Darren's feet pounded on the cobblestone road as the rain poured around him. Cooper panted at his side as the zergling ran next to him, his wings fluttering to lift himself up occasionally. As Darren ran, he went over the plan that he and Aenwyn made again.

He would run back to the inn and find Jones and the rest of the knights. Meanwhile, Aenwyn was to get Abraham and Gilbert away from the guardhouse and tell the two what was happening. When Aenwyn brought up how they were supposed to find each other when their tasks were finished, Darren told the elf about his mental connection with the zerglings. They would keep in touch by having Declan follow her, while Cooper went along with Darren. The meeting point would be at Father Timothy's and Matron Abigail's orphanage where they would decide what to do next.

Now, Darren was running down a street that he thought was familiar as he tried to find the inn. He turned down an alley on the left and Cooper galloped behind him. Once he made it out, Darren started looking around himself and soon found the inn. He briskly made his way inside while Cooper stayed outside and started to scan the first floor of the inn for Jones and the rest.

"Ah! Hello sir." Darren turned to the voice and saw the innkeeper walk up to him.

"Hey," Darren replied. "Have you seen the other knights? The others that I came with before. I thought they were here?"

"Yes, they were sir. They just left a moment ago with some of the local guards earlier."

Darren swore under his breath. "Do you know where they went? It's important."

After a moment of thinking, the innkeeper answered. "I believe they are headed to the town's outskirts near the forest. One of them mentioned something about going near the sewers. Maybe they're out to hunt some of the R.O.U.S. or something?"

"What's a…" Darren trailed off then shook his head. "Never mind. You said they were heading out to the forest, right?"

"That's right."

With a nod and a quick thanks to the innkeeper, Darren went back outside into the rain and started to run towards the sewer entrance as Cooper kept pace next to him.

Aenwyn had made it back to the street where the guardhouse was located with Declan behind her. At the moment she was in an alley with her back to the wall after taking a long run to get here. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself down and made sure that her hood was still up before making her way to the building.

One of the guards spotted her and called out to her. "Oh, hey. It's you again."

"Greetings," Aenwyn said with a nod of her head. "I need to speak with Abraham."

The guards said nothing for a few moments and simply stared at her. She saw the guard on the other side start to grip his spear more tightly. Aenwyn began to feel a buildup of energy within her as she prepared for a fight. Declan began to lower himself to the ground in response and let out a low rumble from his throat.

"Alright," the guard finally said. "They should still be inside. Go on in." The tension drained from Aenwyn as she nodded to the guard and made her way inside.

As she went to the captain's office, she noticed that there were considerably fewer people milling around and that the few that were here were checking on gear and putting it on. A few glanced at her and Declan as they passed, but they didn't stop Aenwyn or Declan.

She opened the door and saw Abraham and Gilbert talking to each other. They looked at her in surprise but schooled themselves quickly when they saw it was Aenwyn with Declan by her side.

"Hello Aenwyn," Abraham said. "I thought you would have been with Darren back at the inn by now."

"That was the plan," Aenwyn replied as she closed the door behind her. "However, we ran into some trouble on the way back." Seeing the raised eyebrows on Abraham and Gilbert, she explained quickly what Darren and she found out.

"So, Chrimata's guards are in cahoots with Serenity," Gilbert growled.

"Or," Abraham started calmly with closed eyes, "we are not seeing the entire picture. First, we find evidence of their guilt, then we act. Not the other way around." Then Abraham's eyes opened with a quiet fury burning in them. "Still, just to be safe, we should work under the assumption that all guards in Chrimata are indeed hostile until further notice." He turned to the desk in McKenna's office and started to look through the papers on it.

Catching on quickly to what he was doing, Aenwyn and Gilbert joined him and started to look through the bundles of papers. After a few minutes of searching through the sheets, there was still nothing that connected the guards to Serenity. Aenwyn went to check through the drawers of the desk until she heard growling.

Aenwyn, Abraham, and Gilbert stopped what they were doing and looked at Declan to see the zergling with his hackles raised as he growled at the door. The elf was about to ask what was wrong when they heard knocking and a voice.

"Knight Abraham, are you there?"

"I am," Abraham responded quickly as the other two started putting the sheaves of paper back into its previously ordered positions. "Is there something that requires my attention?"

"Captain McKenna requested that you and your companions be escorted to his position."

"I see," Abraham said with a raised eyebrow. "And may I know where he is exactly?"

After a moment of silence, the guard answered. "I'm sorry sir, but I'm not at liberty to answer."

While Abraham was trying to gain any information from the guard, Aenwyn was nearly finished with replacing the papers until she spotted an envelope. She was about to put it into the stack when she saw the shape imprinted in the wax seal, one that she had become familiar with recently.

"Anyway sir," the guard continued outside, "we'll leave in a few minutes. Please be ready to join us at that time." They heard footsteps walking away from them.

Once Aenwyn was certain that no one was near the door, she went to Abraham and handed him the letter she found. The knight's eyes narrowed when he saw the symbol stamped on the wax.

A circle with a pointed tip and an 'X' in the middle.

Darren laid down behind a log and poked his head above it just enough to see over with Cooper following his lead. Just ahead from his position, Darren spotted the squad of knights that he was traveling with including Jones who was near the center of the group where they all sat, arms tied behind them. They were still armored but their weapons were taken from them.

Surrounding the knights were Chrimata guards who outnumbered them about three to one, each with leather armor, in a few cases some had modified pieces with chainmail and equipped with either swords or spears. Some of them had bows and arrows with them as well. They had made sure to pick a part of the forest that had a field in the middle where they could watch the knights and their surroundings better. Of all guards that were guarding the knights, the majority were keeping a loose circle around their hostages while the others scouted the edges of the forest.

Now, Darren had no plan other than "rush and pray for the best" but that could lead to the knights getting hurt, or worse, killed. While he would like to call for more Zerg to back him up, none would get here in time as they were too far away, even with their impressive running speeds. He could have used the Nydus Network to transport his creatures quickly, but that would only happen if Darren knew that the knights could survive whatever debris fell from the resulting rupture the Nydus Worm would cause.

And in an area full of large trees that could potentially fly through the air from an underground explosion, he didn't think that anyone's chances of survival would be too great.

So, Darren took a breath and was about to charge out into the clearing with Cooper at his heels until he looked at the sky. The rain was still going as strong as before, but now it was getting darker. It had gotten late and with everything going by so quickly Darren hadn't noticed that dusk was fast approaching.

He looked at the clearing again and examined where the guards were patrolling. Darren grinned as a plan started to form.

Jones looked around and started to count the number of people that were guarding them. A short while later, he confirmed that there were still too many of them to take by themselves, just like the last time he counted and the time before that. He hung his head and let out a quiet sigh.

While Jones and the other six were waiting for Uncle Abraham's group to return, a few guards had approached them in the inn. They said that Abraham was expecting them near Chrimata's gates. When they asked why Abraham would want them to meet there, the guards said that they had found those who had turned traitor and needed additional help.

When they had arrived at the gate, they were ambushed by more of Chrimata's guards and forced to surrender. Fast forward a few minutes and they were being marched through the forest until they made it to a field where they were forced to sit. One of the knights had attempted to run earlier and find Abraham but was quickly shot in the back of the leg where there was little armor to protect him. Now, they were just waiting for something.

"When are we getting out of the rain? I'm freezing my ass out here." Jones looked over to one of the guards surrounding them.

"I dunno," another guard said. "Hey, didya hear about that thing with Noah?"

"You mean that fight with McKenna?"

"Yeah that. I know that Noah's his second and all, but wasn't that just going too far?"

"They've been disagreeing on a lot of things lately. I'm just surprised it didn't happen sooner."

"But still…"

Jones stopped listening to them and looked around himself as the sky darkened, dusk soon falling to night with the rain just as heavy. In response to the time of day, a few of the guards started to light lamps that were on their waists. Jones heard one of the guards near him mutter to himself as he stared into the surrounding forest.

"Could've sworn there were a few more of our guys out there."

Jones wondered what the guard was talking about and then looked at where he was staring. Weird, Jones thought to himself. Wasn't someone standing around there earlier? It's like he just…

Jones started to scan the forest edges as discreetly as possible without alerting the guards. It looked like the same amount of people as bef-

What was that?

His eyes snapped to the left. In the darkness, Jones almost missed it. Just a few seconds ago he saw one of the guards searching through the bushes until he was pulled in.

Jones elbowed the knight next to him and got his attention. Jones motioned to the forest. A few moments passed without anything happening. The knight looked at him questionably and was about to say something when another of the guards disappeared into the surrounding foliage. The knight's eyes widened in understanding and he nodded to Jones.

Jones looked to the forest as word spread around their little group. Something was here and it was taking out the guards. It was just the distraction that they needed and when the moment came to strike, they would take it.

Darren held the man in a chokehold as he continued to struggle. It took some time, but soon the man's panicked flailing slowed, and he was knocked out. Darren held the chokehold for a few seconds longer to make sure then slowly let go and put the guard down. He looked around the perimeter of the clearing.

The whole point of all this was to get fewer guards surrounding the knights. It was slow going, sneaking around the area and knocking out the guards under the cover of darkness, but so far it seemed to be worth it as none of the other guards had seemed to catch on yet. How long this would last, he didn't know, but he would make the most of it and hopefully take out as many of them as possible before the guards were alerted.

He moved on to the next guard in his sights. Sending Cooper to the guard's other side, Darren waited until the zergling was in position.

SNAP

At the sound of a branch breaking under the zergling's foot, the guard turned around and looked into the bushes near him leaving his back to Darren. He snuck closer to the unsuspecting victim, and once he was close enough, he pounced.

Darren wrapped his arms around the guard's neck and threw both of them to the ground with Darren laying on top of him. The guard tried to knock Darren off but couldn't find a good angle to do so while belly first on the ground. He struggled for a few more seconds until his breath ran out and he finally stopped moving. Sighing in relief, Darren got off the guard.

"We've got a problem here people!"

Snapping his head around, Darren quickly looked to where the voice was coming from. One of the guards that were watching the knights seemed to notice that their friends in the forest were going missing and decided to investigate. The other guards responded to the man's call and started to gather around him, leaving just a few guards to watch the knights.

It was now or never.

With a burst of speed, Darren sprinted through the forest towards the guards with Cooper just behind him. The guards barely had any time to turn towards the sound of Darren running through the forest before he smashed through them with the force of a cannonball. The cries of the guards alerted the rest in the clearing to Darren's position and they started to converge on him.

Out of the corner of his eye, as he smashed a guard into the ground, Darren could see the captive knights start to fight back. A few kept the guards busy while their fellows started to cut themselves free of their bonds. Darren could see Jones doing the most to help his comrades by being the first to cut the others free of their bonds.

Darren stepped back as a sword came down uncomfortably close to his face. Turning to the guard who swung at him, he kicked his leg out from under him and kicked the guard in the stomach, launching him a few feet back. Another guard attempted to skewer Darren with a spear but missed. In response Darren gripped the spear and pulled the guard towards him, unbalancing the man and then knocked him to the ground with a punch.

Meanwhile, on the side, Cooper had resorted to hit-and-run tactics as he was outnumbered and in an open field. The zergling ran between the guards, knocking them over or finding ways to disable them like a claw to their shins. The guards tried to hit the zergling, but Cooper was too fast for them to hit, let alone maneuver around.

Darren slowly made his way to the knights, punching and kicking guards out of the way while dodging any swings that came his way. Once he made it to the knights, he kicked a guard in the leg and tapped Jones on the shoulder. The young knight almost swung his newly liberated sword at Darren but caught himself before he could harm the man and shouted with relief.

"Darren! It's good to see you!"

"Same here Jones," Darren replied. He dodged a swing from a sword and turned to punch the guard in the stomach, causing him to lean over. Darren finished it with a knee to the face. He heard Jones call to him.

"Have you told my uncle of what's happened?" Jones parried a sword and kicked out, knocking the guard unbalanced and leaving him open for another knight to attack. "I believe something like this would be quite urgent."

"If everything's gone to plan," Darren grunted as he smacked another guard, "then Aenwyn should've met with them already and told him everything. For now, let's finish this!"

"Agreed!"

After a few more minutes of fighting later, the guards were dealt with. Using the rope that had bonded them before, the knights got to work tying 20 beaten guards while Darren kept a lookout, Cooper resting at his feet.

Thankfully, no one was injured too badly. Any hits the knights took were blocked by their armor. Any wounds that were sustained could be healed with a quick trip to a healer and a few days' rest.

At the moment, Darren was wondering how Aenwyn was doing on her end and was hoping for an update. Just as he was going to look through Declan's eyes to get an idea of what was happening, he felt pulse over his mental bond with the zergling. He opened it up and Aenwyn's voice came through.

"Darren! You need to get to the orphanage! He said he is going to kill them!"

-Earlier-

Aenwyn kept her eyes forward as they marched to wherever McKenna was. On her right was Gilbert and on her left was Declan. Abraham marched in front of their small group that was surrounded by Chrimata guards. The rain still poured around them and the sun was soon to set over the horizon.

After Aenwyn had given Abraham the letter with Serenity's stamp on it, the guards that were assigned to them had started to lead the small group to an undisclosed location. Gilbert had wanted to fight back and meet up with the rest of the men, but Abraham convinced his second that fighting now would only hinder them rather than help.

She wondered how Darren was doing on his end.

"Aenwyn, are you well?" She turned to Gilbert, who looked at her worriedly. "You seem troubled," the knight continued.

Aenwyn schooled her features and mentally berated herself. Never show weakness. "I am fine Gilbert. There is no need to worry for me," she said, turning to him with a calm expression.

He looked unconvinced but did not push further. "If you say so." Without another word, he turned forward once again.

Aenwyn felt something nudge her left hand and turned to find Declan prodding her with his snout. Feeling the corners of her mouth twitch upwards, she rubbed the top of Declan's head fondly. The zergling looked content and let out a low purr-like sound.

After walking a few more blocks, they stopped and Aenwyn heard the lead guard speak up. "We're here."

They stood in front of a large three-story warehouse. The bottom was made of cobblestone and the walls above were made of wood. The windows were all closed except for the top floor where a pulley system was located. There were lanterns on the sides that were hung and lit.

The lead guard went up to a large pair of doors and rapped on them in three consecutive strikes, then two more. A few moments passed until the doors were opened by another pair of guards from inside. The guards that had marched started to herd Aenwyn, Abraham, Gilbert, and Declan inside. The lead guard scanned the surrounding streets before ordering a pair of guards to stand watch.

Inside the warehouse showed that there were walkways on the upper floors that connected different platforms for more space to store things. It was lit with various lanterns hung from the support columns. In the center of the warehouse stood McKenna and Noah behind a box with various papers. More guards that watched the two had their hands gripping their weapons tightly, some in distress. As the group got closer it became more obvious that McKenna and Noah were arguing about something.

Noah's arms flung up in agitation as he yelled at Mckenna. "You were the one that brought me into this!"

"I needed someone to protect our assets! Not… not… this," McKenna yelled back as he pointed at a map on the box in front of them.

"I am protecting our assets! Gods McKenna, if I weren't such a bleeding heart then-" Noah cut himself off once he spotted the new group.

McKenna turned to see the group as well and addressed Noah once more. "We will speak of this later," he hissed at the man. McKenna, visibly calming himself, turned back to the group of three, plus one zergling. "Thank you for coming at my request Abraham, Gilbert, Aenwyn."

A low growl brought attention to Declan, currently standing near Aenwyn.

"And of course… Declan I believe it was?"

The zergling let out an amused huff.

"Right…" McKenna said uneasily. "Anyway, getting back to the matter at hand, I believe you are wondering why I asked for you here?"

Gilbert was the one to answer him. "We may have an inkling of why."

"Oh?" McKenna raised an eyebrow in the knight's direction. "Do you perhaps suspect that I am connected to the rumored black market?"

Those in the warehouse started. Looking around, Aenwyn deduced that no one, much less McKenna's own guards, was expecting the guard captain to simply state that there was a chance that he and Serenity were connected.

Abraham was the first to get over his shock and spoke to McKenna incredulously. "Are you connected to Serenity?"

"I am."

Noah rounded on McKenna. "By the gods McKenna, what are you-"

"I ask that you hear me out," McKenna said as he cut off Noah, still addressing Abraham. "Then you may judge me."

Silence reigned. The tension in the building was so thick you could cut it with a knife, through the shock from those watching had yet to dissipate. Then Abraham spoke.

"Speak."

With a quick nod, McKenna began. "I'm sure you know about Chrimata's reputation as the 'Coin Purse of Aleria', yes?" Seeing Abraham nod, McKenna continued. "That title was what defined this town for a long while, ever since the founding of Aleria. Goods and services were exchanged in Chrimata as easily as gold flowed through the hands of its people. However, Chrimata was not as peaceful in the past as you see it now."

"This town was once a cesspool of felony. That knowledge though was always pushed aside in favor of the reputation that we were given. As long as the money flowed, the voices of those who suffered went unheard." With his next words, the man seemed to age 10 years.

"When I started as guard captain, I had to bury more good men and women than I ever thought possible, never mind dealing with the repercussions of people who wouldn't care for the guard the slightest bit. I've seen good people drink themselves into depression, others took their own lives because of the stress."

Then McKenna looked at Abraham resolutely. "So, when I saw a chance to make things better, I took it. It may have taken a few decades, but the streets of Chrimata and my guards are safer for it."

"And all it cost was your allegiance to Aleria," Abraham finished gravely.

"If that's what was needed. But what else could I have done, hm," McKenna asked Abraham. "If you had been in my position, would you not want what was best for your men? Could you really turn a blind eye to their suffering?"

Abraham looked at McKenna dead in the eye. "I may be loyal to my men, but my loyalty to Aleria outweighs even that." The knight took in a deep breath then spoke with a commanding tone. "By the authority granted to me by King Indulf and Queen Catherine as Captain of the Guard, Captain McKenna, you are under arrest for high treason."

McKenna sighed. "I hoped it wouldn't come to this, you seem to be a good man." He made a hand signal and the guards around them tensed. Noah looked at McKenna sharply and seemed to be contemplating something as he spoke. "Guards, take them down, alive."

The guards around Aenwyn's group started back them into a corner. Abraham and Gilbert drew their swords and Declan growled as their backs slowly drew closer to the wall behind them. Aenwyn began building up energy as she prepared to fight. However, she knew there were too many guards for their small group to fight off before they were captured. Conventional magic wouldn't help here. She looked around to see if there was anything in the warehouse, they could use to their advantage then she saw one of the windows on the top floor.

It was night.

Looking around again, Aenwyn noticed that even with the lanterns hung around the warehouse it was still dark. She could use that but…

What will they think if I use it? What if they hate me for it?

"Abraham, Gilbert," Aenwyn whispered to the men. Seeing that she had their attention, she continued. "I can help us, but I need you to trust me."

Abraham and Gilbert looked at each other for a moment and in moments came to a decision. "Do what you need to," Abraham replied.

With a nod, Aenwyn closed her eyes and focused. Around her, everyone felt a sudden chill and an unnerving sense of dread. The shadows warehouse lengthened, and the light of the building seemed to retreat into its lanterns. Aenwyn felt her surroundings answer her call. Ensuring she had a good grip on her magic, she pulled.

And the shadows exploded.

If someone was to describe McKenna, they would be hard-pressed to call him lazy. In fact, of all the past guard captains, McKenna would probably be called the most hardworking out of all of them. He made sure that Chrimata's streets were safe, that his guards were well cared for, and the people were happy for that.

Corruption would be the last thing anyone would think about him.

Still though, years of reading report after report of people dying under their watch could and would certainly change a man. When he had received that offer from Serenity to make his town a better place, he accepted. And it worked. Less of his people died and Chrimata overall became a safer place, just as long as he turned a blind eye and had some of his men do the dirty work.

If his younger self saw him now, he would balk at what he had done. But McKenna was old and experienced now. He knew that what he had done was necessary and that if he had to get a little dirty for his people, then it was all worth it. He had planned if things turned for the worst, he was prepared for the fallout.

But nothing could have prepared him for this.

"By the gods, what's that!?"

"I can't hit it! It just goes through!"

"They got Alex!"

His guards were panicking as tendrils made from the shadows themselves had started to grab at them. Whenever someone tried to attack the tendrils, their weapon would go right through and hit nothing but air. Some were unfortunate enough to be caught by the shadows.

One man had tried to shield himself from being bludgeoned but didn't see the tendril near his leg. With a scream of terror, he was thrown into the wall and landed in a broken heap on the floor. McKenna had also seen some of his guards be absorbed by the darkness from the initial explosion. No one knew what happened to them, but nobody was positive about their survival.

The situation was lost. He needed to regain control. He opened his mouth to order a retreat and regroup.

SHLICK

He felt something slip through his armor on his side. Then he was hit with burning pain. Turning to look, he saw a dagger and a hand. Following the arm, he saw Noah hold him up with a look of disgust. Noah pulled him close and whispered into his ear.

"I tried to make you see my side of things and be better, but I never imagined you could be such a weak, old man. I guess we're just never what we seem, are we?"

McKenna struggled to say anything through the pain induced haze, but only managed a soft wheeze. Noah's look of disgust turned to indifference.

"Goodbye, McKenna."

Twisting the dagger, Noah roughly pulled it out. McKenna felt himself fall to the floor as Noah let go of him. His last thought was of regret.

Then, he knew nothing at all.

She felt cold.

So dreadfully cold.

But at least there was something to distract her from that. She had to keep these people away from the others. If she didn't, then… then…

Who were they again?

She knew that she had to help them and that the others trying to attack them were bad, but who were they again? It was hard to remember, and everyone's yelling wasn't helping much either. She reached out and bound them, but they just got louder.

She squeezed until they finally went quiet.

Much better, she thought to herself.

She saw some of the others run out of the building being led by a man with a bloody dagger. He was shouting something about needing his men and an orphanage and something called Serenity, but he was leaving so that was fine. Just as long as they didn't bother her, everything was fine.

Now all she had to do was…

Strange, she couldn't remember.

Oh well. It probably didn't matter too much.

Anyway, the other two that were near her were starting to get on her nerves with their yapping. She'd deal with them soon. Then maybe, she could remember what was going on. So, she lifted a hand and was about to silence them but felt something brush by her leg. She looked down; her head tilted in confusion at what she was seeing.

Some strange creature was staring up at her with worry. The longer she looked at it, the more she had a growing feeling of familiarity to it. She knew this creature from somewhere. It was important for some reason. She remembered it had a name.

This thing is… Declan. And he belongs to… to… Darren?

Then it all came back to her. Chrimata, the dungeon, the slavers, the guards, Abraham, Gilbert, Cooper and Declan, Darren, the shadows.

The shadows!

Her eyes widened in alarm as she realized what she was doing. She focused on the shadows around her. She felt the connection and the energy she was feeding into her magic. She cut it.

Opening her eyes she saw the shadows begin to recede and give way to the light from the lanterns. She brought her hands to her mouth in horror and let out a gasp.

Surrounding her were the broken and bleeding bodies of men and women. Some had cuts all over them while others looked like broken parodies of themselves, twisted beyond their natural limits. But what was common between them was the looks of fear each had on their faces.

"Aenwyn."

Startled, she turned around. Behind her were Abraham and Gilbert, both staring at her, though Abraham was doing a better job of hiding his panic. He had sheathed his sword and kept both hands up as if he was trying to calm a wild beast. Gilbert's sword was still out as he looked at Aenwyn with caution.

"Aenwyn," Abraham started again. She looked at him. "What was that?"

"It… I was…" Aenwyn tried to speak but couldn't say anything in her shock. She felt Declan press his snout into her side trying to comfort her.

Realizing that he wouldn't get an answer now, Abraham just sighed and looked around the room. His gaze darkened as he took in the bodies. He looked at Aenwyn.

She had taken to petting Declan at the moment as the zergling sat in front of her, but it seemed to be an unconscious movement. She was staring at the bodies with a listless gaze, seemingly drained of life as she stood there.

He tried to get her attention. "Aenwyn." She turned to him. "Did you hear anything when the other guards left? I thought I did but the sound in the… darkness was muffled."

Aenwyn looked thoughtful and went over the memories when she was under the influence of her magic. Then she remembered seeing Noah leave. She remembered what he said.

She panicked for a moment, wondering what she was going to do, then she remembered what Darren had said earlier. His connection with his zerglings. She looked at Declan, bringing herself to her knees and staring into the zergling's eyes.

I hope this works.

"Declan," she started, "I need to speak with Darren."

She wasn't positive that the zergling fully understood her, but when he nodded, and his eyes started to glow she decided to go for it.

"Darren! You need to get to the orphanage! He said he is going to kill them!"

A/N: Just in time for the one-year anniversary of this story. Woop!

Also, I've been experimenting with a few things here so I'd like to hear any sort of feedback you guys could give me.

P.S.: I added in a few easter eggs (i.e. R.O.U.S. and the Alex callout). Props to anyone who knows what those are.