Part Four

"Shou? What are you doing here?"

Daunte and the others followed Shou towards the reply signal they had received. They traveled for only fifteen minutes when Oboro seemingly materialized out of thin air. And the older man didn't look pleased to see Shou.

Shou for his part didn't seem to notice. "There you are. Don't you know how long you've been away this time?"

"What are you doing here?" Oboro repeated himself. "I sincerely hope your parents didn't send you after me!"

"Nine years," Shou said, answering his own question. "We haven't seen a hair of you in nine years. No letters, no surprise visits, nothing. We'd thought you had died, old man! That's not a nice thing to do to your friends and family!"

"Have you spoken with Fuyo at all? I'm fairly certain she would've been more than happy to explain my reasons to you!"

Shou shrugged. "We've been worried out of our minds, so I said I would come after you and drag you home to prove to everybody that you were still alive."

Oboro shook his head and rubbed a hand over his face. "I'm currently in the middle of assisting the Liberation Army, so I can't come back with you yet. But I hope you're satisfied seeing me alive and well."

Shou looked at him for a long moment, and then looked at Daunte for another long moment. "…No. This won't do. If I return empty-handed, then I'll never hear the end of it."

"Shou—"

"So I'll just join this Army you've pledged yourself to."

"Eh?!" Oboro dropped his hand away from his face and gaped at the younger man. "W-Wait, what?!"

"I'm joining the Liberation Army," Shou said. "Then after they're victorious I'm dragging you home with me."

"Shou, your parents would never want you to join an Army like this!"

"Did it stop them from taking part in the Falenan Civil War?"

"Shou, you're a detective and not a killer! Have you ever even taken a life before?"

"Yes," Shou said bluntly. At Oboro's shocked expression Shou shrugged again. "It was a couple years ago. I killed a man in self-defense during a job. Mom and Dad were devastated that I took another's life, but what was I supposed to do? The other guy was bigger than me and he had a bigger weapon than me. I tried to simply disarm him and walk away, but then he came after me with his bare hands. If I didn't kill him, then he would've killed me. Would it have been better if I died?"

"Of course not! I…" Oboro shook his head and looked to Daunte. "If this is all right with you, would you mind accepting Shou's assistance? He's going to stay regardless, and I would never be able to face his parents if anything happened to him."

"You're acting like I'm a child, when I'm older than he is!" Shou jabbed a thumb at Daunte. But he still turned to address Daunte. "Consider me hired, my Lord."

"O-Okay, thank you," Daunte said, bowing slightly.

"While this family reunion is heartwarming, we're wasting time here," Farzin spoke up. "Where is Bearyl Lutis? We have a crisis to advert!"

"Lord Bearyl is meeting with his other generals," Oboro said. "They were planning to—" he abruptly cut off as he took in the party in front of him for the first time. When his eyes fell upon Viki, they widened in shock and his jaw hung open.

"O-Oh, hello," Viki said, bowing. "We've surely met before, haven't we?"

"…Quite," Oboro said at length. He quickly shook his head and gestured to Daunte. "Come. We've all been concerned for you, Lord Daunte, so everyone will be pleased to see you."

Less than an hour later they were at the new Liberation Army headquarters. It was nothing more than a war camp. Dozens of tents spread out before Daunte, though he saw far more sleeping bags lined it. A couple of meters away he saw Clara tending to the wounded, but Daunte was disheartened by how many people were wounded. The young doctor clearly looked overwhelmed, but did not falter in her task.

"DAUNTE!"

He jumped at this shout and slid off his heart. Emotions surged through him as he caught sight of Arin rushing towards him. He met his little brother halfway and crushed him in a hug. "Big Brother, you're alive! I thought I would never see you again!"

Me too. But Daunte didn't say it out loud and instead clung to Arin tightly.

"Daunte!" Two bodies slammed into him on either side of his body, hugging him tightly. It took him a moment to realize that it was Roen and Felicity. It was surreal seeing his two best friends again and he found himself fighting back tears. "Daunte, you're alive!" Felicity shouted.

"Man, we thought the worst had happened to you!" Roen said, laughing wheezily. "Bearyl Lutis wasn't doing anything to help you, and we were just about to go and save you ourselves!"

Daunte stiffened at this proclamation. "…Lord Bearyl wasn't going to help me?"

Roen jerked, and looked away. "I…uh…"

"Never mind that," Felicity said quickly, helping him to stand. "You're back, and that's all that mat—"

"Lord Bearyl was too busy spending Army funds bribing soldiers to turn traitor!" Arin snapped suddenly. "We've been petitioning him for days to do something for you, but he considered you a lost cause! I can't believe he just ditched you like that after what you did to save General Varnaz!" he grabbed for Daunte's hand. "Are you okay? Are you really okay?"

"Y-Yes," Daunte said shakily. The news Arin had just given him made him feel sick to his stomach. "I was captured by Sheikh Umed."

Felicity breathed out a sigh of relief and pressed a hand over her heart. "Thank Nagar it wasn't Sheikh Faakhir!"

"Can you please take me to see Bearyl Lutis?" Farzin suddenly stepped forward. "We have an emergency on our hands."

"An emergency?" Roen asked. "Well, Lord Bearyl's tent is all the way in the back." He gestured in that direction. "They're planning something right now so all the generals and lieutenants are there."

"You guys should come too," Daunte said, referring to Priscilla, Shou, and Viki. "Since you're new recruits you should meet our leader."

"From what I've just heard he sounds like a swell guy," Shou said sarcastically.

"We'll come with you," Felicity spoke up.

"Yes," Arin said, squeezing his hand tighter. "I want to stay by your side, Big Brother!"

"O-Okay," Daunte said. He turned to head in the direction of Bearyl's tent, but was stunned to find himself surrounded by soldiers and civilians.

"You're alive!"

"We heard what happened! We'd thought you had died!"

"Did you sell us out to the Holy Army?"

"General Varnaz has been so quiet lately. He isn't happy but he's not getting angry either. I think he's been upset about what happened during the battle!"

"Are you going to go see Lord Bearyl? While you're there, can you tell him we've run out of shoes? If he has the money to bribe soldiers into turning traitor, then he can somehow smuggle us in some new shoes!"

This continued as the group headed towards the back of the camp. Daunte was very relieved to see Cairoh and Gusoku still operating their businesses, and he also caught sight of Tidur in front of a large tent with a sign with a bed image on it. Liron ran over to give him a hug, and he saw Sharon sitting with Suna, feeding the young dragon some ray meat. And in between some tents he saw Desiree doing stretches.

Good. It looks like everyone who I recruited made it out alive.

Two meters from Bearyl's tent the man himself came out, undoubtedly to see what all the commotion was about. He went rigid when he saw Daunte, and…it was strange. It looked like a shadow fell over his face, and he frowned deeply. Daunte was startled by his expression, and stopped briefly.

Then Bearyl broke out into a smile and surged forward towards him. Daunte, you're alive!" he shook Daunte's hand vigorously. "You gave us quite a scare! We had no idea what happened to you!"

Roen grumbled under his breath, but Daunte forced a smile as the people around them silenced. "Thank you, Lord Bearyl."

"Here, come inside. I'm sure you have a lot to tell me."

Daunte was surprised by how nice Bearyl was acting, and followed the Liberation Army leader inside. His entourage followed.

"Daunte!" Gunther shouted, jumping to his feet. Allise said nothing but sprang from her chair and ran over to give Daunte a hug. Gunther came over and slapped Daunte on the shoulder, laughing heartily. "I swear you have the devil's luck! You have no idea how glad I am to see you!"

"Well, well," Caesar said, smiling his usual lazy smile as he looked up from the map on the large table. "You're a pleasant surprise, Daunte.

"Thank you." Daunte looked around the room and caught sight of Varnaz. The Lieutenant General had fresh scar on his cheek, forming a pale line on his dark skin, but the older man looked stricken. He swallowed thickly, and looked as though he wanted to say something, but then slowly closed his mouth.

"This is very curious," Bearyl said, walking over to stand beside Caesar at the table. His expression no longer looked friendly. "We've been planning our biggest campaign to date, and right on the cusp of initiating our plan you suddenly appear out of nowhere? That seems too much like a coincidence."

Daunte gaped at him. Was…Is he implying I sold the Liberation Army out?!

"Lord Bearyl Lutis," Farzin spoke up, quickly coming forward. "I am Cleric Farzin Masood. Or rather, ex-Cleric. I've come here to give you very grave news."

"Farzin," Allise sputtered, turning to the Cleric. Her eyes were wide. "T-This is quite unexpected!"

Farzin looked at her, and familiarity flickered briefly in his eyes. "Lady Allise, it's been a long time. How are you?"

"Much better after you granted me a divorce."

"Divorce?!" Gunther exclaimed. "Y-You were the one who gave Allise her divorce from the Sheikh?!"

"Of course," Farzin said. "Technically per Holy Decree you have to petition the Cabinet of High Clerics to get a divorce. But there was a loophole in the law which stipulated that anyone of a Clerical rank could sign off on annulments. I was the only one who figured that out, and…" he shrugged. "It's quite surprising how much money I made authorizing speedy divorces."

"Then we're happy to have you here!" Gunther greeted, shaking his hand. Allise rolled her eyes.

"Hmm," Priscilla said softly. "Maybe you were defrocked for more than taking a stance against the High Clerics?"

"So what brings you here, Farzin?" Bearyl asked him.

"I'll cut right to the chase: the Cabinet of High Clerics has ordered Sheikh Umed to massacre all the citizens of Uaminifu."

Gasps of horror and outrage filled the tent. "Sheikh Umed agreed to participate in this?!" Allise snapped. "That's completely out of character for him to do!"

"Uaminifu is full of religious zealots who believe anything the High Clerics say to the public!" Gunther also objected. "Why on earth would they want to kill a city full of their most faithful and loyal supporters?!"

"It's true, though," Daunte said. "I heard the order be given to Sheikh Umed. He agreed to do it because he was threatened with dismissal if he didn't."

"Of course he would care about keeping power," Varnaz snapped. Surprisingly, Bearyl didn't look moved by this news.

"He was told that if he didn't do this that they would find somebody who would be more than happy to do it," Daunte said. He stepped forward, lowering his tone. "General Varnaz, he—Cleric Ramiro Lažov was selected to be Keiran Umed's replacement if Umed didn't do this."

Varnaz's eyes went wide, and the color drained from his face. The tent abruptly silenced at hearing this news. Varnaz said nothing, but he suddenly looked fatigued. He slowly sat down in a chair and looked at the floor. It was obvious he needed a moment to take this news in.

But he needed to know this. He needed to know that the man responsible for the murders of his sister and the rest of his family is a candidate to become Sheikh.

"The massacre is scheduled for the day after tomorrow," Farzin said. "You need to get every able-bodied man and woman out there to defend the city from this onslaught."

"There won't be an onslaught if we all go," Daunte added hastily. "Sheikh Umed swore to me that if our entire force arrives there he will engage us in a nonlethal manner and then sound the retreat. So all we have to do is pretend to fight the Sheikh's soldiers in order to convince the Cabinet of High Clerics that we "overwhelmed" them."

Caesar nodded to this and looked at Bearyl. "What do you think, my Lord? I believe we can trust the Sheikh to not commit full-scale murder on unarmed civilians, and even upon ourselves."

Bearyl's answer was immediate…and completely unexpected. "We don't have time for this."

Everyone gaped at the Liberation Army leader, who pointed to a figure on the map. "The day after tomorrow the Cabinet of High Clerics goes on recess. That means three-quarters of them will not be in Mlkwt Alsmwat, and many soldiers will also be leaving the city to escort the High Clerics to wherever they want to go. It's a prime opportunity to launch a campaign of Mlkwt Alsmwat and take over the city. By the end of the week the war will be over and I will have assumed power. We're never going to get an opportunity like this again, so we must stay on course and not be distracted by anything else."

Caesar had also looked stunned by Bearyl's proclamation. But before he could say anything Farzin surged forward. "Bearyl Lutis, are you going to abandon the citizens of Uaminifu to their deaths?!"

"Everyone you all have described to me sounds like a carefully placed trap," Bearyl said curtly. "I don't believe for one minute that Keiran Umed will massacre an entire city. Didn't he refuse to take custody of Princess Kaylani because of her pregnancy? A man of that caliber wouldn't slaughter innocent people."

"But I just told you," Daunte said harshly. "I told you he was threatened into doing this! He's been backed into a corner by the exact thing you just brought up! He cannot defy the High Clerics again so he's being forced to do this! If we don't intercept him then he'll have no choice but to kill the people of Uaminifu!"

"And if I send our soldiers out to Uaminifu instead of the capital, then the High Clerics will close ranks and fortify the city," Bearyl snapped back at him. "We will never get such an easy opportunity to for a coup again! If I don't end the war as soon as possible, then even more people than the population of Uaminifu is going to die!"

"My Lord," Gunther said, stepping forward. "If I may—"

"If your opinion meant anything to me, Gunther, then I would've asked for it."

The insult clearly hurt Gunther, and Daunte's anger only rose.

"Everyone," Caesar suddenly announced. "If you would excuse us—"

"No," Bearyl snapped, rounding upon his strategist. "Whatever you have to say, say it now in front of our allies! I won't allow you to use the cover of darkness to hide your insubordination, Caesar!"

Bearyl's public insult of his own strategist caused a stirring of discomfort amongst the people in the tent. Caesar, however, looked unmoved by it. "Well then, I shall point out to you that we do not know entirely for certain if the High Clerics are indeed going to go on recess the day after tomorrow. This is only an assumption due to the fact that that specific date is when they always go on recess. However, given to the fact that they've ordered the slaughter of a city, we have to consider the possibility that they probably aren't going to go on recess until after the fact."

Bearyl similarly looked unmoved. "And why would they go on recess after the massacre? It would only look more suspicious if they did!"

"But our intelligence has still not confirmed whether—"

"Caesar I know the politics of this country better than you, and I know the High Clerics better than you. There is nothing that will stop them from going on recess on that specific day, so we must act quickly! Farzin." He looked at the ex-Cleric. "Are the High Clerics still going on recess?!"

"I honestly don't know," Farzin said hotly. "It wasn't a topic of discussion while I was trying to stonewall their efforts!"

"Still, this is an opportunity we mustn't squander!"

"So you're condemning an entire city to die because you're so sure you're right?" Shou asked.

"Who said that?!" Bearyl hollered. Daunte looked over his shoulder but saw that Shou had slipped out of the tent. "This discussion is over! We're not deviating from my plan!"

"What about Uaminifu?!" Farzin shouted. He punched the table hard. "That's eighty-five thousand people! Eighty-five thousand people are going to die!"

"And like I said," Bearyl said, obnoxiously enunciating his words. "Even more people than that will die if we don't end this war. My soldiers have already lost so much—I won't allow them to lose more over a city full of brainwashed religious zealots."

Farzin's face turned purple from rage. Daunte was almost certain that the ex-Cleric would attack Bearyl. His own anger was simmering out of control, but he remained in control and stepped forward. "Lord Bearyl, I request that you allow me to lead a small campaign to Uaminifu."

"Denied," Bearyl retorted. "We need everyone—and I mean everyone—for this mission. So go and get ready for the siege, Daunte."

His callousness finally caused Daunte to lose his temper. "I've scarified so much for this Army!" he shouted. "I've been loyal to this Army and I've been loyal to you! Even after I found out you were more concerned about buying out soldiers than to even attempt a rescue operation for me, I held strong and didn't betray you! But when I look at you now, I don't know why I even bothered! You're a pompous, selfish hypocrite who doesn't give a damn about anyone but your own self-interests! You act like you're this saintly liberator, but what the hell have you even done that's liberating?! You abandoned Agameru to its fate, you refuse to do anything for the Dark Chasm, and now you're abandoning Uaminifu to its fate! I'd say that you're no better than the Cabinet of High Clerics, but I think you're actually worse than those ex-assassins!"

His only warning was Bearyl launching himself across the table at him. The next thing Daunte knew he was flat on his back in the dirt and everyone around him was moving and shouting. Both Varnaz and Gunther were physically restraining Bearyl, who was screaming with so much rage that he was almost frothing at the mouth. Arin was almost on the verge of tears and Roen and Oboro carefully helped Daunte to his feet.

Daunte however, didn't get angry and only saw irony in this situation. Well I shoved him down before, and now he shoved me down. I guess we're even.

"You son of a bitch!" Bearyl was hollering, shoving Gunther and Varnaz away from him. "You don't know anything about me! About all the sacrifices I've had to make for the good of this country! An immature little boy like you could never understand what I've suffered, and how hard I've worked to make things better! Everything I have done has been for the sake of Nagarea!"

"But you're still going to abandon an entire city to die, my Lord," Priscilla pointed out. "No matter what you've done or feel, you must realize how this looks to the rest of us."

Bearyl looked her over, taking in her scarlet robe, and scoffed. "As if I need a cheap whore giving me a lecture!"

"Don't talk about her like that!" Daunte growled at him.

"AH!" Caesar shouted suddenly. His eyes and mouth went wide. "Ah…ah, ah, ah!" he pointed with a trembling finger. Daunte turned to follow where he was pointing, and the crowd parted to see what—or who—he was pointing at.

Viki stared back at him with confusion. "Ah…yes?"

"Viki!" he shouted, surging forward. He clasped her hands tight in his. "You're here! When did you get here?!"

"A-Ah, just a few hours ago," Viki said, laughing slightly. "You seem familiar to me. Who are you, again?"

Caesar laughed at the question, and released her hands. "Don't you remember me? We fought in the Second Fire Bringer War together three years ago!"

Recognition lit up across Viki's face. "O-Oh! Now I remember you! You're a Silverberg! I've known many Silverbergs!"

"I remember you too," Oboro said suddenly. He was looking at Viki thoughtfully. "We fought together during the Falenan Civil War."

Daunte gaped in shock at Oboro. The Falenan Civil War?! Wasn't that twenty-eight years ago?! He looked at Viki, who barely looked older than him. Wait…does she have a True Rune too?!

"Yes, yes, and she's also a veteran of the Islands Federation War," Caesar said quickly, taking Viki by the hand and pulling her to the front of the group.

"So that was her?" Oboro said, more to himself than anything else. "Huh. I'd thought it was an ancestor of hers."

"My Lord," Caesar announced, directing Viki to stand in front of Bearyl. "This is Viki, and she will be able to solve all of our problems."

"How so?" Bearyl asked unconvincingly. "I will?" Viki asked at the same time.

"She's in possession of the Blinking Rune, which is a very rare Rune," Caesar told him. "Its power is instant teleportation."

"Really?!" Bearyl exclaimed. "By Nagar! She could teleport the entire Army straight to Mlkwt Alsmwat right this minute! We could seize the city and end the war by tonight!"

"I don't think that's wise, considering the High Clerics are still within city limits."

"…Right." Bearyl deflated slightly, but not by much. "But this is truly a blessing! We could ambush any Army with her at our disposal!"

"Precisely, which is why I think we should send her to Uaminifu to evacuate the city."

"…What?" Bearyl asked flatly.

"W-Wait a minute," Viki said, turning around to face Caesar. "I-I know that my Blinking Rune seems very powerful, but there's a limit to that power! I can't simply teleport hundreds of people at once! That would require a degree of concentration that I'm not capable of!"

"Yes you are," Caesar countered.

"No, I'm not!"

"Viki, you are capable!" he leaned in close to her face. "I've done my research, and I know it was really you who participated in the Islands Federation War! I know you are capable transporting entire fleets across the seas! If you can teleport multiple vessels filled with people safely, you can teleport the people of this town safely! I have faith in you!"

"I…uh…" Viki looked at Daunte over her shoulder. "I-I-I'm really not as great as he says I am. Would you still trust me to do this task? M-My magic might backfire."

"Not to worry," Caesar said, straightening. "I'll find you some nose plugs to wear during the campaign so the chances of your Rune backfiring will decrease significantly."

But Viki was still looking at him expectantly. Daunte coughed awkwardly. "I-I believe you can do it, Viki."

Viki looked a little scared but she slowly nodded and turned around. "I-I'll try my best."

"That's the spirit!" Caesar cheered.

"Now hold on a minute!" Bearyl snapped. "I think all of you are forgetting who's in charge here! I'M the leader of the Liberation Army, and all of you are under my command! And I've told you we're not wasting our time on Uaminifu! We're going to march on the capital and we're going to win!"

"B-But can't we take Viki to Uaminifu now?" Daunte pleaded. "We'll evacuate the city a-and we'll be back before the siege!"

"That sounds even better," Caesar said. "We could teleport to Uaminifu right this minute, and—"

"Everyone, shut up!" Bearyl hollered. The tent immediately fell silent. "This is my decision and MY decision alone! We're going to Mlkwt Alsmwat and ONLY to Mlkwt Alsmwat! We need to take this opportunity to end this damned war! Viki, I'm not going to waste your Blinking Rune on a bunch of idiot zealots who couldn't even tie their shoes if the High Clerics didn't know how to show them! You're going to use your Rune to teleport my Army to Mlkwt Alsmwat, and that's all you're going to use it for!"

"My Lord," Allise said, stepping forward. "My Lord, how are you going to be an inspirational leader to Nagarea if you allow the people you're claiming to protect to die?"

"And what kind of inspirational leader would I be if I didn't do absolutely everything that I can to ensure our victory and to ensure that we don't lose any more lives on the road to victory?!"

"You know what?" Farzin spoke up, raising his hands. "The hell with this and the hell with you, Bearyl Lutis. I'll go to Uaminifu myself to try and stop this."

"You'll probably be thrown in prison," Gunther pointed out. "And then you'll be slaughtered along with the rest of the city!"

"I don't care," Farzin said savagely. "I'm still going to try. And I'd rather die trying to help those people than stay here feeding your ego." He jabbed a finger at Bearyl before storming out of the tent.

"Varnaz, see to it that he never comes back," Bearyl snapped, returning to the table. "Now, to get back to the task at hand—"

"No."

Bearyl stiffened at this, and Daunte's jaw dropped in shock. Varnaz stepped forward, regarding his best friend with a chilling glare. "My Lord, I joined this Army to fight injustice. To get justice for my family. To rebuild our country in such a way that nobody else has to suffer what I suffered. I made the choice to follow you and abandon the people of Agameru to their fate. It was a mistake, and I'm not going to make that mistake again. I'm going to take my soldiers and defend Uaminifu. With or without your permission."

Bearyl was struck speechless by Varnaz's defiance, and even Daunte was shocked. He…He's not a yes-man to Bearyl anymore? But he also remembered how Bearyl recklessly sent him on a mission and then abandoned him to die. Varnaz obviously didn't forget that, either.

It makes me wonder WHY Bearyl is still leader, when everyone disagrees with his decisions. But I guess…I guess they don't know who should take his place.

"…Everyone, leave us," Bearyl said finally, looking away from Varnaz. His voice had become small and quiet. "Caesar and Varnaz, you both stay. The rest of you get out."

Tensions ran high in the camp after Daunte and the others left Bearyl's tent. The soldiers and civilians had undoubtedly heard the loud arguing from Bearyl's tent, and while Bearyl had his share of defenders, the census across camp was overwhelmingly against his idea.

"—can't just abandon them!"

"Must we storm the capital now?!"

"How do we even know the High Clerics are going on recess? What if this is a trap to bait us?"

"—can't believe Sheikh Umed would really agree to massacre an entire city!"

"But how on earth can we possibly coordinate an evacuation of a city with a population of nearly ninety-thousand people?!"

"Arin was telling the truth before," Roen said quietly. They were sitting on bed rolls in the tent that been designated as Tidur's inn. "Lord Bearyl really didn't do anything to help you, Daunte. Everybody tried—Gunther, Allise, and even Varnaz—to convince him to help you, but he saw it as a waste of time. He was also convinced you would sell us out so he didn't even want to try rescuing you."

"I feel so foolish," Felicity said softly. "I was so excited to join the Liberation Army and to be able to make a difference, but this—" she gestured with her hand. "I'm not sure I even want Lord Bearyl to win anymore. If he throws these kinds of hissy fits now, what would happen if he became leader of our whole country? And abandoning yet another town to die?" she shook her head.

"Can we leave?" Arin asked Daunte quietly. "Lord Bearyl is an awful man. I don't want anything to do with him anymore."

"I understand how you feel, guys," Daunte said. "But we can't leave. Not just yet. We need to formulate a plan to save Uaminifu."

"That's right," Roen agreed, albeit very reluctantly. "Uaminifu is larger than Agameru. The Sheikh might not succeed in killing every citizen, but if we don't do something then a lot of people are going to die."

"Is Uaminifu worth saving?" Felicity asked suddenly. When everyone gaped at her in shock she shrugged. "Over half the kids in the Dark Chasm are from Uaminifu. They're so full of their own zealotry that parents turned in their own children! Can you believe that? This one boy in the Chasm—Lysander I think his name was—he was sent there because he refused an arranged marriage! His own aunt had him tried under Original Sin because his own parents had eloped!"

"I remember him," Roen said. "He used to be pretty vocal in the Dark Chasm. What happened to him? Did he die?"

Felicity shook her head. "Worse. They broke his spirit so badly that he just became a shell of his former self. B-But he was still alive when we escaped. I hope he's still alive now."

"Me too," Daunte said softly. "I hope all those kids are still alive. I don't like that they're still being subjugated to the Dark Chasm while we're out here free."

"But you do bring up a good point though," Felicity said. "We can't help everyone without an Army, so we at least need the Liberation Army for that. But why should we stick our neck out for Uaminifu, after everything they've done to their own children?"

"Because my mother would've done the same," Daunte said.

"That's right," Arin said, nodding.

"Oh hi, Daunte." Esther had a blanket wrapped around her body and she was dabbing at a runny nose as she walked over to them. "I'd heard you had arrived. I'm very happy to see that you're okay."

"Thank you. Are you okay?"

Esther shrugged. "I have a head cold. Mom thinks I'm not used to sleeping outside for such long periods of time."

Daunte felt awful that she was sick, especially since he had recruited Esther and her family to the Army. "H-Have you seen Clara?"

"Over a head cold? No way. There's soldiers still injured from the battle, and—"

Daunte stood up and grabbed her by her hand. "Come with me."

"Wait, where are we going?" Arin asked.

The group left the tent inn and headed towards the infirmary area. Unfortunately the infirmary was not located inside a tent but rather was outside with soldiers laying on bedrolls. Clara looked up as they approached and her eyes went wide. "Daunte?! You're alive!"

"I want to try something," Daunte said. He positioned himself so that he was standing in the center row of the bedrolls and released Esther's hand. "I'm going to use my Rune on the wounded."

"Really?!" Esther gasped, but Clara didn't look so optimistic. "Your True Rune might have greater reach than a standard Rune, but I don't think you will make much difference with the sick and the wounded."

"I'll still try," Daunte said. "I've got two uses of the Rune, so I'll use it twice and make sure to rest the Rune."

Clara nodded slowly. "I appreciate the help."

Daunte nodded and raised his hand high. "Howl!" he shouted.

The Rune of Restoration responded, and Daunte focused his energy on the Rune. Indeed, the concentration on the Rune did allow for the spell to expand out over a wider radius than normal. He felt the fatigue he'd been feeling fade, and Clara looked visibly less tired. Esther no longer looked feverish, and soldiers even began sitting up on their bedrolls.

When the spell completed however, Daunte felt drained and he fell to his knees. "Daunte!" Roen and Felicity rushed to his side, but Arin reached him first. "Are you okay, Big Brother?!"

"I don't believe it!" Esther gasped. She felt her own forehead. "M-My head cold is gone!"

"And I certainly feel more rested than I have in days," Clara said. "Are you all right, Daunte?"

Daunte nodded jerkily, but pressed both hands to his forehead to help relieve the dizzy sensation he was feeling. That…That worked better than I thought. But I probably should refrain from doing that again.

But his spell paid off and soldiers began rising to their feet, fully recovered. They turned to Clara to give thanks, but then they rounded upon Daunte, slapping him on the shoulder and squeezing his arm in gratitude.

"Thank you, Daunte!"

"I thought the pain would kill me, but now I feel great!"

"You saved Varnaz, and now you saved us! You're the best thing to happen to this Army!"

Daunte felt a little overwhelmed by their praise, and he didn't like that they were giving so much credit to him when Clara had done more. He knew he could accept the praise without question or turn their thanks back to Clara. After a moment, he decided. "I-It was nothing. Dr. Clara did far more than I, so please thank her instead."

It worked and they turned their thanks back to Clara. Clara surprisingly looked annoyed by the attention she was getting, but she gave Daunte a warm smile regardless. Sort of like a silent 'thank you'.

"You really are incredible," Esther said with awe.

"Your fanbase seems to be growing, Daunte," Felicity laughed.

Daunte looked at her. "I have a fanbase?!"

"You have a True Rune, you're a hard worker, you sacrificed yourself to save a superior officer, and now you just healed all the sick and injured in camp," Roen pointed out. "You better believe you have a fanbase."

The concept was abnormal to Daunte, especially since he hadn't acted alone in almost any of those events. "B-But I'm not the only one working so hard!"

"Being humble about what you've done certainly helps," Esther said.

"Hey, there you guys are!"

The group snapped to attention as Gunther hurried over to them. "Guys, we've been given marching orders! Come over here so I can explain them to you!"

"I'll head back to my family," Esther said. She bowed to Daunte. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Esther hurried off as the group followed Gunther to a quieter section of the camp. "So it's official," Gunther began. "Lord Bearyl has given us permission to march on Uaminifu to evacuate the town and to engage the Sheikh."

"R-Really?!" Daunte gasped. He laughed with relief.

"But there's a catch," Gunther said. "Despite our losses in the last battle, we still got new recruits and soldiers that Lord Bearyl bribed into joining us. Even so that only leaves us with a total of 500 soldiers for our standing Army."

Daunte had a sinking feeling in his gut as to where the conversation was going. Gunther quickly confirmed his dread. "As such he's allowing us to take 3 units to Uaminifu…but only 150 soldiers."

"150 soldiers?!" Felicity gasped. "Only 150 against the Sheikh's entire force?!"

"Yeah," Gunther said grimly. "Oboro sent out his intelligence and he anticipates that the Sheikh will be bring four Army units to Uaminifu, 100 soldiers in each unit."

Daunte felt light-headed again. He gaped at his friends in silence before looking at Gunther. "We…We're supposed to be bringing enough soldiers to make the Sheikh's claim that they were overwhelmed by our forces more plausible. But if we're only bringing 150 soldiers to face 400 soldiers…the Sheikh won't be fooling anybody!"

"I'm sorry," Gunther said softly. "But that's all the forces Lord Bearyl would allow. The rest are going to march on the capital."

Daunte swallowed thickly, and rubbed a hand over his mouth. Finally he nodded. "All right. We'll just have to make this work."

"So each unit will have 50 soldiers and have a commanding officer," Gunther said. "I've been assigned command of one unit, and you've been assigned command of another Daunte. As for the third unit, Lord Caesar said you could choose the commanding officer."

"What about General Varnaz?" Roen asked. "I heard him say that he would march on Uaminifu with or without Lord Bearyl's permission."

"Varnaz has been officially ordered to march with the units towards the capital," Gunther said. "We'll obviously need to move quickly and find soldiers to take with us. Daunte, do you know who you would like to command the third unit?"

Daunte thought about it for a long time. There were many officers who were qualified to lead a unit. It was a tough decision but he decided. "Viki."

"Viki?" Gunther asked with confusion. "Are…you sure that's a good idea? She's a very pretty girl but her head…she doesn't seem all there, does she?"

"Viki can take command of the unit that evacuates Uaminifu," Daunte said. "We'll hold the defenses of the city and engage the Sheikh's forces if we must. But Viki must be there. We'll never be able to efficiently evacuate the city without her Blinking Rune."

Gunther grinned toothily at him. "Well Lord Bearyl will be mad we're taking the teleporter with us, but he didn't say we couldn't take her with us. I'll go inform him of the plans. Would you mind rounding up our soldiers, Daunte?"

"Not at all." Daunte felt Arin squeeze his arms around his waist and he looked down at his little brother. There was fear in the boy's eyes, but he…he also looked a little proud too. Daunte forced a smile at him and then looked at the others. "Would you guys like to come with us?"

"Absolutely," Roen said.

"I would much rather follow you than follow Lord Bearyl," Felicity admitted. "Let's just hope Uaminifu is worth all this."

"They'll be worth it," Daunte said. "We'll save them no matter what."

Investigations

Secret #1
Name: Priscilla
Age: 30
From: Razril, Islands Nation Federation
Position: none

Secret #2
You met Priscilla after she was sentenced to death for adultery, but she's had a pretty...colorful life. She met her former lover while out fishing and she accidentally sailed into Nagarean waters. The two hit it off relatively quickly though, and instead of going back home when given the chance she decided to come to Nagarea to be with her lover. You saw the house he set her up in in Baltas, correct? It seems the man really went out of his way to take care of her, but that was pretty brazen of him to bring his mistress into the same town his wife and children were in.

Secret #3
Priscilla's certainly no pushover with a sword. That's because she use to serve in the Islands Nation Federation Navy. She joined when she was a teenager but retired after serving a decade. Then she spent most of her time doing freelance mercenary work and fishing. You would never guess all of this with her seemingly delicate appearance, but it certainly works to her advantage.

Secret #4
You know this, but Priscilla was arrested because her lover's wife found out about their relationship and filed a complaint with the Grand Citadel. In order to save his own hide the man blamed everything on Priscilla, which was pretty easy as she was a foreigner, and so only Priscilla was charged. Priscilla is unapologetically nonchalant about the whole thing, but I believe she did love the man and was hurt by the betrayal. Hopefully next time though she uses sound judgment when choosing a partner.