A/N: Another chapter! WooHoo! DISCLAIMER: Any thing, one, or place, you may recognize belongs solely to Kristen Britain. Enjoy!

Fastion

The one thing Fastion did not miss about the Tombs was the cold. Even with a torch and a fur-lined cloak, it still managed to seep under his skin and settle into his bones. Being a former Tomb Weapon he had been relieved of his duty and sent down to aid in search for whoever was down here.

They had all gathered in the chapel dedicated to Westrion. It was the only place in the Tombs that was large enough to accommodate the group. Brienne spread the map that she had wrangled from Agemon on a table that had been brought in from another room. The head caretaker himself was standing off to the side, wringing his hands and looking ready to pitch a fit with all of these outsiders in his domain. If the situation wasn't so serious, Fastion would have laughed at the man.

"Alright everyone, we're going to splitting into groups of three. Each group will have at least one person who is familiar with the layout of the Tombs. Each trio will be assigned a section to search. When we've searched all the main parts of the Tombs, we'll staring exploring the farther reaches of the Tombs. I have a feeling that's where we'll find the culprits behind this. As we're going through these areas keep an eye out for missing items and any signs of recent disturbances. Here's how we're going to split it up," Brienne said. Everyone listened closely as she divided them up into search parties. Fastion had two Sacoridian soldiers with him. There was more talk of meeting places and times before they all split off in their separate directions.

Fastion's group had been given a little-used part of the Tombs to search. He had only been that way a handful of times himself.

"Alright, follow me and stick close. It's pretty easy to get lost down here if you don't know where you're going," he told his two companions, Private Bart Faber and Corporal Jonathan Castell.

"You have to admit, it's plain creepy down here," Private Faber said, pulling his cloak tighter about him as they made their way through the Tombs.

"That it is; I certainly wouldn't want to be lost down here," Corporal Castell agreed. Fastion resisted the urge to laugh at the two men. He had a feeling that would do little to improve the rest of their time in the Tombs. The trio walked down the Avenue of Heroes until eventually the shadows swallowed them.

Karigan

At the king's words, Karigan's heart sank. She didn't want to have this conversation now. Of course, if she had her way, they wouldn't be having this conversation at all. Unfortunately she didn't have much of a choice in the matter as he was her king and due to her weakened state she was pretty well trapped. Better get this over with now, she thought.

"What do we need to talk about Sire?" she asked, deciding to play dumb and see which issue came up first.

"Well, there are several things that I could think of, but a rather urgent matter came to my attention earlier this afternoon that I thought you should be made aware of," he said. Karigan brought her gaze down from the ceiling to look at him. This was certainly not the conversation that she had been expecting.

"What's happened?"

"We have reason to believe that the Second Empire may be back in the castle." Karigan thumped her head back against the headboard. Would she never be able to catch a break?

"Several artifacts have gone missing from the Tombs and one of the caretakers who helped Agemon translate the Silverwood Book has gone missing," the king continued, his amber eyes solemn. At the mention of the book, Karigan's heart stopped. Her mind immediately went to Alton and Estral and all of her other friends at the wall. Condor was still there for all she knew.

"Lieutenant Connly had nothing new to report from the wall today," he told her as if sensing her thoughts. Karigan nodded, relaxing slightly. "As far as anyone can tell, these are all recent occurrences and they haven't had the time to put anything in place yet. If our efforts pay off, we'll catch them before they can put anything in place. Every available Weapon and soldier is currently scouring the Tombs for whoever is behind this."

Something clicked in Karigan's mind and she turned her head to look at him. "Is this why you posted a Weapon at my door?"

"It is, although it was their idea, I just agreed with them. Given your dealings with the Second Empire and how you've constantly thwarted their attempts at bringing the Empire back they thought it was prudent to put a guard on you given your current condition. It would give them the perfect opportunity to try to kill you if they are indeed back in the castle," King Zachary explained.

Karigan knew he was right, but it still irked her that people thought she needed protection. She had to admit that she certainly wasn't in any position to defend herself, but they had bigger things to worry about than protecting her.

Once again the king seemed to sense what she was thinking as he leaned forward and took both of her hands in his. "Please Karigan, for my own sanity; please accept this just this once. I've nearly lost you once, I don't think I could bear the thought of losing you a second time."

The blunt honesty and sincerity of his words momentarily disarmed Karigan. It was the most open he had been about his feelings for her since that night on the castle roof so long ago. It tore at her heart hearing these words from the man she loved and knowing that she couldn't accept them because he was promised to another. At this thought she came back to her senses as anger replaced her anguish. How can he sit there and play with her emotions like this when he is betrothed to another woman? She was trying to move on, but apparently he felt that because he was king he could still try and have her while being married to another.

"I'll accept the protection only because it was the weapon's idea," Karigan said coolly, extracting her hands from his. "Was that all Your Majesty?"

His face fell at her words, sensing the rebuff behind her tone and manner. "Karigan-"

"Your Majesty, if that is all that is required of me this even, I am feeling rather tired and would like to rest now. I'm sure Lady Estora and your advisors are looking for you by now," Karigan said cutting him off and hating every word that passed her lips, leaving a sour taste on her tongue.

King Zachary got to his feet, "Of course, Rider Sir G'ladheon. I've kept you long enough. Rest well and stay safe."

"You as well Your Majesty," she said as he crossed to the door.

He paused and turned back to face her with his hand on the knob. "It's Queen Estora actually."

Karigan stopped breathing. There wasn't any air left in the room to breathe. Surely she hadn't heard him correctly? "What?"

"It's Queen Estora now. Estora is my wife," he said before opening the door and taking his leave.

Karigan waited until his footsteps faded away before she collapsed into wrenching sobs that threatened to split her chest open as her heart rent itself into a million pieces. She had been on the edge of breaking since she returned and the news that the man she loved was lost to her forever had sent her plummeting into the abyss. She was well and truly broken, but she would be damned if she let anyone see it. She eventually cried herself into the oblivion of sleep where golden-haired children with almond eyes tormented her dreams.

Alton

Alton was looking over Theandrius Silverwood's book with Merdigen in the Tower of the Heavens when Fergal came trotting through the archway in the center of the tower. Alton glanced up at Fergal's entrance as he rubbed his eyes to clear away the words that were still swimming in his vision. He had been staring at the pages since dawn, trying to figure out a piece of the magic in the wall that was puzzling him. Something wasn't right here.

"Oh good, you're here," Fergal said when he saw the two of them sitting there.

"Of course he's here boy, where else would he be?" Merdigen said irritably. He had been irritable all morning, as frustrated by the missing piece in the magic as Alton was. The news and ensuing celebration of Karigan's return certainly hadn't helped matters any. Alton had seen Dale looking rather peaked this morning. Fergal didn't look much better and Alton was far from a pretty sight himself.

"What is it Fergal?" Alton said, giving Merdigen a look. The projection simply shrugged.

"Trace received some news from the castle a few minutes ago." Alton straightened at his tone. He had rarely seen the new Rider look so serious.

"What news?"

"There has been a rash of thefts in the Tombs involving mostly small items with some arcane ability and usually belonging to someone who had ties or dealings with the Acadian Empire." Alton didn't like where this was going, but he was wondering what this had to do with them and the wall. "Two days ago, one of the caretakers was reported as missing. Apparently she was one of the ones who had helped Agemon with translating the Silverwood book. The king and his advisors have a strong reason to believe that the Second Empire is behind it." Alton looked at Fergal with growing horror as his mind comprehended what he had just been told. If the Second Empire learned the secrets of the wall, all the work and progress they had made in the last several months would have been for naught. He hoped to the gods that they found whoever was responsible for this before they could do anything.

Fergal seemed to be thinking the same thing, "Connly said the king has launched a search of the entirety of the Tombs to find the persons responsible for this."

"Good."

"There's one more thing. I promise it's not more doom and gloom!" he said holding his hands up in response to the disbelieving look Alton gave him. "Captain Mapstone has asked that you write out a report on the wall and the progress so far and send it back to the castle. The king would like a more detailed, first-hand account of the process for the records. It's also to help piece together everything they've been receiving through Trace and Connly. Dale is to take it back and she's also to take Condor back with her."

Dale would enjoy the chance to go back to Sacor City. She hadn't been back there pretty much since she arrived at the wall. He knew Condor was more than ready to go back to his Rider. Alton, however, did not relish the thought of having to write such a comprehensive report. He didn't have the time for it, especially given this news.

"All right, I'll get on it. Thanks for keeping us informed Fergal."

"Good luck," Fergal said before walking back through the archway. Alton watched him go before passing a hand over his face and turning back to Merdigen. He looked as horrified as Alton was. For once, since the first time that Alton had met him, the projection had been rendered speechless. They stared at each other for a minute, their minds reeling with all of the implications of this new development. Finally Alton broke the silence.

"I think we're going to need some help."

A/N: As always I would love to know what you think. Leave me a message after this note.~ Naomi