Wahisietel sat on the wall, and thought.

Before him was the expanse of the city. Buildings huddled together, fires burning faintly inside of them. Soon, they would be put out as the humans went to sleep, but for now they lay like the stars in the sky, reflected on earth.

Tomorrow, he was to leave for SIlvarea. Despite Sliske doing his best (which was, as many people mostly deceased could attest, considerable), Wahisietel had the horrible feeling that something was going to go very wrong. I'm not ready for this, he thought miserably.

He sighed, and shifted. He would miss this place on the wall when he was gone. Senntisten wasn't always a good place to be, but it was home, and far more of one than he had ever had.

He corrected himself with a sharp thought. If all went well, he thought, this place would stand for a thousand years more, at least. His mission was to protect the city. Not all hope was lost.

Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that this was an ending.

"Care for a good conversation?" came Sliske's voice, softer than he could ever remember hearing it. Still, he jumped.

"Oh!" Wahisietel said. "Er. Yes, of course."

His brother had appeared seemingly without a sound next to him, standing with perfect balance on the edge of the wall. At his invitation, he sat, and stretch noisily in a manner that had always reminded Wahisietel of a cat. "I must congratulate you," he said. "You picked a very good resting place. I'd always thought it looked… relaxing."

"You've been watching me?" Wahisietel asked incredulously.

Sliske gave him a look. Wahisietel conceded the point. "So what do you want?" he asked.

"That list would take days," Sliske said, "and I doubt you could give me most of it. As for why I sat here… I want to talk."

Wahisietel nodded absently, keeping his gaze fixed on the Lower District. "About tomorrow."

"Mm."

"What's to say?" he asked, his mouth dry. "You've taught me well."

"Have I?" Sliske said, sounding mildly surprised. "Come to think of it, I suppose I have. But have you learned well?"

"I suppose we'll see," Wahisietel said.

"Not good enough."

Sliske's sudden, sharp change of tone startled Wahisietel, and he turned to look at the other Mahjarrat. His gaze was fierce and unusually free of amusement. "There's too much at risk here for 'we'll see.'"

"I know, I know! The city is in danger! But what should I say? I'm ready? Because honestly, Sliske, I don't know if I am ready!" Wahisietel could feel the floodgates he'd been barring shut for the past month suddenly open. "I was never cut out for this. You know it. Dagroda should have known it, but-" He stopped himself, searched for a new line of thought. "I've never done anything like this before," he finished softly.

Sliske wouldn't meet his eyes. "I wasn't talking about the city," he said quietly.

Wahisietel opened his mouth, then shut it. There was silence for a few moments. Slowly, one by one, the fires started to go out.

"Alright," Wahisietel said. "How's this? I will do my best, because the lives of everyone in the city burn in my breast. Everything is up to me, I know it, and I care too much about this city and her people to do anything other than my best. And if that isn't enough… I'll make it be enough."

More silence. And then, "that'll do."

They watched as the fires went out. Wahisietel didn't notice Sliske leave, but he did know that when the very last one went out, he was alone.

…

"Look, all I'm saying is, I get what our job is, you know, but surely he'll need his sleep?"

"Don't be such a baby. Wahisietel's one of the good ones. Just wake him up."

Hushed, and yet loud voices intruded into the Mahjarrat's sleep. In some process that he couldn't quite remember, he had ended up back in his bed the night before, and had even managed to sleep in it, which was rare indeed.

"If you're so sure it'll be fine, you wake him up."

"You're closer."

"You just edged back! I saw you!"

He opened his eyes. Two human guards, one male, one female, argued over his bedside, trying and failing miserably to keep quiet.

"Yeah, well – oh."

They had noticed. Wahisietel sat up, surveying them. "Good morning," he said.

They snapped to attention comically. "Good morning, sir! We were sent to –"

"Wake me up?" Wahisietel asked wryly. "Well, you've succeeded." He swung out of bed and moved to face them more professionally. "I suppose I am to go to Dagroda from here?"

The guards exchanged glances. "He wants you at the gate by nine o'clock, sir," the female guard said respectfully. "He said to tell you that someone will meet you there to go over the mission with you before you leave for Silvarea."

"Right," Wahisietel said. "Well, you've done your jobs. I'm awake. Painfully so."

The guards stared at him with fear in their eyes. He sighed. "You may go."

Wahisietel fancied for a moment that he could actually hear the air rushing into the vacuum made by their departure. Soon, they were gone.

Slowly, he dressed, not in his robes as Pontifex Maximus, but in the garb of a human merchant. The clothes were not as fine as he was used to, especially when part of his disguise included being destitute, but in some strange way they were more comfortable than anything he'd worn as a Mahjarrat.

Carefully, he metamorphosed into his human guise. Ali, his name was. A rich merchant who'd lost his wife, children, and most of his fortune when his caravan was attacked by Zarosian demons. He was joining the attack force in an attempt for revenge, and to find a new purpose in life.

He finished fitting the clothes, and took a look around his house. Despite how much he told himself otherwise, he felt like this was the last time he'd ever see it.

Forcibly, he shook these thoughts off and headed into the streets. The day was just taking off, and many demons of all shapes and sizes mingled, traded, and went to distant jobs with a sense of ease. Many cast glances his way, and whispered to each other in low tones. Wahisietel wondered whether they recognized him, or were simply stunned (confused? Amused?) at the presence of a human. There were human merchants in the Upper District, certainly, but he knew it was rare for demons to see them.

He hoped it was the latter. He couldn't afford to be so easily recognized once he got to Silvarea.

The Upper District soon faded into the Lower as he made his way to the gate. The clouds showed no sign of dispersing, but they did lighten as the sun moved higher in the sky. He suspected it would rain. Familiar worries about the humans wormed their way into his mind, but he couldn't worry about that right now.

Finally, the gate loomed in front of him. Beyond it was the great field that surrounded Senntisten on all sides, and beyond that would be the hunched form of Silvarea, not so much looming as creeping, a thorn on the side of the great world Senntisten ruled.

He stopped before it. Someone was to meet him here, and he thought he could figure out who it was. Sliske wouldn't miss this for the world.

Such it was that he was more surprised than perhaps he ought to have been that it wasn't him who appeared in the courtyard.

Her approach was exceedingly obvious, which Wahisietel noticed almost before he made out her features. Bright red hair fell over a face caught somewhere between greeting and mistrust, and a large bandage was wound around her chest and back. This was definitely not Sliske. He had wondered where she'd gotten to.

"Wahisietel," Alifanta said, bowing slightly in his direction. "It is good to see you. I'm to be your… escort."

She didn't offer her hand, and nor did Wahisietel, but at the least he couldn't detect open hostility, which was more than he had expected. Still, even that was a bit of a letdown. Sliske's taunts and oh-so-clever word games would have been better than cool silence the whole walk over, although not by much.

"Where is-" he blurted before he could stop himself, but managed to cut off the last word.

The Icyene understood. "Your brother? He is required, for now. Besides, Saradomin's camp is hidden, and I will be able to show you the way."

She apparently hadn't heard of his and Sliske's "field trip", as his brother called it. It didn't matter, and he didn't tell her. He was glad for the company.

Solemnly, she gestured to a guard on the wall, who scurried to open the gate. Wahisietel frowned. Since when did the guards do what Alifanta told them?

He supposed it wasn't important, for now. He could see Silvarea at what he guessed was a half-day's walk. It would be faster if they had something to ride, but any such animal had been gone for so long they had faded into myth.

"How is your wing healing?" he asked politely as they left Senntisten behind them. It would be a while before the great walls were no longer in sight, which Wahisietel felt obscurely proud of.

"Well," Alifanta replied absently. "Doctors believe that I will fly again."

"That's good," Wahisietel said.

"Wahisietel, do you consider yourself a good person?"

This question was so unexpected that Wahisietel felt his mind perform an action analogous to falling over into the fetal position. He opened his mouth, and hovered there stupidly. Alifanta watched him with curiosity, not showing any sign she noticed his momentary lapse.

"I-" Wahisietel hesitated. "I suppose that would be up to others."

"Don't give the cop-out answer," Alifanta snapped. "You know you better than anyone. Are you a good person?"

Distantly, Wahisietel wondered if Alifanta was related to Sliske. "I try to be," he said.

"Good enough. Now then, Good Person, what do you think of me?"

His mind, starting to get up shakily, was bowled over once again by this new question. He glanced over at her, but this time Alifanta was gazing resolutely at the distant Silvarea.

Before he had a chance to, however, she spoke. "I have brought much pain into this world. For a long time, I thought I was doing it for the greater good. That not only would Saradomin ultimately prevail, but he was the only one worthy to do so. I, and many of my flock, held this more deeply than any other belief. Now…" She paused, and looked at her companion. "I see a similar belief in you, Wahisietel. You have fought for so long, with this to guide you."

"Are you going to tell me to abandon my beliefs?" Wahisietel asked.

She shook her head. "On the contrary," she said. "I encourage you to keep them. This world is no place for those who do not know their own hearts. I have much to make up for, Mahjarrat. So much that I fear I never will succeed. In SIlvarea, you must not waver. Not once. For if you do, you are lost."

During this speech, she had turned her head back towards the mountains, and finished with the same flat tone of voice that she had begun with. Wahisietel turned it over in his head for a few minutes. For the first time, he wondered what he would be without Zaros in this war-torn world. He looked at Alifanta, with her deeply tired eyes, and thought he had an idea.

"Do you think so?" he asked the Icyene.

"Hm?"

"Do you think you're a good person?"

Alifanta's smile was sad, but it was a smile. "No," she said. "But. I will say it feels good to defend something, for once."

They walked in silence the rest of the way, which turned out not as awkward as Wahisietel had thought, all things considered.

…

They stopped just short of the mountains. Senntisten's wall had passed out of sight, and the gloomy pass lay before them. It looked peaceful now, but Wahisietel felt his stomach turning into knots at the secret it hid. Beyond the mountains were the swamps, which was Zamorak's turf. Wahisietel hoped he didn't have to get too close.

"This is where I turn back," Alifanta announced. "I can't risk being detected by any of my former flock." Quickly, she told him where to go from here to meet the camp, all of which matched up with the route Sliske had taken him down. "Approach openly," she advised. "There's nothing that will make a guard more nervous than trying to disguise yourself. Remember; you're there to join their army."

Wahisietel nodded numbly. He knew all of this, of course, but hearing it spelled out was making his head spin. This is really happening.

Alifanta gave him a smile that was surprisingly sympathetic. "Good luck," she said, this time extending her hand. Wahisietel took it, weakly at first, and then stronger. "Thank you," he said.

Without another word, she turned and started back across the great plain. Despite his temptation to procrastinate by watching her go, he turned back to the pass and started towards it, tracing the path that, despite only going down it once, he knew by heart.

Along the way, which was mercifully less foggy than it had been when he and Sliske had gone down it, he thought. Mostly, he thought about everything that could possibly go wrong, so he stopped thinking about anything other than what he would say to the guard when he got there.

He tried to remember what Sliske had taught him, especially about humans. Of course, any lesson with Sliske came with the added task to trying to figure out what the lesson even meant, and in his current state Wahisietel felt theories and fear swirl around his head until he gave up on that, too.

Finally, he came upon the wall.

In the full light of day, it seemed less imposing. In fact, it almost seemed… normal. He knew that behind it the full might of Saradomin's and Zamorak's combined forces waited, but for now, it was just another military fortification, just like a million others.

This didn't really help.

He saw the guard before the guard saw him, but not by much. The man stood straight at attention and stared the Mahjarrat down as he approached the wall, a Saradominist symbol blazed on his chest. His weapon remained undrawn, but there was no doubt in Wahisietel's mind that that could change in a heartbeat. He was surprised by the professionalism, although, he reflected, he probably shouldn't have been.

"State your purpose," the guard said as he drew nearer.

"I've come to join the cause of Saradomin," Wahisietel said loudly, immediately affecting a slight breathlessness to his voice, as well as a Menaphite accent he'd carefully tinkered with to give the impression that it had been warped somewhat by extended time spent in Forinthry. "I am a merchant, from the land of Menaphos. I-"

The guard held up a hand in indication to stop. Wahisietel was surprised, but did so.

"I don't care," the guard said. "If you're here to join, there's a separate entrance."

"Oh," Wahisietel said, with genuine confusion coloring his carefully constructed voice.

The human looked him over suspiciously. Wahisietel's fears came rushing back, although a rational part of his mind reminded him in a voice remarkably like Sliske's that, if he had done everything right, the worst that would happen is he would be turned away. And even if he somehow finds out you're a Mahjarrat, "Sliske" continued, he wouldn't even be able to flap his arms to stop you from leaving.

What if he's not just a human? Wahisietel wondered back.

Psychological-Sliske had nothing to say to this, and the guard finally spoke. "Oh, well," he said. "I can let you in here. But once you're inside, you have to talk to the recruiter."

"Right," Wahisietel said, with relief. "Thank you."

The man shrugged and disappeared behind the lip of the wall, reappearing in moments with a long rope that he threw over the wall. Something must have showed in his face, because the guard said, "no offense, but I'm not going to just open up for anyone who shows up unannounced." He smiled, but this was a genuine one.

Wahisietel climbed the rope without complaint. He was glad, suddenly, that he had spent so much time strengthening his human form climbing the wall, because he sensed that if this didn't work, he wouldn't get in.

The guard grabbed his wrist and helped haul him up the rest of the way once he was in range. Wahisietel once again beheld the expanse of the camp, which, unlike the wall, did not seem any less intimidating now. "Thanks," he said.

"Don't mention it," the guard responded. "We get all sorts here. Saradomin's strength shelters all who seek it. It seemed only right to lend you my own."

Wahisietel scanned the camp. In the distance, he thought he could make out the recruiting office.

"There are steps leading off the wall near the gate," the guard said helpfully. Wahisietel could tell that he'd already relaxed somewhat since he'd first appeared, which prompted unhelpful feelings of guilt.

"Thank you," he said respectfully.

"What's your name?" the guard said.

"Ali."

"Ali what?"

Wahisietel hesitated. "Ali the Wise."

"Well, Ali the Wise," the guard said, extending a hand, which the Mahjarrat took. "Welcome to the army."

This is going to be so much fun, Sliske whispered in his head.

So, I have bad news. From here on out, chapters might come a little bit further apart than normal. I know what you're thinking, which is "But Mr. Asfadjnis, how can you update even slower than you've already been doing?" To which I say, "Talent."

Honestly, though, I'll be off to college in a week, and that might mean my schedule will become too hectic to focus on this story too much. But I promise that I will work on this story as much as I can. My main point is that I don't know when I'll have time to work on it… but I will. Work on it, that is.

So, we'll see. In the meantime, you guys keep being awesome.