Raya crossed her arms, shivering and rubbing her biceps in an effort to warm up. Her skin and clothes had been soaked with sweat during the fighting and were now chilled in the cool night air. They had been following Atitāya for about half an hour, heading south as they tramped through the forest to avoid running into anyone on the road. It was dark amongst the trees, but the soft glow of their magic provided enough light to avoid tripping on the underbrush. So far, their journey had been silent, with Raya and Namaari too tired to say much after their adrenaline wore off and Atitāya being her usual stoic self. The three of them were walking in a line with Atitāya in the lead with Raya and then Namaari trailing after her.

There was a noise from behind her and Raya turned in time to see Namaari fall to her knees, the glow of their magic flickering rapidly around her. Raya hurried over to her, dropping down to her knees as well. She brought a hand up to Namaari's face, lifting her chin so she could meet Namaari's eyes. "Are you hurt?" she asked, worry creasing her brows.

Namaari shook her head, biting down on her lower lip as tears gathered her eyes. She gently pulled her chin from Raya's hand, hanging her head as she began to cry. "They hate us so much," she said, her voice barely loud enough for Raya to hear. "They killed Tri and Diep like it was nothing. They didn't care, they just wanted to get to us." She raised her head to meet Raya's gaze, her lower lip trembling. "What are we supposed to do? What could we possibly give that would satisfy them?"

Raya exhaled slowly, bringing her hand up to caress Namaari's cheek. "I don't know, dep la, I…" She stopped as a lump rose in her throat and the magic around them both started to dim. "I don't know."

There was a beat of silence before Atitāya walked over to them, dropping to one knee in front of Namaari. She waited until Namaari met her eyes before speaking. "Do you remember what I told you the day we went to Heart all those years ago?" she asked. Her voice was quiet, and it was hard to tell in the fading light, but her expression looked soft as well.

Namaari nodded and took a deep, shuddering breath. "That I am Namaari, Princess of Fang." Her voice still wavered but grew steadier with each word. "And I am strong enough to face this."

Atitāya rose to her feet, offering Namaari her hand. "Is that still true?" she asked.

Namaari wiped the tears from her face and reached for Atitāya's hand, letting herself be pulled onto her feet. Once she was standing, she locked eyes with Atitāya, her jaw set with determination. "Yes." Her shield surged around her again, regaining its steady glow.

Atitāya clasped Namaari's forearm with her other hand, shaking it gently. "Good. The world will show you what it demands of you, Namaari. Until then, remember who and what you are." She released her grip, gesturing in the direction they had been traveling. "It isn't much further now."

Raya and Namaari both nodded, falling into step behind Atitāya once she started walking again. Raya moved next to Namaari, taking Namaari's hand and squeezing it gently. "I'm proud of you, dep la," she whispered, making sure only Namaari could hear her.

Namaari gave her a small but warm smile before turning to look at Atitāya. "Where are we going?" she asked.

"One of the villages that Fang had to abandon when the Druun came back," Atitāya said, turning her head slightly so they could hear her while she kept her voice low. "There should still be structures we can use for shelter. No one has been there for many years, so the chances of us running into anyone else are slim."

Namaari nodded and they fell into silence again, but it felt less strained than before. They walked for another twenty minutes before Atitāya held up a hand and all three of them came to a stop.

"Wait here," Atitāya whispered. "We're almost to the village and I want to be sure that it's still unoccupied." She didn't wait for Raya and Namaari to respond, moving silently through the trees and underbrush until she was out of view.

Raya took a deep breath, her shoulders drooping as she exhaled. "I hope there's at least a semi-decent building still standing. I'm so tired I feel like I could sleep standing up."

"I don't know if I'll be able to sleep." Namaari winced, wrapping her arms around herself. "I think after what happened today, I'll have nightmares again. Even with you close by."

Raya sighed heavily. "I know. I think I will, too." She took a deep breath and put a gentle hand on Namaari's shoulder. "But we can get through this together. And Atitāya is here to help us keep going."

Namaari hummed in response, looking in the direction Atitāya had disappeared. "I don't know what we would have done if she hadn't shown up."

Raya shook her head, letting out another long sigh. "I don't either. But luckily, we didn't have to." She squeezed Namaari's shoulder and mustered a small smile that Namaari returned gratefully.

They both started at the sound of rustling leaves, squinting in the darkness to see Atitāya approaching them. Her lips were set in a thin line, exhaustion evident on her face even in the low light. "The village is just a little further south," she said, gesturing for them to lead the way.

Raya took Namaari's hand and started through the forest in the direction Atitāya had indicated. As they walked, the trees and underbrush gradually thinned and the ground they walked on became hard-packed, crisscrossed by well-traveled paths. A moment later, they broke into a small meadow with about a dozen buildings set in a rough circle near the center. Even in the moonlight, Raya could see that the buildings were in surprisingly good shape. The wooden parts of the structures had rotted away, but the stone walls and foundations still seemed solid. There were tarps stretched over the tops of some walls, flapping gently in the breeze that carried the smell of fresh-cut firewood. Raya could see piles of logs stacked near the buildings next to buckets of what looked like fresh water.

Raya stopped in her tracks, her entire body tensing. "Wait, this village isn't—"

A dozen torches flared to life around them, illuminating the people that were streaming out from inside the buildings. Each wore a midnight-blue robe with the image of the Dragon Gem stitched on the left side, a purple flame in its center.

Raya summoned every scrap of energy she could to her shield, doing her best to ignore how fatigued it left her already tired muscles. She raised her fists and felt Namaari drop into a fighting stance beside her. "So, we didn't kick enough of your butts during the festival, huh?" Raya said, almost wincing at how tired she sounded. "That's fine, we're happy to dish out more. But you'll never get through our shield, and we've got General Atitāya guarding our backs."

A laugh rang through the air and one of the figures stepped forward, pulling the mask from his face. Raya instantly recognized him as Bayani. He still had that same worrying glint in his eyes as he smirked at them.

"Atitāya guarding your backs? Really?" Bayani said, shaking his head as he continued to chuckle.

"Of course, she will," Raya snapped. "She led us here, so…" she trailed off as a feeling of dread settled in her stomach.

"She led us here," Namaari said, with anger, confusion, and desperation creeping into her voice. She spun around to face Atitāya. "You led us here!"

"I did," Atitāya said. Her tone was calm and even, and she stood with her arms crossed in a relaxed stance.

"Why?" Namaari demanded as her magic flickered around her. "Why would you lead us here?"

"You really don't know?" Atitāya scoffed and narrowed her eyes. "I guess you weren't as good of a student as I thought."

Raya felt anger bubble up through her fear. "How could you do this to us? After everything we've done together?"

"That's exactly why I've done this," Atitāya all but roared back. Her hands dropped down to her sides, balling into fists as her voice rose. "I've had doubts about Virana for years. First, her decision to use a child to steal something as important as the Dragon Gem. Then, when her foolish plan went wrong, she crowded everyone on the peninsula to escape the Druun without sparing a thought for what we left behind. After that she lived in luxury in her palace while our people struggled against starvation. And when she had another chance to steal the Gem, she almost destroyed us again by compromising our last defense against the Druun and leaving the city in ruins."

Atitāya paused to take a deep breath, her expression hard as fury danced in her eyes. "And when the Druun were finally gone and Fang had a chance to thrive again, all she did was hold us back. Diminishing our military and our people in the name of meaningless friendships with weak nations."

Her gaze shifted to Namaari and Raya moved in front of her as Namaari took half a step back. "I spent years preparing you for this moment," Atitāya said, her voice becoming colder. "And when that finally happened, you abandoned us to play with magic and trade love letters with the bumbling, inexperienced Heart princess who took your place."

Atitāya stopped, her chest heaving as she took several deep breaths. Namaari only stared back at her, her face falling into despair as the last bit of light from her shield faded completely.

Bayani scoffed and rolled his eyes. "That was a bit dramatic for my taste, but it did get rid of their shield. Just like you said it would, Atitāya." He crossed his arms, smirking at them again as Atitāya walked over to stand beside him. "I've heard rumors about how strong your magic is, and I can't have it getting in my way."

Raya swallowed thickly, trying to force down the lump in her throat as tears stung her eyes. "What are you going to do?" she finally managed, her voice trembling. "Kill us?"

Atitāya cocked her head to the side, crossing her arms as she regarded them coldly. "Not yet. First, we need your parents to abdicate as chiefs."

Bayani raised his hands as his grin widened. "But rest assured, once I am leading Heart and Atitāya is leading Fang, you will be executed for what you've done. And your parents as well." His face hardened as he glared at them. "They've protected you from consequences of your actions for too long and we can't have them causing trouble later."

Namaari kept her eyes on Atitāya, gasping for breath as tears ran down her face. "How, Atitāya?" she asked, her voice thin and trembling. "How can you do this to my mother? To me?"

Atitāya moved to stand in front of Namaari, holding her gaze steadily. "I have to do what's best for Fang," she said. A trace of remorse flickered across her features, but it was quickly pushed aside by a hard determination. "Which is something I know you understand."

Raya reached out to grab Namaari at the same moment her knees buckled, causing them both to fall to the ground. Raya rested her head on Namaari's shoulder, holding her as tightly as she could as Namaari started to sob. She looked up just as Bayani signaled to the rest of the group, and Spirit closed in around them.