about him. Now…the Tortellinis are big fans of gambling. They're famous for it, actually! On a certain day of each month, they gather everyone in the family to partake in a card game...and it leaves the island mostly uninhabited."

She felt interested in his words.

"Since there will be no guards around Gazpaccio's tower, we can easily slip in-and-out, given how long their game takes. And it usually takes awhile, as they're a big family. So you should have plenty of time to get to know my grandfather, and ask him all your silly little questions. Do you follow what I'm saying?"

"Yes, we sneak in while they're playing their game, I meet Gazpaccio, and then we leave." She repeated.

"Smart girl! It's a simple plan, but very easy to mess up if you don't know what you're doing." His voice deepened again as he looked at her seriously. "You follow me, you listen to me, and you do as I say. Got it? No improvising, running elsewhere, otherwise the both of us will get in deep trouble. And you don't want that. Believe me."

"I understand."

"The day of their game happens to be next Tuesday. I want you to meet with me at the docks, by yourself, early in the morning so we can go. Completely undetected as well. I won't wait for you if you're late, so you better be quick."

She clenched her hands. "Next Tuesday morning, by the docks...I got it."

" Bene, bene . And don't disappoint, wasting my time. It's going to take a lot of work to get you there." He cleared the cards from his game politely. "Make sure every second is worth it."

"Phule, may I ask why are you doing all of this for me? We haven't talked that much beyond your work, but I appreciate what you're doing. I just wonder why you'd do all of this for me."

He smiled at her. It wasn't a genuine one. It was in amusement at how naive 'Queen' truly was. Even though Kane taught her all about deceiving people, and he had done his fair share as well, she sure had a hard time recognizing it from others. Perhaps it was because he'd been doing this much longer than her. He wanted everything to absolutely go wrong. He hoped for it, actually. All he had to do was watch his own back and make sure he doesn't get roped in with her trouble. He just wanted to watch the fire that was inevitably going to burn from this. And she had no clue what was bound to happen, despite all the warnings sent her way. How foolish she'd let her curiosity get her into situations like this…

"Because I care about you," He spoke dramatically. "I only want you to know more about my father. And I know how quiet he can be about himself. That's why you want to do this, isn't it? So you can learn about his father and what Kane was like back then?"

"Yes, exactly…"

"-And I want to help you learn that." He forced himself not to laugh. She'll hate learning everything Kane's done and change her opinion of him completely! He wouldn't be surprised if they broke up after this entire thing. "I only want to keep him happy, just as you do."

She waited a few moments before looking at him meaningfully. "Thank you..."

He chuckled darkly.