Chapter 3) The Bandits of Borgo

We continue our march south and west, towards Serafew. Along the way, though, we see the remains of Renaisi villages, and people. Victims of soldiers, victims of bandits… It reminds me of Mom's stories about battles, where civilians are the first and last to bleed during any sort of conflict. Makes me even angrier that Selena just left civilians to the first person who claimed to be a mercenary and rode off because of her orders. It was damn lucky that I did actually travel with talented fighters as otherwise, all of the villages would've burned.

To make matters worse? The further into Renais we travel, the worse everything gets. It's like Grado is attempting to utterly obliterate Renais. Along with its own reputation. But seeing as the 'kind and quiet' Emperor Vigarde started this mess in the first place, and lets a mad dog like Valter run loose, perhaps maintaining its noble reputation was never part of the plans at all. Perhaps the reputation had only been a mask in the first place.

"So, where are these going again?" Ross asked, hefting up some boxes. Was that the right phrase? Word? Didn't care. I hadn't slept well, again, and was too exhausted to word things, much less care if I did it correctly or not. "Over by the fence?"

"No, we're actually taking these to the center of town," I reminded him, balancing some baskets filled with wooden stakes against my hip. I believed they'd be used as spikes for traps or something? I wasn't quite sure, but Gilliam had insisted on them. "You're carrying extra supplies, and I have to see if we need to whittle more or if we finally have enough."

"Oh, that's right." He grinned a little sheepishly. I just adjusted my hood, making sure it would stay up. "Why was I thinking the fence?"

"Because that's where your last box went?"

"...Why didn't I think of that?" He made a face, but waited for me before leading the way to the center of the village. "You think this will be enough?"

"We can only hope." Some children rushed past us, carrying blankets that fluttered behind them almost like capes. Or wings, perhaps? "That's all we can do, sadly."

At some point during the journey, it was decided we use the gems I got from Selena to buy some supplies. It was a risk for a number of reasons, up to and including the fact that most travelers wouldn't exactly be traveling with gems, but with the other option being attempting to forage in areas that had been decimated by bandits… it was much needed. Ross and Garcia had volunteered to head in for us, since a large group would only attract attention, but they had returned quickly with information. Namely, the villagers were frantically trying to fortify their home against a potential bandit assault.

Eirika, of course, had wanted to help as soon as she heard. It didn't take long for everyone to agree. The thought of just leaving while they were desperately running around like headless chickens… it left a bitter taste. There had been some worry about being recognized, so we had to make Seth wear a hood. Eirika wasn't necessarily recognizable on sight, since she tended to stay in the capital and word of mouth rarely mentioned her hair or eye color. Seth, however, had the disadvantage of having Jehannan red hair and eyes, which the songs just loved going on and on about, and not many in Renais had that coloring. Even though I found the whole thing amusing, mostly by how much Seth cursed under his breath about songs and bards, I chose to wear a hood as well in solidarity. And to help him stand out a little less.

Once hoods were in place, all of us headed to the village to volunteer our help, and Vanessa 'haggled' out a compromise that we'd get discounts on the supplies we'd wanted to buy. Because when the villagers realized we were serious, they insisted on giving us said supplies for free in exchange for the help, while the knights in our group balked at the idea of getting paid to help. Vanessa had been the only one of the knights willing to compromise. ...Well, not the only one. Just the quickest.

"Say, Emma?" Ross began, adjusting his grip on the boxes. It took me a couple of blinks to get out of my thoughts, and I only really managed it because I… uh… I walked straight into an open door. "You okay?!"

"Ugh…" I groaned, freeing a hand to rub my stinging forehead. Freaking hell, that was… "I think I'm fine. Not like I've got any dignity to bruise." I glanced around curiously, and adjusted my hood again. "Sorry, I was thinking."

"You think too much." That was definitely not something I needed to hear from him. "Anyway, you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, Ross, I'm fine." Biting back the urge to sigh, I started walked again, going slow so that he could easily catch up. "You wanted to ask me something?"

"Huh? Oh, right. Sorry, got distracted." Well, that was only to be expected when someone walked into a door. Ow… my face still stung. "You were a knight, right?"

"Huh?" I frowned at him before shaking my head. "I was Princess Eirika's lady in waiting, Ross."

"But you protected her like a knight? I think that's what Dad said?"

"While my duties involved many other things besides that, protecting her should the situation require it was part of the responsibilities, yes?" Why was he asking this?"

"So, how long have you been training for that? When did you know that's what you wanted to do?" Ross grinned, with sparkling eyes that showed great interest. I was torn between irritation, guilt, and regret that I no doubt was going to punch a hole in his enthusiasm. "Dad said that knights have to start training when they're really young."

"Most aspiring knights are the children of nobility who have been training since they were young, yes, but a lady in waiting often does not begin weaponry lessons until after she is chosen." Unless one included playing around with Orson's practice weapons or using a kitchen knife, I didn't touch a weapon until I was fourteen. Orson made me practice, of course, and keep it up, but that was the extent of it. "Ross, I'm afraid that I'm not like you. I never wished to be a warrior or knight. I became her lady in waiting at King Fado's request, and I agreed because I was happy to help those my parents loved so dearly." Then, of course, I'd left like a coward. "So, I'm not sure where you're going with this line of questioning, but I doubt I can give you the answers you seek."

"Oh." He was silent for all of a second before grinning again. "That's pretty cool of you!"

"Huh?" I nearly tripped over my own feet at that. "What?"

"Taking up arms in order to protect those you love? I think that's pretty amazing of you!" He nodded decisively, eyes blazing with determination. "Still, I'll get stronger so that you don't have to fight as much! Just you wait and see!"

"Just… don't get yourself hurt too much?" What the hell? How was I supposed to reply to something like that? I was still reeling from the compliment, and trying to piece things together. I couldn't process how we got from 'point A' to 'point B'. "Garcia has already had to bury most of those he loved."

"Right… I have to be careful that my hotheadedness doesn't get me hurt." He made a face. I was surprised he agreed so readily. "I'll do my best! Moulder doesn't seem like the type of person you want angry at you anyway. And I think I have most of Dad's lectures memorized by this point."

"If you have them memorized, then did you really learn from them?"

"Er…" He blushed and looked away. Surprisingly, though, he didn't trip or run into anything. "I totally have!"

"Sure you did."

"I did!"

"Of course. Whatever you say."

"Oh, come on!"

The whole rest of the way to the town square, Ross continued insisting, and I kept nodding along, not quite believing him. We mutually agreed to drop it once there, and once he'd dropped off the boxes, he rushed off to help Franz carry some barrels into the local inn. I found Gilliam set up in the corner, surrounding by all sorts of contraptions, and he confirmed we had an adequate number of wooden stakes for whatever trick he had up his gauntlet. Not that I had any time to rest or breath or anything. As soon as he confirmed that, I was tasked with dropping off some fresh herbs with Moulder. After all, Moulder had set up a small clinic in one of the homes nearby to tend to various injuries and illnesses, and given there was a lot of carpentry going on, that led to a lot of 'I hit my thumb with the hammer instead of the nail' incidents. Or the 'I accidentally hammered the nail through my hand' type of injury. I was amazed Moulder could keep a straight face and serene demeanor over just how some of these injuries happened, but I supposed it was just one of the skills healers had to learn.

"Why is it that I tell you not to do something, you seem to take it as 'yes, do this thing'?" That said, Moulder wasn't above scolding people for their idiocy. Even if they were certain famous knights that led the Crimson Flames. "Repeatedly removing the bandage disrupts the clotting process and adds even more time to healing," Moulder scolded, carefully cleaning Seth's injury. He didn't scowl or anything, but somehow, that made his lecture hit harder. "Worse, you remove whatever clots might have formed in the first place. It's a miracle you're not anemic yet with how much blood you've lost."

"It had soaked through?" Seth weakly justified. It wasn't often that Seth looked or sounded meek, but he was both right now. He even tried to make himself look smaller in his chair, rather like when Monica gave him the third-degree for stupidity. "So…"

"Yes, and you stupidly insist on hiding it. So, we cannot do things the proper way, which is add more bandaging on top of what had bled through." Moulder clicked his tongue, shaking in his head in clear disappointment. I ducked behind the door, wondering if I should let them know I was here or not. "But that is all the more reason that you should not change it by yourself without my permission. You cannot mitigate the damage, but I can. It's part of what I trained in, after all." Moulder looked over the wound closely, frowning. "Given that there is still an issue with drainage, however, it's likely the wound is deeper than I initially suspected. Or has been made deeper due to you stressing it continuously. Either way, we're going to pack the wound instead and see if that works better."

"Very well."

"And you are not to remove it on your own. I will handle that." Moulder turned his frown at Seth, who looked away sheepishly. "Healer's orders. Your health is already bad enough due to your insistence on not sleeping. Do not force me to have you tied down to force you to rest. I've ordered it before; you may ask Gilliam." This was fascinating, but kind of awkward, so...

"I seemed to have walked in at the perfect time," I mused lightly, pretending I had just arrived. Moulder's frown dropped immediately for a kind smile. Seth just closed his eyes, annoyed that I'd overheard part of that conversation. "Moulder, if we need to, we can bribe him with honey cakes."

"Honey cakes, hmm?" Moulder replied, muffling a chuckle. Seth pointedly looked away. "I thought I heard you dislike sweets, Sir Seth? Syrene mentioned it once or twice."

"Except for Jehannan honey cakes. Which I not only know the recipe for, but know how to cook on a campfire." Since Jehannans were on the move a lot, the recipe was adapted. And, of course, Mom made sure to teach Monica and, to a lesser degree, me. "Regardless, Moulder, I have plants for you."

"Ah, thank you." Moulder held out his hands and I passed him the basket. "This is actually very good timing. I'm running low on a few stores."

"Things that deal with swelling, perhaps?" I patted Seth on the head, smiling when he scowled at me. "Be good for the healer, and I'll scrounge up the ingredients for honey cakes, okay?"

"I suppose I should be glad you're not hitting me with a fan to get me to cooperate," Seth grumbled. Remembering a time when Monica actually got so angry at him ignoring healers' orders that she had, in fact, done that… well, part of me wanted to smile. The rest felt pain. She had been so vibrant and now she was… "Emma?"

"Just thinking," I answered quickly. I couldn't really lie to Seth, but I… I didn't want to talk about Monica. "I suppose I should be nice and leave you to your scoldings."

"Will you check on Princess Eirika for me?" Seth looked down at the hole in his arm, and then at Moulder, who was quickly gathering things. "I have a feeling I'll be in here longer than I anticipated."

"Of course." Now that my mind was on Monica, though, all I could think of was how quickly she had deteriorated. How quickly everything went from 'okay' to 'dead'. And that wound on his arm clearly showed a lesson I knew very well. A lesson I had learned as a child, and just had reinforced over the course of my life. Death didn't give a damn about anyone, and it would claim those it wished without any warning at all. And Seth had gotten close. "Please be good, okay?" I hugged Seth from behind, resting my cheek briefly on his head. Unsurprisingly, he sat stiffly, not quite sure how to react. "Orson is gods-knows where. Monica was given six months left when she was diagnosed, but died in one. King Fado is dead, and Renais is in pieces. I know I'm being selfish, but please listen to him, okay? Unexpected things happen all the time."

"...I will." Awkwardly, Seth patted my arm. But if he'd had any other reaction, I probably would've checked him for a fever. "I will also take those honey cakes."

"As soon as I find all the ingredients. Promise."

I held onto Seth for a little bit longer before leaving, making sure to close the door behind me since Seth really did want to hide the injury. I let myself stay still for a second, breathing in deeply, and then I made myself move to find Eirika. More difficult that it sounded. After all, she insisted on talking to everyone, to see how they were doing. But that left a trail and, eventually, I found her talking to the leader of the village. Mayor? Headman? I couldn't remember what term he'd used when introducting himself. Or, for that matter, his name. Which was a bit awkward, but hey, I wasn't the one talking to him.

"My, that is a splendid bracelet you're wearing," he was saying as I approached. His eyes fell on the gold bracelet Eirika wore, the one with a blue gem. It was partially covered by the charms from Grandpapa James's bracelet. "You should be careful about wearing it so openly, though. Too dangerous."

"Dangerous?" Eirika repeated. After a moment, she frowned. "Why?"

"Ever since the invasion, thieves and bandits have been running amuck." Of course they had. That was the whole reason why we were helping them. "Bazba's bandits are the worst of the lot, cruel beyond measure. To them, your life is worth less than the things you carry. Gods, what they did to Lark…"

"Lark?"

"Once our neighboring village. Now, nothing but a crumpled heap of ash and dead." He shuddered, rubbing his arm to ward away the sudden surge of goosebumps. "We saw the smoke and some of us rushed over to try and help, but it was far too late. Far, far too late."

"That's…" Eirika covered her mouth. "That's awful…"

"The ones who were there thought they saw two survivors, a boy and a girl, but they only caught the briefest glimpse. If they were not ghosts or a hallucination, then I can only hope they do not do something foolish like charge the bandits' hideout." He shook his head and looked Eirika right in the eye. "You are strong and travel with good company, but please, be careful, miss. These are dark days, and I fear they will only grow darker."

Thankfully for Eirika, someone called him away then and the conversation ended there. I walked to her side and studied her for a second. Then I carefully took Eirika by the arm and led her a short distance away, on the outskirts of the village. She didn't like being in public when she was thinking deeply. It made it harder for her to act as she was expected to. And she was always scrutinized heavily, no thanks to Ephraim's blatant disregard to propriety.

So, when I judged we were far enough away, I pushed back my hood (because it was annoying me at the moment) and poked her cheek. "I think I see a frown," I half-teased. She didn't really respond. "You shouldn't be lost in thoughts all alone, you know." I nudged her shoulder with mine, and, this time, she smiled wanly in return. "What are you thinking of? Let me guess?"

"Well, here's your hint. It's someone who irritates you."

"Ah, then your rapscallion of a twin!" I frowned as I tried to remember the proper meaning of that word. "Wait, that might be too mild of a description for him."

"It's a fun word, though!" She chuckled, but grew contemplative again. "I was just remembering when I first asked him to teach me swords."

"That was three years ago, right?" I only vaguely knew about it, since I'd always made sure to be busy. I hadn't seen a point in watching and it gave me time to tease and prank Orson. "You had wanted to protect yourself a little."

"Yes, and maybe protect him. And perhaps ease the burden on you." She hugged herself, shivering. "Now, the world has gone mad. Completely and utterly mad." She was silent for a moment before smiling bitterly at me. "We should return to the others. There's still much to be done."

"If you want to." I waited for her to turn back before doing the same. "Perhaps the two of us can volunteer to cook something, or at least help with the cooking? It would be a nice change of pace."

"For who? You cook every meal for every day."

"Cooking in a kitchen is very different than cooking over a fire." I pretended to be insulted, and because I was focused on that (and Eirika was trying to not laugh), I didn't notice the boy running for us until… "Ack! Watch out!" Until he crashed right into Eirika, nearly sending them both to the ground.

"Oops! Beg pardon!" the boy (who was very blue, literally) yelped before recovering his footing and continuing on. And he was out of sight before Eirika and I recovered.

"Well, that… that just happened," I 'observed', for lack of an actual reaction. Eirika could only nod, bewildered by the event. I mean… we went from dark and somber conversation to that of all things. Bit of a sudden change, that. "Strange, though… there's plenty of room to go around us. Did he expect that we'd get out of the way?" It took me a very, very long moment to realize what should've been obvious. That… the whole bumping into someone thing… that was a common thief's trick! "Check your pockets."

"Huh?" Eirika 'replied', blinking slowly at me. Only after she saw me checking my own pockets that she obeyed. "Why?"

"Pickpocket trick." Satisfied that everything was in order with me, I helped Eirika check herself over. And, thus, it only took a half-second to realize just what was gone. "Your bracelet…" The one she got from King Fado when she was a child. The one that was the twin to Ephraim's own bracelet. It was gone. "For it to have slipped off that easily… I thought you'd been losing some weight."

"Yeah, I haven't… I haven't been hungry." Shakily, Eirika brushed her fingers along her wrist, where the bracelet had always been. Now, she just wore Grandpapa James's bracelet. "Ha… well, I suppose… it really is gone, huh?" This felt surreal. It shouldn't, of course. We had both lost more important things. But I had never seen her without that bracelet before. Her losing it was the same as me losing the charm bracelet Grandpapa James gave me, and that… the thought hurt. It hurt a lot. So, I couldn't even imagine how she felt.

"There you two are." Neither of us had recovered by the time Seth found us. As a result, he immediately noticed something was wrong. "What happened?" he 'asked'. It was that tone of 'you are going to tell me so that I can attempt to fix it'. Almost a demand, but not quite.

"It's nothing really," Eirika tried to reassure. Unfortunately, her complexion was pale and her voice trembled slightly, easily revealing the lie. "It's just that… well, this boy bumped into me and stole my bracelet. The one I got from Father." She brought up her wrist to show him, and Seth's eyes widened. "Still, at least he left the charm bracelet alone? I'm only borrowing it, after all." She forced a smile, and I closed my eyes at the sight. It hurt. The loss of the bracelet hurt her deeply. But, as she usually did, she pushed duty before her own self. And, given the reason why we were traveling, duty dictated… it dictated that we move on. "We should-" But life, like usual, had other plans.

"I'll find him!" Because just like that, Seth was gone. He took off running down the path and didn't look back once.

"Seth, wait!" Eirika tried to order. But, for once, Seth didn't listen at all. Before either of us could blink, he was out of sight. "It… it isn't that big of a deal." Yes, it was, sort of, but... "I'd rather we get to Ephraim sooner… I don't want sentimentality to get in the way of duty."

"But you did get it from King Fado," I reminded her. Not that I needed to, of course. I highly doubt she'd ever forget that. "Remember, Seth took the time to pack susinum perfume for me while Rosewatch was under assault." Now that I thought about it… didn't he cherish the items he inherited from his own dad? He knew the importance of keeping those items 'safe'. How precious the items from dead loved ones were. "It could also be those lingering traces of temper he used to have. He did used to bandit hunt regularly."

"I suppose…" she mumbled with a frown. I didn't blame her. Even though I had listed the possible reasons, none of them had felt 'right'. None of them felt like a reason why Seth would leave immediately. Well, except maybe the temper thing. "We should gather the others and go after him. We can't let him go alone."

This was all strange. Then again, that kind of described our entire situation nowadays. If you didn't want to use 'nightmare', at least.

We had to rely on Vanessa to find Seth because Seth had quite the headstart on us. Everyone was confused as to why Seth would react like this, but when we caught up, he wouldn't say. He simply kept on the trail until we were in the mountains. Where we were… well, there was a good attempt at an ambush. But Gilliam knocked out lone attacker out cold with a punch and that was when we made a couple of guesses/realizations. One) the attacker was a scout or watch guard. Two) because of this, the bandit hideout had to be near. Three) if we were right, then it seemed wrong to not try and cripple them (if not kill them). Something to buy a little bit of peace for the villagers.

"I'm still surprised by what we heard and what we've seen," Eirika murmured once we took a short break. It had been a good hike up the mountain, and if we were going to fight, we couldn't be winded. Besides, Vanessa had wanted to do an aerial patrol to confirm we were on the right trail. Franz volunteered for a ground one for similar reasons. "I've known bandits were a problem, but I've never heard of such…"

"Renaisi knights have always done their best to protect the citizens," Seth murmured, absently petting Tyr's neck. Tyr nuzzled him in return, like it knew something was wrong. "I won't say that there haven't been times we failed, mind." I knew what he spoke of. After all, I'd met Orson because of one of those 'failures'. Bandits had slaughtered Orson's parents, along with everyone they had been traveling with. Orson himself had only survived because Dad had saved him. He'd been home on leave, since I'd just been born, and someone alerted him to the noise just in time. "But we would always do everything we could to minimize the danger and damage."

"Yet now, it's…"

"Yes, it doesn't look like Grado has any intention of maintaining law and order here." Seth closed his eyes, his hands tightening on the reins. "If this continues, Renais will continue falling into savagery and ruin."

No one… no one could really say anything after that. It wasn't like we could disagree. We couldn't even really promise to make things better. We could hope, but… but that was it. I hated this. I hated this so much. I hated seeing so clearly how helpless and useless I was. Renais was dying, and all I could do, really, was watch. Just like with Monica, except it took hundreds of others with it to the grave. Hundreds of lives… hundreds of worlds… piece by piece, little by little… until all had been devoured...

All of us tensed at the sound of a branch breaking, but relaxed when we saw it was only Franz. ...At least, we thought it was only him. It soon became obvious that someone else was with him, a crying girl with short pink hair whose ankle was badly swollen. It might've even been broken. "She approached while I was scouting," Franz explained, answering the unspoke question while helping the girl over to us. Moulder immediately had her sit on some nearby boulders so that he could look at her ankle. "She's asking for help. I couldn't…"

"No, you did the right thing, Franz," Eirika reassured. Franz smiled in relief. "But what's a girl doing up here?" Well, hopefully, she wasn't a 'plaything' that managed to escape?

"She mentioned something about a 'Colm', and the bandits and that's…" He winced, looking down at the still sobbing girl. "That's about all I got."

"I see." Eirika waited for Moulder to nod before walking over and kneeling in front of the girl. "I hate to ask, but can you start from the beginning, miss?"

"I… um..." the girl began. The words got caught up in the snot, though, and she choked, coughing. I went through my pack for a clean cloth and passed it to her. She took it with trembling hands. "Oh, thank you…" She covered her face for a moment, getting the worst of the tears off, and managed a few deep breaths. "I'm sorry…"

"No, don't be," Eirika reassured. She even made sure to smile. "So?"

"My name is Neimi. I'm from… well, I was from a village called 'Lark'." Lark… that was the village that had been razed. The one the headman told us about. "Lark is gone now, though. Colm and I are all that's left." Seems the villagers had been right about survivors, then. I wondered if we could tell them somehow. "Colm is my friend. We've known each other since we were little. And… and he said he was going to sneak into the bandit's camp to take back something they stole from my house."

"Alone?" Eirika's eyes widened. "That sounds… reckless." Worse than that. It sounded like something Ephraim would do.

"I told him that! I told him that it didn't matter! Certainly not worth risking his life for! But he wouldn't listen and he left and… and…" Neimi broke down in sobs again. This time she muffled them with the cloth. "I can't lose him… I can't! If I lost him, I… I…"

"Easy, easy… we'll help." Eirika paused and smiled sheepishly at everyone else. "If… if everyone else agrees? I fear I'm volunteering us for battle again…"

"For a good reason and cause," Garcia gently reminded her. He smiled softly, yet even with the softness, it was heavy with sadness. "Your father never could just walk away from a plea for help. Caused about half of the trouble we got into while he was still a prince. I'd be surprised if you could force yourself to walk away."

"Besides, it's another reason to bash the bandits' skulls in!" Ross added, scowling. Perhaps he thought it gave him a 'warrior look', but he reminded me more of an angry kitten. "Not that we needed more, but still!"

"Ross, calm yourself. You shouldn't work yourself into a lather, especially before the fighting has begun." Garcia ruffled Ross's hair and Ross smiled sheepishly. "I don't see why her goal doesn't align with the two we already have. Truly, the only potential problem we have is finding the place."

"Um… I know the way," Neimi revealed, smiling hesitantly. She curled into herself when we all focused on her. "I'm good at tracking. I'd hoped to catch him before he went in, but he's fast and..." She gestured at her ankle, which was slowly looking like a 'normal' ankle. Moulder was still tending to the swelling. "I tripped." She looked at all of us entreatingly. "I'm also… not bad with a bow. My grandfather taught me. I've never… um… I've never fought before, but I can still help a little. I think."

"We do have some archery equipment among our things for hunting," Gilliam mused. He glanced at Eirika, hinting that she'd make the final call. Eirika immediately tensed at that, but tried to stay dignified. "Inexperience could be troubling, but it won't be much less than Ross. And I somehow doubt he'll stay behind." Ross immediately made a face, which got a chuckle from most of us. "But she is a civilian, and untrained. Hunting animals is not the same as hunting people. If she freezes…"

"And how are we supposed to know which person in there is her friend without her?" I found myself asking. I wasn't sure why. I didn't care either way. But the words were out of my mouth before I realized I'd even thought them. "Sure, we can go with a description, but will all of us remember it during the heat of battle? I'm assuming we're not sneaking in, unless we want to leave the mounts and clanking armor out here, so we'll probably be fighting almost as soon as we get in."

"A good point. We veterans might remember, but you, Ross, Franz, and Princess Eirika are too new to fighting." Gilliam pondered for the moment, and I noticed Neimi's jaw drop when she realized just who was here. But none of us could really comment or anything. "If you are to survive the fighting, you will have to focus everything on that. You do not have the skill to let your mind wander. And there is no guarantee that we will all be grouped together. In fact, staying in a large group would only be asking for trouble."

"Yeah, might as well attach a target to our heads with the words 'please aim right here'," Garcia agreed, scratching the back of his head. Eirika and I shared a little smile at the mental image. "I propose she comes with us, but also gives a description. That'll increase the chances of us not accidentally hurting the boy. She can arm herself while we check our supplies and weapons. Vanessa still hasn't returned, after all." That she hadn't. We had a lot to catch her up on, huh?

"...Thank you…" Neimi whispered. She smiled sweetly, though it wobbled a little. The glassiness in her eyes hinted it was because of unshed tears. "Thank you so much."

"Note that Moulder there holds the final decision. He's still fussing with your ankle, after all."

"Of course."

Well, here was to another day of murdering people. Even if they deserved it (and the law certainly said that they did), I felt sick.

Neimi hadn't been kidding when she said she knew the way. She led us right to the hideout without the slightest bit of hesitation, only pausing once or twice to study something on the ground that I couldn't make out, but apparently told her everything she needed to know. From there, we divided into three groups. Or, to be more specific, Neimi and I split off from the rest. Why? Well, Neimi was fairly certain that her friend wouldn't actually be fighting the bandits if it could be avoided. Meaning to maximize our chances of finding him, one group would have to try and stay away from the fighting. Neimi, of course, would be one of that group. She was a civilian, had the least experience, and knew the boy best. Why did I go with her? Garcia nominated me and the others agreed before I could think of a good protest.

"Thank you for this," Neimi whispered as we walked the halls. It had to be the twelfth time she had thanked us. "Truly, I…"

"Let's save the gratitude for when we actually find him," I replied, doing my best to keep polite. I wasn't sure what to do when people thanked me this much. Especially when I hadn't done anything to deserve it. It didn't help that I felt… I didn't even know what. It wasn't as if I wanted to fight. I was actually glad to be far away from it. But I didn't like that everyone else was in danger while I was relatively safe.

I wasn't sure why it bothered me so much. It wasn't as if I wasn't used to things like this. I was the daughter of a knight, who eventually died in the line of duty. I was the 'sister' of a knight, who used to tag along with his hotheaded friend on adventures that always led to someone bleeding a lot and who had to back-up his feckless charge whenever said charge wanted the glory of battle. I had been safe in the capital when Rosewatch and the surrounding villages had been stricken with yellow fever. Victor, my childhood friend, was constantly in danger due to traveling so much as a merchant. And if we were talking of more 'temporary' things, there was how Mom died. She left the safety of our shelter to rescue others who hadn't made it yet, and she had died for it.

All my life, those around me had placed themselves in danger for any number of reasons. To do what they loved. To protect what they loved. Because the alternative was too unbearable for them. Whatever it was. And sometimes, danger just came for you out of nowhere, because life was unpredictable and death would have His due. So, why did it bother me now? I wasn't sure. But it did. It irritated me. Though, maybe the irritation had been more that I'd been volunteered instead of me making the decision. And I could admit there were some good reasons for it to have been me. I was quieter than Ross. Franz couldn't sneak around with his horse. Eirika couldn't be wandering an unknown area without a proper guard. The 'veterans' of the group should all focus on the fighting. It made sense. It just… ugh… my head was spinning.

I shook my head to try and get my brain under control and focused forward even when Neimi looked at me curiously. Eventually, we came up on the end of a hall, and I saw a shadow shift just around the corner. Though I first froze, I quickly brought up my lance and made sure Neimi was firmly behind me. Archers often had difficulties in close-quarter-combat. I remembered Orson emphasizing that, when teaching me how to use a bow and arrow. So, if it turned into a fight, I'd have to keep whoever it was away from Neimi if she was to have a chance at fighting effectively. The thought made me sick, but I clenched my jaw and waited for whoever was there to round the corner. When I saw it was the blue boy who had stolen Eirika's bracelet, I prepared to lunge. If I ambushed, I might have a chance. Or, at least, a better chance.

"Colm!" But Neimi's happy gasp made me freeze for entirely different reasons. "Colm, there you are!" she continued, pushing past me to head to the boy. The blue boy who had… well, this could get awkward fast. Very fast. "Finally…"

"Neimi?!" the boy yelped, nearly dropping his pack. He managed to catch it before rushing over to meet her halfway. "The hell are you doing here?! I told you to wait for me!"

"It's too dangerous, so I couldn't…" She sniffled and rested her head on his shoulder. He immediately hugged her. "We should go home."

"What home?! Bazba destroyed it all, remember?" Despite the harsh tone, he held her tightly and I saw his hands shake slightly as he clung to her back. I supposed… thinking her in a relatively safe space… well, actually, leaving a young girl on her own when bandits were known to be about was kind of stupid. Well meaning, but stupid. "Idiot… I told you I'd be done in a flash, especially without a clumsy oaf like you tagging along."

"But…"

"Well, you're here now. So, don't leave my side, okay?" Colm let go of Neimi and pulled something out of his pack. It was covered with a cloth, but he unwrapped it to show her. "But here, look."

"Mother's mirror…" Neimi hesitantly traced the edges of the very beautiful, very expensive mirror. I was honestly surprised wasn't broken. "You really did find it…"

"I told you I would. See? Guaranteed results." He wrapped it up again and tucked it back into the pack. "Besides, it's one of the few things you've got left of her. That's important."

"You're more important, though." She leaned against him again. "So, no more dangerous things like this… please…"

"...Fine, fine. I promise." Colm looked away, embarrassed, and finally noticed that I was right there. "Er… huh?" He blinked a few times, his eyes darting to my hair. Remembering that I hadn't had my hood up when he stole Eirika's bracelet, I thought he might've recognized me. Or, at least, put some dots together. "You…"

"Unlike a certain surly and very blue boy, Neimi smartly got assistance before coming in," I explained, smiling as politely as I could. I wouldn't rake him over the coals in front of Neimi, at least. She had enough to deal with. "I'm Emma, a traveling companion of Princess Eirika. She's somewhere in here with Seth, or should be. There's a few others as well. We're a small group, but hopefully effective enough."

"They were kind enough to help me, even though they had their own goals," Neimi added, rubbing her eyes roughly. I found another clean cloth in my pack and handed it to her so that she could wipe her face. I had a feeling handkerchiefs were probably something she used a lot. "A-and they plan weakening the bandits, to make the area safer. So that there isn't another village that suffers like Lark did." Well, at least at the hands of these bandits. Unless Grado fixed things quick, more would fall. Still, we couldn't just leave. Even if it was a temporary solution, we had to… "We should… we should catch up to them."

"If you two need another moment or three, we can afford it."

"No, I want… I want to help. As much as I can."

"In that case, maybe Colm can help us? I'd rather not run into traps. Kind of surprised we haven't run into some already."

"Oh, I'm sure I'll walk into one in a moment."

Despite what Neimi said, we did have to wait a little bit for her to control her crying. But once that was done, Colm led the way and it didn't take long to find the others. For one thing, Colm had scouted most of the building to learn the layout and patrols before going after Neimi's mirror. For another, fighting was loud. Very loud. Even with the way things echoed, we could just follow the noise. I didn't much like how much of a free-for-all the battle was, though I could understand why. I may have only skimmed through Orson's tactical books, but even I knew there were too few of us for proper formations. So, even with keeping things as organized as we could… well, it would fall apart before long. Still, one thing was constant; Moulder was set up away from the fighting. Which meant that when we reached the large open room where the fighting was, I helped Neimi and Colm skirt along the edges to head for him.

"Ah, I see a new face," Moulder murmured, smiling warmly as soon as he saw the three of us approach. His robes were bloody and, surprisingly, there was blood splattered up his cheek and into his hair. "I take it you must be Colm? Come here, child, and let me check you over."

"Hmm? But I'm fi-" Colm attempted to protest. I promptly shoved him at Moulder. "Wah! What was that for?"

"Emma is simply thinking of your well-being and, of course, Neimi's." Moulder got Colm seated in front of him and grabbed his staff. I saw some blood dried on the gem, though the magic's glow made it flake off. "Did you run into any trouble, Emma?"

"No, like Neimi said, Colm made sure to be far from the fighting," I reported. I tapped my cheek when he glanced at me. "Looks like something happened with you all, though. Did someone take a bad injury or did someone just get a little too close?"

"Mostly the former," Moulder sighed, shaking his head. He set down his staff and rolled up Colm's shoulder to reveal a dirtied bandage. Colm winced at it, especially when Neimi gasped. Wondered if he got it here, or if he'd got it when Lark fell. "An archer managed to hit Vanessa and the resulting fall jerked the arrow out."

"Is she okay?"

"Thankfully, she was more annoyed than anything. She just happened to fall near me when the arrow went flying." Ah, and momentum slung the blood. "Emma, I will be busy with Colm for a time, but I'm sure Neimi can serve as a guard. Might you inform the others so that their attention is no longer divided?"

"I can certainly try?" Though I was a little dubious. Did he want me to go to everyone and tell them? ...Probably. "Let's see how successful I'll be. Hopefully, I won't get another arrow to the leg."

"Please don't."

It only took me half of a second to regret agreeing. Darting around the battlefield was rough, particularly when you had to be as fast as possible. If Vanessa hadn't been so damn far away, I would've told her first and had her fly around to deliver the message. But, unfortunately, she was on the other side of the room, so it was more efficient for me to go about and try to handle it myself. But gods, I definitely didn't like it. Not one bit. Particularly since I not only had to guard myself, but try not to distract whoever I was informing. Last thing we needed was to get someone killed because I played messenger. Still, I was able to inform Gilliam and Garcia, with Garcia promising to relay the information to Seth and Eirika so that I didn't have to cross the room twice. Instead, I tried to push through to where Ross was, even as I wondered why Ross was fighting off on his own…

"Well, well… lookie here." Something flashed above my head and I barely had enough time to jerk back before the axe swung down. While it missed me, it didn't miss my lance and, to my shock, it snapped it in two. "Another child playing at war?" The wielder of the axe guffawed as my broken lance slipped from my hands. "I am the mighty Bazba, leader of this group," he boasted, bringing his axe back for another swing. I tried to think, but my mind was mush. "I hope you enjoyed your life, because it ends today!"

It didn't. It didn't, because before he could attack me again, Franz stabbed him in the arm (the unarmed one). I had no idea where Franz had come from, only that he was bleeding from a head wound and was unmounted. But he was there, glaring at Bazba and saving me. Though when Franz pulled back to attempt a second strike, Bazba snarled and swung his axe with enough force that Franz stumbled, knocked off-balance. That was when everything… it just cleared for me. What had been 'mush' was instead razor-sharp and reminded me that I had a weapon besides my lance. My fan was tucked into my belt, same as always.

Thinking quickly, so quickly that everything around me felt slow, I pulled the fan free and lurched forward to stab Bazba in the chest. Not deep enough to do significant damage, but enough to make him yell and jerk away from Franz. While he tried to recover, I ripped the fan out of the wound to unfurl it and swing it back around for a second strike. I got lucky; I caught him across the neck. A nice long slash that gushed blood, though I figured it wasn't fatal. It wasn't messy enough for me to have gotten anything truly important. Still, it was enough of a distraction to save Franz.

And it was enough of a distraction for Ross to slip behind and slam his axe into Bazba's neck, right where I'd already cut. This time, blood sprayed everywhere, and Bazba's corpse crumpled. I thought I saw him twitch a few times before growing still. Dead. I nudged the body to confirm and my stomach turned. Since I didn't want to throw up, especially right now, I looked around to see if anyone needed help. But by then, the fighting was calming, only a few left still alive. So, instead I absently used my fan to… well, fan myself. Nice, relatively cool air to try and keep me from throwing up. And it felt nice on my sweaty face.

"We did it!" Ross cheered, punching the air. Well, 'cheered'. He was definitely shaky and his complexion was more than a little gray under the splattered blood. But he did his best to keep up the grin as he slung his arms around Franz's shoulders and mine. "Wow, I can't believe that worked."

"No, no, this is where you're suppose to brag to the damsel that you so bravely saved," I teased, mostly to focus on something other than the body cooling at our feet. And to keep from thinking on that, I decided to fan Ross and Franz. They were sweatier than me, and breathing harder. "My dear knights in shining armor! I am ever so grateful."

"I think we more bought you time to save yourself, but hey, I'll take the praise!" Ross grinned, and then laughed when he noticed Franz just blushing in response. "You don't take compliments well, do you, Franz?"

"I don't think he ever has. He'd turn as red as an overripe tomato whenever Monica praised him."

"Wait, so even redder than this?"

It was probably mean of us, but Ross and I ended up teaming up to try and make Franz turn as red as possible. We got pretty far before Vanessa rescued him, dragging Franz and Ross to the back to be checked over. I debated following, but decided against it for the time being and just fanned myself for a while. Steady my nerves a little more. That sort of thing. Eventually, I saw Neimi and Colm standing against the wall far away from Moulder, no doubt to clear up room so that Moulder could tend to everyone. However, I noticed Seth frown (no doubt from realizing Colm was the thief we'd been tracking) and stalk over, fully intent on getting Eirika's bracelet back. But after everything… well, the last thing we needed was a scene. So, I thought quickly and came up with an idea. An idea that, hopefully, Colm would go along with.

"Hey, Colm?" I called, snapping my fan shut and jogging over to him. I purposely made sure to get in Seth's way, though I hid it by purposely 'unbalancing' myself slightly while tucking the fan back in my belt. "Whoa! Okay, that was fun." I smiled at them both. Neimi returned it, though Colm just raised a brow. "Anyway, sorry, but I just thought of this. You went looking through their… oh, what would you call it?"

"Not a clue, but yeah, I did," Colm replied. He frowned, noticeably wary, and his gaze went to my hair again. I was right. He had recognized me. "Why?"

"Did you happen to find some bracelets? A thief stole Princess Eirika's and it was a gift from King Fado. With King Fado dead, it's… it's one of the few things she has left." I looked Colm right in the eye while I asked and subtly nodded to Seth behind me. Then I nodded at Neimi.

Thankfully, he caught my meaning. "There were a few. I think I grabbed one or two. Let's see." He set down his pack and made a show of rummaging through. Carefully, so that Neimi couldn't see, he snuck the bracelet from his pocket into the bag before 'pulling it out'. "What about this one?"

"That's it!" I took it from him with a smile. "Thank you so much!"

"Meh… I just grabbed it because I thought it might be a nice gift for Neimi." Colm looked away, embarrassed. Neimi immediately flushed, but smiled. "Glad to be of help, though. I guess." And none of us would say the truth. It was our secret.

I simply smiled and walked away, leaving him and Neimi to themselves. I made sure to catch Seth's eye and when I was sure I had it, I winked and held up the bracelet. After a moment, he smiled slightly and nodded, turning away to handle whatever else had to be done. I, however, hunted for Eirika and when I found her leaning against the opposite wall, I immediately joined her and slipped the bracelet on her wrist. Where it belonged.

"Oh, thank goodness…" she whispered, smiling in relief. She gently caressed the blue gem while I fussed over the clasp. "Um… I noticed Colm looks like… well…"

"I gave him an out," I explained and confirmed at the same time. Her smile grew in both warmth and relief. Somehow. "Figured you'd prefer that. And last thing Neimi needs right now is Colm getting yelled at by the famous Silver Knight." Or… ah… worse.

"You know me well. I quite agree." She watched me fuss. "Is the clasp broken?"

"No, but the bracelet is definitely loose." I frowned over what to do for a moment before realizing the obvious. I undid Grandpapa James's bracelet, pushed her gem-bracelet up a little, and then put the charm bracelet back on. Since the charm bracelet had links, it was easier to adjust, but its size also kept the gem-bracelet from slipping off easily. "There we go. That should help."

"...That seems almost too obvious of a solution." Eirika laughed though, and I smiled. "You okay? You've got blood on you."

"I wasn't in the fighting all that long, so I think I'm just sore. But when things calm down around Moulder, I'll get checked. How about you?"

"I've already been cleared." She made a face. "I was dizzy once the fighting died down, so Seth insisted."

"As would I! And don't act like you wouldn't insist on the same if Seth or I was the one who was dizzy." I pretended to be stern for a second and she sulked for just as long. If this had been a year ago, both of us would've burst into giggles. Now, we were both too tired and worn for that. Instead, we shared a smile and leaned against the wall to ease the ache in our feet. At least, we did until Colm approached. Then both of us pushed off the wall to stand up straight. She felt she had to; I wasn't going to let her endure alone.

"Sorry to bother, Princess Eirika, but…" Colm began quietly. He paused, like he was uncertain, but Eirika smiled to encourage him. "Do you mind if Neimi and I travel with you?"

"With us?" Eirika repeated, startled. Couldn't blame her for that one. "I… we're heading somewhere dangerous."

"Wow, really? That sounds like everywhere." Also couldn't blame Colm for the sarcasm on that one. "And… Neimi and I have nowhere to go."

"The nearby villages…?"

"They'd take us in, of course. But between Grado's soldiers and Bazba's raids, resources are few." Which we knew. We'd seen that. "Absolute worst thing for Neimi right now is feeling like she's a burden." I almost commented on his insults, but Eirika quickly pinched my arm to stop me from saying anything. "And honestly? Safest place right now might actually be with you all."

"He does have a point there," I murmured, ducking my head near Eirika's so that I could talk quietly. She frowned at me, but I shook my head. "Remember, there are no knights. No soldiers. Anyone in the army who could fight went to the border to try and slow Grado's advance. We're probably…" We were probably the only armed force within three day's travel. Hell, maybe even five. "Sadly, dealing with the bandits is only a temporary solution. One that buys time, but..."

"I hate that you're right about that," Eirika mumbled, clenching her fist. She hid it by bringing up to her chest and covering it with her other hand. Like she was praying. "The world truly has gone mad." She closed her eyes briefly to gather herself and then looked back to Colm, who waited patiently. "Sorry, Emma was reminding me that nothing is normal anymore to cut off my instinctual protest."

"What are you talking about? Seth being the safest place to be around is perfectly normal." I had to joke to lighten the mood. It got a little smile out of her.

Colm made a face, though, probably remembering of how close he'd gotten to 'not being safe' because of Seth. "Anyway, I'm a handy guy to have around as well," he said, drawing the conversation back to the original topic. "I snuck in here without them knowing, after all." He did. And, even if you took into account how we had distracted the bandits, he still had mapped everything out. "Oh, right, speaking of the sneaking, there's still a lot of gold and whatnot in their vaults or whatever they're called." He gestured vaguely behind him. "Might be good to take some?"

"Oh, we can also give some to the nearby villages!" Eirika exclaimed, her expression lighting up immediately. It dimmed just as quickly. "I know it won't fix things, but…"

"Hey, money buys things. I'm sure there's merchants making a killing right now." That was true. I wondered how Victor was doing… "I can lead people down, but carrying will be hard. I'm fast, not strong."

"That's fine. We probably need to rest and recover anyway." Eirika smiled kindly. "Ah, I almost forgot. Yes, you and Nemi can come with us. If you're sure, that is."

"Like I said, you're probably the safest place right now." He shrugged. "But it's a pleasure working with you, your highness."

"Likewise." She watched him leave, no doubt to see who was able enough to assist, before sighing and leaning against the wall again. "I wonder if they have any spare weapons? We've been tending to ours carefully, but…" She glanced at me. "I heard Franz mention that you needed a new one?"

"Yeah, I do," I sighed, irritated. She muffled a little laugh, apparently amused. I supposed Franz didn't mention why that was. Or she was tired enough that everything was funny. "And, cleary, more training fighting against axes. Damn it. I can feel my muscles aching already."

"That might just be the battle."

"Nope, it's definitely an echo of pain from the future."

"Silly."

At least the area here would be safer for now. But, inevitably, more bandits would rise. I hated that we couldn't do more.

I wasn't quite sure how we ended up in the ruins of Lark. Maybe Colm and Neimi requested it? Maybe it was coincidence? I wasn't sure. All I really knew was that after we rested for the night (camping outside the hideout), we gathered our things, gathered treasure to distribute or keep depending (like my new lance), and just… ended up there. It was as wrecked as the other ruined villages. The only difference was that the dead had already been buried. Or most of them. Some were still stuck in the rubble, but it… it wasn't difficult to move things and give them a proper burial. With… with names on the markers, because even with the rot and broken bits, Colm and Neimi recognized most of them. The ones already buried… we debated digging them up briefly for identification, but Colm and Neimi ultimately decided against it. The ones they had seen already… that had been too much.

"Thank you for coming with me," Neimi mumbled, pushing aside a branch to keep it from whacking me in the head. I simply shrugged off her thanks, since… what else was I supposed to do? Have her gather flowers alone? "I really appreciate… well, everything that everyone is doing." And she did mean everyone.

Colm helped Franz with the markers, including one that would have the names of everyone else in the village, the ones already buried. At his and Neimi's insistence, Seth and Gilliam were scavenging for anything usable. Garcia and Ross cleared rubble to make sure there were no other bodies trapped underneath. Vanessa and Eirika dug graves for the new ones, and fixed up the old. Moulder prayed, giving them a proper funeral. Well, proper for Frelia and Renais. Both countries believed that unless one said a prayer for the dead, Death wouldn't know to come for their souls and they'd be left lingering. From what I understood, Grado and Rausten were somewhat similar, but I didn't really know the details. I knew from Victor that Carcino required memorials, but not necessarily funerals. From what Mom said, Jehanna just had to have the bodies covered, probably because of how many died in battles.

"Emma?" Neimi's gentle voice called me from my thoughts. A good thing since I nearly walked into a damn branch. "What are you thinking about?" she asked. She almost dropped the shirt we had turned into a makeshift basket, but I caught it before we lost a single petal, much less a blossom.

"Hmm? Ah, differences between countries and their funeral practices?" I answered. Morbid as all hell, but I wondered something then. Did anyone say funeral prayers for Grandpapa James? I hadn't thought much about it before, since I liked the simplicity of Jehanna's way and just wanted the body buried. But with all the burials, I couldn't help but wonder… and wonder if the differences between what each person believed would affect… "And getting my thoughts twisted about."

"I know the feeling…" She smiled thinly, and I could only offer a wan one in return. "I suppose we should… oh, that tree…" She suddenly stopped walking, staring at a tree with large roots curled up and about. In kinder times, it looked like a good place to sit with a book. "That's where we hid."

"Hmm?"

"Colm and I. We hadn't been in Lark when the bandits came. I'd been hunting, and Colm was with me to gather berries and wild vegetables. We weren't there. We only knew something was wrong when the screams…"

"Neimi…" I winced, thinking of how painful that had to have been. Then I shied away from the pain.

"We wanted to help, but we knew… we knew we couldn't." Neimi closed her eyes and muffled a sob. "So, we hid. We hid in the shadows of that tree." She gestured vaguely towards it. "We could smell the smoke, hear the screams… and we had to keep still because we knew we'd die otherwise." She curled into herself and I immediately wrapped an arm around her shoulders to support her. "I hate it. I hate it so much..."

"I understand." Neimi and Colm… they faced what I would've if Seth hadn't been at Rosewatch. If it had just been me, then… well, I probably would've gone. But I would've die. I knew that. "You and Colm protected the only ones you knew you could keep safe. Each other."

"More like him keeping me safe, but yes." The 'guaranteed' instead of the 'theoretical'. There was nothing wrong with that decision, though I could understand the guilt. It wasn't an 'easy choice'. "When it all got quiet, we snuck back. We snuck back, and everyone was…"

"Right…"

"So… um… thank you." She looked at me with a smile, even though tears streamed down her face. "For letting Colm and me come with you. We have nowhere to go. And everywhere is dangerous nowadays. So I'm glad to be traveling with such nice people."

"I'm not sure I'm the one you should be thanking, but it's not like we could just leave you alone in the mountains." I smiled at her and I knew it was a little stiff. But… but it did feel more natural than the smile I'd worn when Victor left Rosewatch. "You'll probably have to help with the chores, though."

"Oh, that's fine. I'm… a bit of a klutz, but I can do some things. Like laundry and cooking."

"You cook?" That wasn't a surprise, but… "Mine. I claim you." I slipped my arm around hers and actually got a laugh out of her. It was watery, but surprisingly bright. "Colm can deal. I'm currently the only one who cooks in the group. While it's nice to not have to handle things like latrine digging and all, cooking for this many people isn't exactly a one person job."

"Then I'll gladly help."

We hunted for flowers a little longer, mostly so that Neimi had time to calm down and we could easily clean her face. Then we returned to the ruins and laid the flowers on the graves. First the old ones, and then the new. Though it would've been nice to give them lots of flowers, we only had enough for one or two on each. I was glad we even had that much. There were just so many dead… Adults, children… you could take guesses just based on the size of the graves. I wondered what had happened to any pets that would've been around. Did they run? Were they dead and buried? Had they been left alone and become a carrion eater's meal? Not really something I wanted to dwell on.

After all, it wasn't as if we could linger. The sun was setting, and we had to find a good place to camp for the night. So, as soon as Moulder was done with the prayers, as soon as all the graves were dug and the markers set… we left. We left, one dragging step at a time, to continue on our journey. Almost everyone walked without looking back. But Eirika… she looked back. Just once, when we had reached the top of the nearby hill, she stopped and looked back at what was left of Lark. Looked back at the ruins slowly disappearing into the shadows of the sunset. I waited with her, not wanting her to be alone.

"Princess Eirika." Sadly, though, there really wasn't time. At least Seth sounded gentle when he fell back to get us. "We have to leave," he reminded softly. "It'll be dark soon."

"Let me look just a little longer, Seth," Eirika whispered, not even glancing at him. The wind gusted and she brushed her hair out of her face. The charms on Grandpapa James's bracelet swung with the movement. "I want to burn this into my memory. It's a reminder of what will happen if I fail to keep my promise." She tucked her hair behind her ear, still looking at the ruins. "This is just the beginning, isn't it? If I am to keep my promise, it will take battle after battle."

"I am afraid so, Princess Eirika." Seth smiled sadly. I knew that if he could, he'd keep her far away from battle. But this was what Eirika had chose. "The day will come, though. At the end of a long and treacherous road, yes. But it will come."

"Yes, it will. In the names of all those I could not save… in the names of all those I will not be able to save… I will lead us home."

She turned away then, marching quickly to catch up with the rest. Seth, of course, followed her. I lingered a moment longer, staring at the ruins and thinking of just how many more villages had suffered this fate. Far too many, of course. And the worst was yet to come. I could only hope… I didn't even know what to hope for anymore. All I could do was try to remember, and try not to fall behind the others. It wasn't like the dead could come back, after all.

Gilliam

Captain of the East Watch and one of King Hayden's most trusted soldiers, his stoic nature fits well with his preferred job of protecting his allies. He's always analyzing the situation around him, focused on the best course of action, and rarely makes snap decisions unless someone's life is on the line.

Though his heavy armor restricts his speed and movement, his defenses and strength are unparalleled. While he'll never be one to clear the battlefield or be the glorious hero, he'll be the one to guard and protect the injured, which suits him fine.

Old friends with Moulder and Syrene, and he's easily the most relaxed in their company. Both are also very capable of flustering him, doing so with such ease that many wonder if the stoicness is simply a mask. In truth, though, it is simply a sign of how close he is to them, and they to him.

Author's notes: Insert obligatory archer, thief, and support tutorials, all in one convenient chapter. You never visit Lark in-game, but I thought it might be a nice. I don't think the game explains how Neimi and Colm survived either, so I made up something. Moulder's little rant/ramble is based off of something I've overheard some nurses complain about.

'Packing a wound' is basically keeping it from closing over via carefully stuffing it with sterile gauze (or something similar) and then using a plaster to cover the wound opening to keep it clean. It's done sometimes with infected wounds and deep wounds (like abscesses) to allow the wound to actually heal properly (inside to outside) and minimize the chances of sepsis. Which is very bad. Like… multi-organ-failure bad. (This is why if you're working in the micro section of the hospital lab, and one of your blood cultures beeps positive, it's a 'call in immediately' situation!)