Kaetar was right in assuming that Loiya would notice the bruises. He just looked apologetic. He didn't seem to know if he should say anything so he didn't. Not that Kaetar minded not talking about it but he was more worried about Loiya than he was about himself. Loiya tended to make himself ill with stress and if he blamed himself, he was going to be sick in no time.

It took a while to regroup and when they did, Joel left to talk to the "wise three" as Kaetar thought of them – the ones who experienced the previous wars. There was a lot of shouting on Joel's end. Arum merely rolled his eyes and took Elli back to their shared tent. Zeke followed Peter to his tent. Soren and Rykuu were outside hunting again with Ema, since they decided to camp away from the village and needed the food.

It wasn't like they were welcomed anyway. The town people didn't come out and had shut their windows. The only victory for the Crimeans was that the rebellion was yet again, denied the chance to get more supplies. Rylar had to restring his bow with the bow of a fallen archer since he wanted the steel bow over the iron bow but his bow wasn't going to hold for long. It was another day that they had to struggle with the lack of supplies. Arum, Elli, and everyone else who didn't hesitate to attack needed new weapons, Peter could use a new staff... They just couldn't hold out that much longer.

It was all the more reason to get to Toha.

Kaetar ate when the hunters came back. He was beginning to get used to watching Ema, Duma and Rykuu prepare the animals for everyone else to eat. Makken didn't seem to care about any of that and was happy whatever hunk of meat came his way, furred or not. It didn't disturb him so much like it once did, back when he couldn't eat the meat if he saw how it was prepared but he learned to accept it. He had to. He had to eat and he couldn't afford to be picky.

When he finished eating, he went to sleep.

And he was quickly woken up again with a hand. It jerked him out of his bedroll and out of the tent. The hand let go of him for a brief moment and Kaetar found himself on the ground.

"Don't say a word, princey."

It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the dark but when they did, he found himself being stared down by Saira. She smirked, folding her arms in front of her chest.

"We've camped on the other side of that town over there. Follow me. No questions asked," Saira mumbled, pulling out a knife. Ema had one similar to that one, which she only used to skin the animals she caught. It made sense that their hunter would have one but why did Saira have one? For direct combat?

"That knife..."

"Where do you think I started my career, kid? You hunt game, then bandits, then professional soldiers. I'm the best of all hunters, so don't think you can run off."

It all made sense when Kaetar thought about it. Her persistence to get something done and her ability to push others to the same extreme... was it all because it was just prey to her? Every task was just another thing to hunt. All the opportunities were just something new to chase down and conquer. She claimed she was the best, and she had something to back that up.

She took out a bottle and dipped her knife inside. Before Kaetar, knew it, Saira grabbed his wrist and made a small incision. Kaetar gasped and ripped his hand away from her, but the damage was already done.

"It's a low dose poison. It isn't fatal but it should keep you from giving up too much resistance. We'll cure you once we hit the Daein border."

Kaetar couldn't believe what he was hearing. Saira poisoned him! She was supposed to protect him! He was probably going inherit her, seeing as she was the youngest of the riders and he would feel bad just tossing her aside, but he definitely didn't appreciate being poisoned. Her persistence was surprising. He never thought that she would go as far as to poison the very person she was supposed to bring back safely.

She hauled him over her shoulder, the one without the pauldron, and began to move away from the camp. Kaetar was surprised that no one was woken up. Loiya was generally a light sleeper, so it was very odd that he continued to sleep when he was yanked out of his tent. Kaetar waking up was generally enough movement to wake up his bodyguard.

There was the laguz, who had more sensitive hearing. Only Ema and Rykuu would have been able to do anything in the dark and Kaetar couldn't count on Nasir to try and help him in his human form. The brandeds also seemed to have heightened senses – Zeke spotted Liam before the beorc did, meaning that he could see through the fog far enough to notice.

Half their camp could have heard something. Laguz and brandeds would have easily made up half of the rebellion force.

It didn't take very long for Kaetar to feel the effects of the poison. His limbs felt heavier and for a brief moment, he wondered how it was possible for Saira to carry him. He felt like he was a lot heavier than he was. He also felt sleepy again but he was determined to at least see where he was being taken. Saira did say they were just camped on the other side of that town.

Or maybe they were just packing up so they could leave before the rebellion caught up.

He saw the merchant stall he had hidden behind him before and it wasn't long before he was outside of the village again. He was getting comfortable on Saira's shoulder – between the poison and her walking, he was beginning to feel sleepy again. He fought against it. He needed to stay awake and see where he was going. If anything, he might be able to escape. It was a slim hope but he needed the hope. Optimism worked well for Zeke after all.

He yawned again. Saira, as rude as she could be, seemed rather gentle with him now. She never really was gentle. She never paid attention to him when it was her turn to babysit him – usually when Loiya was dragged away to train somewhere – and she usually went through a lot of effort to dump him on someone. He was poisoned and being kidnapped but at the same time, it seemed like Saira felt sorry for what she thought she had to do.

Kaetar was torn out of his thoughts by a loud growl. Saira didn't stop to turn around but simply started running forward. Kaetar did look back and saw a large, blonde tiger chasing after Saira. It was Rykuu! Perhaps he did hear Saira and came after her but the chances of her out running a laguz going as fast as Rykuu was slim. Rykuu pounced, knocking both Kaetar and Saira over.

Kaetar flew off her back, landing on the ground with a large thump. He couldn't get up. His limbs still felt overly heavily from the poison and he had to admit, the poison did its job well. All he could really do was watch Rykuu pin Saira pinned to the ground. She was on her back with Rykuu keeping his massive paws on her elbows and his feet on her legs. It didn't seem to be a comfortable position for a tiger but it was one he kept.

Unfortunately, it seemed as though they were just close enough to the Daein camp. Someone fired arrows into Rykuu's sides. He shook his head and roared. Kaetar could see most of his teeth, and was surprised with how sharp they really were. It was the last thought that ran through his head before he was picked up again.

"Stay calm, Your Highness."

Obviously, he wasn't someone that knew Kaetar personally. Most that knew him well never referred to his title, unless it was some part of a strange joke that Kaetar never appreciated. He didn't recognize the voice, didn't recognize the face, and didn't recognize any of them men who came to send him home. He didn't care for any of them, not when Rykuu was being shot with arrows.

"Get the tiger off of her!"

"He's still dangerous!"

"Keep shooting him with arrows!" Saira shouted. "He'll get weak eventually. Between being wounded and the amount of energy needed to sustain that form, he won't last too much longer. Ain't that right, you big kitty, you!"

"N-no..." Kaetar mumbled slowly. He didn't want Rykuu to get hurt anymore than he already was. He had more than one arrow in his flesh and he seemed to be shaking. Saira was right, he really wasn't going to hold out much longer. Being injured really did seem to drain his energy faster.

"It's alright, Your Highness. We will not kill your friend," that soldier mumbled.

"Don't... talk to me," Kaetar mumbled again. He didn't want to be here. He didn't want to be on his way home. He didn't want to be useless. He didn't want to be poisoned and he certainly didn't want Rykuu to lose to Saira. He just wanted to be back with his friends and he really wanted to let himself sleep. Saira was content with being on her back and laughing as she watched the tiger shake and growl his complaints.

But Rykuu seemed to hold onto his form long enough for backup to arrive. Despite the fact that bird laguz really didn't seem to like to fight in the night time, both of them were there. He saw Chifee dive into an archer first, his sharp talons reaching into the soldier's shoulders. He didn't know Darius was around until he hit the soldier that held Kaetar; he really blended into the dark sky. It was too bad he didn't do night fighting more often – he was almost invisible. Ema untransformed to give Rykuu something, holding it out in front of his mouth to lick up before transforming again.

Saira struggled again. It was the first time her slighter frame actually worked against her – she wasn't weak by any means but she just didn't have the raw power to try to fight off a transformed tiger who was quite keen on keeping his entire weight on her limbs. The shakiness in his frame earlier seemed to disappear. The arrows in his back caused a problem but it seemed that seemed that whatever Ema gave him, it gave him the energy he needed to keep his form.

Between Ema and the two birds, who constantly dove down for a hit only to retreat into the air to prevent themselves from getting hurt, the Daeins were overwhelmed with Saira down and the others not expected a laguz invasion force. Usually, the Daein pride would have been disgusted to see his men lose, but he was tired and poisoned and that did not make him the happiest Daein. He just wanted to get back to the camp.

Whenever he thought that it was going well for the laguz, Saira always surprised him. Rykuu must have faltered for just a moment and like Saira always did, she grabbed the chance. She freed her right arm and produced her hunting knife, which quickly found itself into Rykuu's side. He roared in pain and with a couple of more hits, he was untransformed. He still had a heavy frame untransformed, but she didn't seem to care. She kicked him as soon as she was up and yanked him by the hair. Her hunting knife was by his throat.

"You want him alive, right, Kaetar?"

Ema untransformed. The Daeins stopped fighting. They didn't seem to pick any fights when they didn't have to. The laguz were all too distracted with Rykuu to really be able to fight anyway. The bird laguz transformed as well and landed on the ground, folding their wings.

"She's tough," Chifee mumbled in awe.

"You're all Daein, right? Meaning that you have no part in the rebellion if Kaetar's gone?" Darius asked with a pant.

"We're not even part of the rebellion. We're just here to get our boys and come back. Kaetar's not representing the best interests of Daein right now. We're not waging a full out war... not yet anyway," Saira answered, keeping her knife trained around the tiger's throat.

"But the influence will spread if it is not cut off here."

"And we'll fight it if it does. It's not like Gallia wouldn't do the same thing, kitty lady. Someone grab Kaetar. He's wasting perfectly good gold making us chase him down for this long!"

"Can I just say something?" Joel mumbled suddenly, pulling up to the scene on his horse. Soren was sitting behind him, still on the horse and Makken was in the air with Mike and Syrin on his back. "SCREW YOU, SAIRA! Nothing gives me more pleasure than to make your job harder!" he laughed, shaking a vulgar gesture at Saira.

"You little... Know your freakin' place kiddo!"

"I'm the son of rider who tells you what to do!" Joel laughed, spinning his silver lance in his hands. He had both a sword and a lance from Daein and they both appeared to be customized for Joel alone. It was just as he said – he was only a cavalier because of his time in the military officially, rather than a display of his skills.

"That means nothing without your father breathing down my neck."

Soren seemed to have been tired of the talk and fired an arrow at Saira. She couldn't dodge without letting go of Rykuu. Mike got closer with Makken and threw his hand axe, preventing Saira from going after him again. The tiger, despite his wounds and the possible poisoning, managed to run on his two feet and take shelter with Makken.

"Nice shot, kiddo! You shoot far better than you look like you would! I wouldn't mind having that sort of skill back in Nevassa!" Saira chuckled, aiming her arrow. Mike steered Makken out of the way.

"You hurt Rykuu," Soren stated simply. "I'll... never join you."

"That's too bad, kid."

"Mike, let me down," Syrin mumbled. As soon as he was on the ground, he walked up to Saira.

"Huh, you again."

"Yes, me," Syrin rolled his eyes. "Your attempt today wasn't bad at all, however, I'll be taking Kaetar back with me. You can have him back when the rebellion ends."

"Says who?" Saira asked, pointing her knife at him.

Syrin pulled a tome out. Kaetar could not read the lettering on it since it was too far away for him. "I doubt you can read it. It's called Rexcalibur. My arm may be in a sling but it doesn't mean that I can't use it. It would be very devastating to a group of your size, especially those who are already injured or exhausted. It's your choice, Saira."

"Why do you want him so badly?"

"Because he's mine. He's already proven that's he useful to the rebellion. When it's over, you can have him back."

Saira sighed. Syrin slid his arm out of the sling and clasped the book with both hands.

"Just who are you? No one in Daein can wield that tome," Saira growled.

"Me? No one in particular."

Saira studied his face for a moment, then turned back to her group.

"Kaetar goes back," she declared. No one argued with her. Joel was smirking while Saira looked as though she wanted to kill him. Mike helped Rykuu onto Makken's back with Soren looking on, his face filled with concerned. Joel lifted Kaetar onto the horse since he wasn't capable of even walking on his own. Kaetar sat with most of his weight being supported by the horse's strong neck and he used his hands to hold onto the mane for extra weight. Joel steered from behind.

That left Soren to hitch a ride with Darius, who he was the most comfortable with now that the horse and Rykuu weren't options for him. Syrin, with his arm still out of the sling, went on Ema's back.

Most of the camp was awake, aside from the girls it seemed, when Joel and Makken first broke through. Loiya and Arum were sitting together, which was strange to Kaetar at first until he realized that Arum was holding his bodyguard's hands behind his back. Arum was able to counter Loiya's every attempt of escaping his hold. Loiya was strong, but he had to admit defeat when it came to Arum. Just how strong was Arum?

"Ugh! KAETAR! Let me go you bastard!" Loiya shouted, struggling again but with he was ultimately unsuccessful. Arum just rolled his eyes.

Nicholas, Stefan, Peter and Nasir were also up and waiting outside where they once had their fire. Makken landed right beside Peter.

"Did you get him back?" Nicholas shouted.

"Yeah but he's not the worry! Rykuu's not doing too well here!" Mike shouted back as he tried to help the tiger off the wyvern's back. He had more than one arrow sticking out of his body, mainly on his back and in his arms, the areas most exposed to the Daeins. He also seemed reluctant to really move – perhaps he was also poisoned. He was hit with the same dagger.

"Kaetar has some sort of poison but I don't believe that it's fatal," Joel stated simply. "Do you have a restore staff, Peter?"

"I don't, actually," Peter answered. Between Peter, Mike and Stefan, they managed to pulled Rykuu down and had him sitting up for Peter to examine. "The ministry didn't have many, so we had to keep them there in case something happened. I couldn't take one, so until it runs its course he might he feeling awful for a while."

"You don't have a restore staff?"

"I do not," he answered again. "Please try to relax while I looked at Rykuu, Joel. He's badly hurt. It looks like I might have to make the injuries larger in order to make sure the arrow heads are out of his back and arms. It will hurt, Rykuu."

"Where is Soren? He's the best support for Rykuu if we're going to maim him some more," Stefan said.

"Darius should be here soon," Joel answered through clenched teeth. "But what about Kaetar?"

Nasir answered. He calmly walked to Kaetar and placed a hand on his own. For a moment, Kaetar couldn't help but to wonder what the dragon planned on doing. He wasn't helping him off the horse, he was just holding his hand.

"What are you doing?" Loiya shouted.

"Some dragon laguz have supportive abilities. My presence can cure him of his poison. He just needs to relax," Nasir answered calmly but Kaetar was already feeling a lot better. It was like his entire body was waking up again. He felt oddly refreshed and the heaviness that kept him from moving too much disappeared without a trace.

"That's brilliant! You're a walking restore staff!" Nicholas shouted in excitement. "How are you feeling then, Kaetar?"

"A lot better than I did just moments ago," he mumbled in awe. "Have you always been able to do that? Are dragons the only ones?"

"A heron's presence can heal small cuts," Nasir said calmly. "Their songs also contain seid magic, so they have to power to restore energy to tired allies."

"And you would know the herons, right?" Kaetar asked.

"I know of them and I have seen them and spoke with them," he answered plainly. "They did my granddaughter and I a great favour, and for that I'm always thankful to them."

"You're a grandfather? I knew you guys aged slowly but you look so young," Nicholas gasped.

"Dragon laguz age the slowest of all laguz, if I remember correctly," Joel mumbled. "Naisr might be as old as all of us beorc and probably most of the brandeds combined. I think dragons who survived the flood are still alive to this day."

"You are correct, Joel. I'm not just a grandfather but also a great grandfather. He is the best thing to happen to Goldoa in a long time. He was the first dragon laguz to be born centuries – naturally everyone is excited about him," Nasir answered with a smile. It seemed as though he would have continued had Rykuu's growling not interrupted him.

"I thin Saira might have poisoned him too so you should go stand next to him too," Kaetar said. Nasir nodded.

Kaetar didn't notice Darius or Chifee returning and Soren was now by Rykuu's side as Peter worked to push the arrows through his arm. Kaetar supposed it was really important for the shaft to be pulled out with the head and Peter did not seem to trust himself in being able to just pull the arrows out. When the arrow was removed, it was simply wrapped up and the team moved onto an new arrow. It was only through what seemed to be a lot of pain and misery was he ever healed with an actual staff.

Rykuu collapsed after. Stefan and Arum, who finally allowed Loiya go, helped him to his tent.

"Kaetar, I'm so sorry I didn't hear Saira," Loiya mumbled when Kaetar jumped down the horse.

"I didn't even notice until I turned around and noticed you weren't there," Nicholas admitted.

Kaetar looked Loiya in the eye. "Are you feeling alright, Loiya? You're not usually a heavy sleeper."

"I have a small headache but it should go away on its own. There's nothing else that can be done for them but to bear through them and sleep when I can," he sighed.

"I think at the rate, Kaetar, I should become a second bodyguard. Loiya's obviously too stressed all the time to do the job on his own," Joel smirked. Loiya scoffed.

"I'm not the one who pays him so you'll have to ask my father when we go home," Kaetar answered. He really didn't want to make a decision like that on his own when Loiya was sick, when Kaetar just recovered, and when Joel seemed to be making a personal stab at Loiya. He would rather let his father deal with that and then neither of them could argue about it.

"We should all be keeping an extra eye on Kaetar. Syrin went through the trouble to save him, so he valued here," Nasir stated, walking back to Kaetar.

"I agree with Nasir," Nicholas mumbled. "Maybe both you of should just suck it up and stand to be in the same tent as each other."

"Except that you always take care of him in the morning," Loiya countered, pinching the bridge of his noise. "I think he's used to having you around, so you should stay."

"Alternatively, we could just one more person on patrol in front of your tent. We usually have two on night patrol. We were lucky tonight in the fact that we had three – me, Soren, and Rykuu. Rykuu was the one to run after Saira while I rode Gawain back for reinforcements," Joel explained, patting his horse. He must have been Gawain. It didn't surprise Kaetar that Joel would name his horse after one of the greatest riders in history. "We could keep the two and have a third just to be in front of your tent. It's another layer of security and we don't need to change tentmates."

"I think that's the best for now. I don't think Syrin would disagree."

"Why thank you, Nasir!" Joel bowed down the best he could on his horse.

"Where is Syrin anyway? I would like to talk to him."

"At the edge of the camp," Nasir answered.

Kaetar looked on the edges and found a sitting figure in the distance. That had to be Syrin. He walked over and sat down beside him. Syrin glanced at him for a moment in acknowledgement before going back to staring at the distance. All Kaetar could see were trees but Syrin seemed to be watching something.

"Why did you come along to save me?"

"My presence was just another option. I would have used rexcalibur if I had to. You're not going home until I say so. You're still useful and I don't want to send you back before I think you're ready. You still have a lot to learn about the world," Syrin shrugged, messaging his arm again.

"Then I guess the question is why do you care so much? You left Tellius, didn't you? I thought you weren't attached to it. Why does it matter if I'm a good king or not?"

"You're right. I did leave. Once upon a time, the only place I wanted to be was by Ike's side and that's where I was when he took his last breath. But he told me to find something to do with my long life; he didn't want me to waste it by following him so soon. It just so happened that the only reason why Stefan agreed to come along with other brandeds was because I had to promise to live in Grann after the rebellion, so I'm stuck in Tellius," Syrin answered slowly.

How did Ike die anyway? Illness? Old age? A battle wound? How does a great person like that pass on? All of it seemed inferior to what he did in his life. He might have been forced into god but Syrin was the one person who saw him die a mortal death. It was quite sad really, but Kaetar felt worse for Syrin. He was the only member of the original Greil Mercenaries left. If that didn't make someone feel lonely, Kaetar didn't know what would.

He probably did like them to some degree. The visions he saw showed him arguing but they also seemed like a family.

"As for you, I feel as though you have the potential to change the status quo. Laguz may be accepted but they're still not integrated fully into beorc life. There's still fear. It's even worse for the brandeds because we know better than to expect that people have changed. They would still throw rocks if they could, I believe. But you have an open mind, the passion and the social status to make the changes everyone is too busy stepping on egg shells to make."

"I still feel overwhelmed when I think about needing to manage so much. I don't want to be another Pelleas where the only thing he really was remembered for was handing the throne to someone who could do a better job than he could. My decisions would affect a lot of people."

"Don't think about all the small details," Syrin said simply. "You'll end up fretting about all of the wrong things. You'll need to understand the big picture. The trivial matters can cloud that and cause you doubt yourself."

Kaetar nodded but he didn't know what to say. It was good advice that he never really heard, unless he just zoned out his father. No, his father had been trying to give him practical lessons, such as showing him some of the paperwork and letting him sit in on one of the meetings with the leaders. His father was trying to show him what it was like, give him a taste of the life. Syrin was trying to tell him how he can manage everything his father tried to show him.

He really needed both of them. He was glad to have met Syrin for the history lessons but just like the tactician he was, he had advice to offer. He couldn't have planned to have a prince show up at his doorstep but he certainly did take advantage of it to make something happen. It really worked out well for both of them.

"It's almost too bad you're staying in Grann then. I'm sure anyone would like you to be their adviser," Kaetar thought out loud.

"I promised myself I wouldn't use my skills for anyone but Ike. I still believe that I am, in the ending, doing it all for him. After this, I'm just living in Grann. I will not allow Stefan to make me be his adviser."

"Shouldn't you starting living for your own desires though? You have a long life ahead of you, so why don't you do something you want to do? I think Ike would be happy with whatever you decided to do."

Syrin's eyes broke from the tree line and he was suddenly looking at his feet. He shook his head.

"I only know how to survive. I only had one person in my life that I would truly call a friend and he's gone now. I've just been surviving this entire time and only because it was Ike's will that I'm even around," Syrin said sadly.

There it was – the guidance that Stefan mentioned. He really did seem lost without Ike around but Kaetar considered it odd that he didn't really consider Stefan or Nasir to be friends of his. They were always around each other and Syrin did seem calmer around them but that wasn't good enough to be friends? Maybe they were friends but Syrin was in denial about it.

Nasir seemed a little clingy to him for some reason too. Kaetar didn't quite understand it because he didn't seem to be very clingy about anything, especially when he considered the vision he saw. Syrin tried to confront Nasir, only to be threatened back. It must have been before Ike knew of his brand. He still didn't know what Nasir did to warrant a confrontation.

"You're thinking."

"I just remembered something the necklace showed me. What's the relationship between you and Nasir? You confronted Nasir about something," Kaetar responded quickly.

"He put us in a bad situation. He spied on us for Gallia but all the while, he was also spying on us for Daein. It wasn't long after that confrontation that he actual stole something precious from Ike's sister and that eventually ended up in the hands of Ashnard."

"What did Ashnard want with it?"

"It was called Lehran's Medallion. There was a goddess sealed inside of it. Anyone who touched it gained tremendous power but from what I've heard and seen from Ashnard, it's at the expensive of their sanity. Ashnard wanted to release the goddess inside." Syrin turned to him and then sighed. "You think it's ridiculous."

"No. I think I would have, except that Peter had that story about Yune and Ashera and they got that story from someone named Lehran. There is something common here."

"You can be intelligent when you want to be," Syrin mumbled, glancing into the forest once more. "When are you going to make your move? I know you're in there."

"Who?"

"I don't know but there's someone there watching us. I don't know what their intentions are."

Kaetar saw something move. A knife flew out, landing between them. Kaetar jumped but Syrin stayed still like he knew the knife would miss.

"I guess that means we can talk then! That's all well and good! Conversation is rather lively and exciting, isn't it?"

Kaetar recognized him as soon as he came out. He was the one who took Liam away. He could tell by the scruffy red beard and the matching moustache. His hair was the same colour and it was short and about chin length except for above his eyes. He looked older than anyone in their army, just going by his face alone. His eyes were wise looking but with the glassy look he did appear to be mildly drunk. He had a small scar ear his left eye and his nose was flat like it been broken before. His clothing was complicated – his black cotton pants were covered with belts that had knife holsters and satchels. He had a grey shirt, covered with a green vest and all of that was under a heavy cloak. On his feet, he had buckled boots with pieces cloths tied to them.

"You're a rouge," Syrin muttered.

"And you're an archsage! Or is 'were' a better term for that?"

"Are you working with Crimea?" Kaetar asked.

"Hey now, everyone needs gold. Crimea just hired me before you guys did. Too bad for you guys, I guess!" the man chuckled. "By the way, while I'm at it, the name is Chibuike! No need to introduce yourselves to me though. I've been watching for a while. How are you holding up... Syrin?"

"Am I suppose to know you?"

"Not really. I've been watching you and Ike's company since the Mad King's War but I'm particularly good at not being noticed," he said with a smirk.

"So you're branded then!" Kaetar exclaimed.

"My mother was a special slave for a noble, if you get what I mean," Chibuike said with a wink.

"Why are you talking to us? Shouldn't that be against your contract with Crimea?" Syrin asked.

"You were always the suspicious one, weren't you? Nothing ever comes out of the kindness of one's heart. They always have some sort of goal, don't they? I'll admit, I can be quite selfish but I'm not going to report this. I already have a down payment, so I've been quite slack. I just wish to speak. After all, no one thought you and Ike would return and here you are. How could I resist talking?"

Kaetar could understand where he was coming from. Syrin was a relic, some sort of precious gem to those who knew of him. He was the brains and logic behind Ike's movements, the one who was not held down by emotions. Between Syrin and Titania, Ike was in good hands but no one really spoke of either. For the most part, they were left behind by history. For Kaetar, it was worth temporarily leaving the castle life behind for outside life if it meant listening to Syrin for a bit.

Perhaps Chibuike felt the same way. Perhaps Chibuike was just an outgoing person.

"I'm not here to talk to those who are working against us. You know better than what Crimea is saying yet you're working with them anyway. You have nothing to offer to me."

"I can say this; the reason why the Crimean army hasn't bothered with you very much today was because they're now busy moving something across Crimea. I don't know what it is that they decided to pull troops from you to that, but it's something that you may need to concern yourself with," the rogue said simply. "Now is the time to move away from Crimea. It's your only chance."

"Which direction?" Kaetar asked. It spelled out trouble no matter what side it went to. If it went towards Toha, then they would meet whatever it was that they were moving. If it went the other way, then Daein would be in trouble and it was hard to say if his father was really prepared for a surprise attack. He had one less rider at home, leaving only two riders that were capable of fighting. But it wasn't the best time for Crimea to be fighting either. What was going on?

"Toward Daein, I believe. Are you worried? I can't say I blame ya." Chibuike shrugged. "I don't think it would be a good idea for you to follow. You had a busy day, so get some sleep."

"What about you?"

"Don't worry, princey. I might be back. I'm just going to get out of here before that Liam brat decides he's all better and I'll get into more trouble than I would like to. See ya!" Chibuike waved before darting out of view.

"What are they sending to Daein?"

Syrin sighed. "Nothing pleasant I would imagine. We can't turn around though. As luck would have it, we seem to have to have a lead. Daein is still behind us so we have a chance to get to Toha without anymore incidents. Get some rest, we leave early."

Kaetar nodded and headed back to his tent. Nicholas was asleep again but Loiya was still awake with a knife in his hands. "I'm sorry, Kaetar. I don't know why I was so tired that I didn't notice anything wrong. Headaches don't usually do that."

"Relax. I'm alright. Maybe you're just coming down with something again but either way, we can't change the past. Don't worry yourself sick."

Loiya offered a weak smile.

"I'll do my best."

Wow! I usually don't update twice in one month! What can I say? I'm stressed and reviews make me feel a little bit better. October is a bad time, mostly because it's midterm season! I think I'm stressing a little too much though.

Just a reminder - next chapter will be from Adrien's perspective. I'm not exactly sure how I feel about it since it involves a lot of theory making about magic and it seems a little... outlandish? You guys will see what I mean. It's more important for the end.

Also, Ema gave a Rykuu some Olivi Grass.