Why are people being so loud?

I groan, rubbing my eyes. I swear to Naga, if It is one of those soldiers ordering me to move, I shall find Anna's quarters and burn them to the ground. I get up, scratching my hair.

Where did I put my hat again? I walk across the narrow cabin, approaching the crates. The crumpled hat is on the ground, a bottle at its side. I pick it up and ruffle it, before putting it on.

What did I do last night? What a headache, why did we drink so much last night?

Speaking of drunken nights, I turn around and see Gregor snorting out loud, the smell of alcohol radiating from him. Thanks for the awakening, beer-induced manic eater! No wonder this place smells like a tavern over the sea.

I walk over to the driver seat and leave the cart, I stretch my body and smell the air.

Ash?

I gaze up at a dark gray cloud rising to the sky, casting a shadow over me as it blocks the sun. I hear the sound of clamoring boots. On the far end, red-clothed soldiers march.

I run back into the cart, go past the driver seat, rush to Gregor's side and shake his shoulders as strongly as I can. His eyes and mouth open, the latter releasing an alcoholic breath.

"Wake up! Wake up! We don't have much time!"

The buffoon yawns, picking up the sword resting against his shoulder. "Enrico, why such hurry?"

"There are Plegian troops outside! We must get away immediately!"

His eyes widen as he gets up and looks at me seriously "Then what Enrico wants me to do?"

"Protect me for the time being! Watch over on the driver seat or stand outside the cart. It doesn't matter!"

He nods to me and moves over to the driver's seat. I, on the other hand, move to the small table in the back of the cart.

My hand passes over it. There are reports, but no sign of any purse. Where is the money? Did they just steal my money from under my nose? I open the cabinets, but there are only more reports.

I walk over the crates, crouching and pushing them aside. Nothing! It must be somewhere in here!

The further through my supplies I check, the smaller that somewhere becomes. Where is the Naga-damned purse!?

"Gregor! Did you see a purse?"

"Gregor didn't see any purse, only the money spent yesterday at the tavern."

Damned shall be Anna! Damned shall be Grima! Where is the purse!?

I place my hands on the ground, until my hand touches a piece of cloth. I lift it up and it's quite heavy. This is where you were hiding!

I open the sack, letting the coins hit the palm of my hand. However, I frown, only a few coins have dropped.

"Did you find purse?"

I turn around and stare at the redhead mercenary, before throwing the empty sack on the ground. "Yes. But, of course, it's for nothing. There is barely anything left!" Damn this Naga-forsaken land! How am I supposed to tell there was no profit?

My complaints are interrupted when I stop hearing the soldiers' march.

"Gregor, could you go outside?"

He looks at me with a confused look. "I'm supposed to protect Enrico, right?"

"Your protection is useless if we stay here. I just need an opening, if you see any then tell me! We need to run from this hell!"

He moves out of my vision.

I look back at my merchandise. Cardamom…. nutmeg… Wonderful, now I have a bunch of spice and nobody to buy it anymore! I grumble, walking to my table and picking up a piece of paper.

I look over the reports. Last week, there were about 50 bronze coins. Yesterday, one coin. Today, zero. How the heck will I explain this failure to my father!? I place the papers down as I walk to the seat and sit down, staring to the side.

I manage to see Gregor rushing back and, once he's by the seat as well, giving me a thumbs up. "Free of soldiers, you go right away!"

I sigh in relief. Finally an escape!

I spur the horse to turn around and get moving. The path ahead is devoid of living soldiers, but there are plenty of corpses. I grit my teeth and make the horse go faster.

Wheels and hooves pass over the corpses, bumping the whole carriage and I groan in pain as the wooden's seat hits against my back and butt. Looking around reveals only empty streets, save for more bodies. However, when the gates become visible, our escape from this hellish, damned spice-hating city appears clear.

"Gregor, do you see anyone on our tail?"

"Yes, go faster!" he screams.

I hasten our escape as arrows fly over us both before and when we reach the gates. However, something at the back of the caravan makes a cracking noise, and it's soon thrown off-balance.

Damn, damn, damn!

We run through the gates, not daring to look back. The valley is filled with Plegian bastards! There is no salvation for this place. We keep up the pace and manage to cross over the small hill.

"They aren't following us!" Gregor exclaims.

One of my hands lets go of the reins and I breathe a sigh of relief. We are still alive! Somewhat.

Not long after, when we're far enough to be safe, we make a stop to rest and assess the damage. It turns out the cracking noise was a wheel breaking, and the carriage tilts on that side as soon as we stop.

Screw the money, how am I going to explain this?!

The horses are left to roam around freely, and I can only drop on the ground in defeat. I can only hope all the looting will keep the Plegians away from here.

Gregor approaches me. "What is Enrico's plan now?"

I rest my head in my hands. "Well, I think I will go back to Genezia."

He sits, places his sword down and makes a smug smile. "So Enrico belongs to the city of merchants."

"It isn't just a city, it's an entire republic."

"Bah, it is all the same!"

"Really, Gregor!"

"C'mon, this is only to lighten up mood. We aren't going to have those moments for the time being."

I glare at him but laugh all the same. He isn't wrong, but the prospect of going back to Plegia makes me want to get drunk and forget all this.

If only I were in Genezia…

"Why have you brought me?"

Gaius looks away from me and kicks the dirt on the ground before answering with a firm stare. "If I hadn't, you would have died just like Chrom, and that would have been a shame for me."

I can only pinch the bridge of my nose and reply,"And this isn't? Even if we were outnumbered and outflanked, there could have been a way to help our comrades rather than fleeing."

Gaius scoffs. "Look around, The city is lost. The castle is surrounded. Staying on a sinking ship is dumb." He points at me. "And that means saving your ass from a captain's fate. You're just another sailor"

I frown at him. "That doesn't mean we couldn't have saved Emmeryn. With her safe, we could have fled to Ferox and made a plea for the Khans to aid us."

The thief shakes his head and clicks his tongue. "Emmeryn would have never left her people, so there wasn't any choice. We could only run away or become Plegia's prisoners."

No words come out of my mouth, the bitter taste of defeat still stuck within. This is Roseanne all over again. May Naga bless the poor people of this city, otherwise there shall be no soul spared.

I sigh, looking down as I address Gaius again. "You may be right, the best choice for survival is to just escape the conquered realm. Nevertheless, I have seen this happen before, Gaius. I saw the conqueror come and plunder my capital, while I cowardly escaped to another realm in the vain hope of getting a proper backing to reclaim what is rightful in Valm. I can not say what I did back then was the right choice."

I lift my head to look at Gaius, who just crosses his arms.

"However, I couldn't let my old mistake happen yet again. Yet, here we are. Couldn't we ,at least, try to help them? "

Gaius glares, approaching me. "You mean we weren't able to die with them, right? Look, this is a bitter ass day and there isn't a whole lot we could have do. The plegians arrived as soon as we lost Chrom. Besides, you have seen their army. The moment they were at our walls, we had lost. It is as simple as taking candy from a baby."

I shake my head, clenching my hand . Was there anything we could have done? Was there anything to salvage from the battle? Were my tactics faulty or was there a tactical genius on the other side?

How did the Vessel infiltrate the secret passage? Why were Gaius and I spared? I doubt the boy influenced her that much, especially when his words amounted to 'run for your lives'. Also, what was that nod she gave Gaius?

"Either way, we better get moving," Gaius insists as he moves away from me. "I doubt the Plegians are going to show mercy if they catch up to us."

I limp forward, using the wall as support. "Sure, Gaius. However, there is a great doubt plaguing my mind at the moment."

"What is it?"

"Why did the Vessel allow you to live?"

Gaius' mouth hangs open. "I don't know. Perhaps, she was feeling happier today. Who knows and who cares right now?"

I frown at him. "I do. There isn't much of a logical justification to spare you over others. Don't take this as an offense, but I don't think she would spare you just because you are of humble origins."

Gaius stops walking and turns to me, sighing. "As I said, I don't know and it's not something you should care about right now. Let's just focus on getting outta here."

I sigh and nod to him. "I must agree with that."

Gaius smirks before approaching me and wrapping my arm around his shoulders.

We walk through the remains of Ylisstol's buildings, the stench of smoke and fire coming from every corner and crevice of the main avenue. It is all like the last time, and just like then, I wasn't able to prevent this tragedy.

What are Chrom, Lissa and all the other Shepherds thinking all the way from the afterlife after witnessing the destruction of their city? Of me and Gaius fleeing from it?

The dream is dead. I will not be able to get the support to reclaim my home

Gaius stops moving, watching the Plegian soldiers carrying corpses, women and the remains of the city. There is a hoard of them, there would be no way we could walk through the gates.

"Do you have any plans, Virion?"

"Why do you ask? You know the way out better than I do?"

Gaius sighs. "That wasn't what I meant. What are you going to do when this is done? Are you going to plead to Feroxi for aid?"

I grasp my chest and look down while we make our way to the gates."I would do it if things were more in our favor. But I doubt the reigning Khan would cross the sea to my homeland and help retake my duchy from Walhart. I doubt the Plegians would aid a former enemy of theirs. And with no kingdom willing to assist, my servant cannot cross the sea either."

"I'm sorry, Cherche. We will not be able to free our homeland. May Naga keep you safe from Walhart."

"Do you have any plans yourself, Gaius?"

The thief continues his walk without answering my question. His eyes gazing at what is in front of him as if in deep thought. As we cross the other side, there stands another door.

He opens it, revealing the outside of the castle, and fresh air washes over us. Gaius suddenly stops walking and puts me against the wall, removes my arm from his shoulders and walks away.

"I already have some plans, and they must be done alone. I hope you don't hate me for what I'm about to do."

My eyes widen when he heads for the closest Plegian soldiers. "Gaius, you betrayed us?" I state incredulously, which he doesn't acknowledge.

"Don't ignore me! Why would you betray us? What would you gain from it?"

Gaius turns back to me, his face trying to remain impassive. "Gangrel is an old friend of mine. What I did was a request from him, and as the old saying goes, you never refuse the request of a friend. Actually, he wished that I'd kill Emmeryn personally, but I didn't have the heart for it. Consider this a gift, I may not have been able to spare the others, but at least you are still alive."

"If I'd known this was the case, I would have rather let my throat be slit. How dare you betray us like this?! I may have run from my fate back in Roseanne, but I didn't sell out my people! Get out of my sight this instant and never show yourself again!"

Gaius sighs and walks away.

What am I supposed to do now?

What a great day to be alive! The smell of the burning Halidom… it smells like victory. Those bastards got what they deserved and their pathetic capital is burning. The pathetic bitch that was their so-called ruler must be suffering right now! Ah, if only I could see that!

Finally, after all this time, I've won. They have paid, there shall be no more retarded ylisseans wandering about like they own the land. I have proven that right is mine alone. Once they thought that stupid Exalt owned Plegia, but who's laughing now?! Are you going to cry over your ruined kingdom, asshole?! I have won!

I will enjoy the royal rest I deserve for the moment, but my work has only begun. We still need to raze everything to the ground, and the still living Ylisseans need to pay as well. Then there will be more motherfuckers I need to deal with, like those messianic bastards.

All of that can wait, though. I will rest now. Though there is still one matter to attend to.

"Call Gaius."

The guards get out of my sight as I gaze at the blissful extermination of the Halidom. Since I'm the owner of this prize, there are some things which I have to do before getting out of this stupid land. How about punishing the few ones that survive with some old fashioned hand cutting and leg slashing? Or perhaps, just move all these motherfuckers into the capital and turn them into slaves and poison the water in here for the extra?

Gaius walks in and approaches with an impassive face. There is still someone who needs their fucking reward.

"Gangrel, I have come here to pick some rewards..." The orange-head voice trails off as he looks down at the ground as if he's mourning.

I see, he doesn't realize the service he did his people. Don't worry, once you get what you want, you will snap out of it.

"Sure, my friend. I will give you what you want, but first, give me those juicy details. Tell me how much you have messed them up, how you have made them utterly despair, how you have killed that bitch who calls herself a queen!?"

Oh, I can already imagine it. One eyeball on the ground, one gashed limb or one deep cut in the middle of her chest.

I approach the thief and give him the biggest smirk that a powerful king like me can muster. "She deserved the suffering, don't you agree?"

Gaius' voice comes out weakly. "Gangrel, I may have tried to kill her, but I wasn't the one who did it."

What?

I glare at the gaius and shove him, making the Ylissean traitor fall to the ground.

"You are telling me that you didn't do your job and yet demand compensation for it?!" I scream. "Why are you so useless!? Tell me what the hell were you doing while I was here working my ass off to make those bastards pay for what they have done to me, you little bastard!"

There is a moment of silence before I hear his annoying voice again. "Well, I have worked for the-"

"What!? You have stayed and helped those bastards. You dared go and become their little friend. Just like they say, a bastard son is a bastard after all. You aren't going to get any pay, you rascal!"

Ah, he is so stupid to believe that I wouldn't have done something for him. I shall make him pay! Any person who is against me needs to pay with their blood.

"But Grangie, I only did what you asked me to-"

"Yet, you couldn't comprehend that I wanted that fucking bitch to suffer!"

He frowns and runs away.

"Hey guards! Stop him!"

They don't move at all.

"Fuck you all!"

I run after the son of a bitch. "Come here. Don't think you can escape me!" He is going to pay, pay a lot for what he has done.

The distance between us increases until I can't even see him.

"I will find you, burn those you care about and you are going to watch as I destroy everything in front of you. That is what you deserve!"

How dare him not follow my command! You know what, I should have just killed him when I had the chance.

Why am I surrounded by incompetent people!? First, those fucking guards I will fucking murder when I return to the tent. Then this fucking Ylissean being another thorn in my side, and that is not to mention the so-called messianic! Those fucking annoying naive supporters! Grima this, Grima that! if you love that bitch so much, just fuck her for fuck's sake!

Speaking of assholes, the whore of Plegia dares to interrupt me at the most important moment of my life. The thief was annoying, but at least he got away before becoming a nuisance.

"What are you doing here, bitch!? Can't you see I'm punishing a motherfucker!?"

She furrows her brow and replies, as calmly as these bastards get, "Don't you dare call me 'bitch' again."

Daring to challenge me? These messianic bastards are getting too cocky.

"What!? Do you know that you are only a servant? I call you whatever I want, because I'm your king and you are going to listen to my commands. Or else you will pay with your blood!"

She laughs at me. "Your petulant beggar. I didn't come here to listen to your babbling and annoying orders. I'm here to tell you that we are done. It's over, we don't care about your little reign anymore. So shut up and listen for the first time in your life. We know that you have planned to destroy us. Maybe we wouldn't know if you weren't so adamant about it. I have to thank you for that, it means I won't have to keep listening to your voice."

She turns around, walks away from me, and I grit my teeth. How dare she challenge me? How dare that bitch, that whore deny my rule!? The messianics are going to pay today, not tomorrow. These arrogant bastards will have their guts hanged from the walls, just to show everyone how rotten they are. They are going to pay!

I'll start right now with making her pay for her insolence. I ready my dagger, aim the blade at her spine and rush her.

She surprises me by managing to turn in time and grab my wrist.

With a twist and a cracking sound, my dagger drops and I scream.

My fucking wrist! This bitch, she fucking broke it, how dare she!?

"You pig," she says, glaring at me with disgust. "Do you think it would be so easy to kill me? You truly were an idiot from the start. You believed that you would just get away free, but you were so very wrong. Believing that we were just your fiddle. What arrogance."

She twists my arm further, and I roar at her.

"Yapping like a dog? So pathetic. Killing you is a waste of time."

The whore lets go of my arm. What a rookie mistake, amateur! I lunge at her. She will die! She will die! She will fucking die!

Her fist meets my face and I fall to the ground! What is happening, how can she stop me!? I place my hand on my nose and blood stains the palm. This fucking animal! I get up from the ground.

Where is she? Where is she!?

Disappeared, huh?

She will pay, no, everyone will pay. The messianic, the orthodox and Plegia itself will pay for turning against me. They will pay with their blood. I will get some troops, and they will see my wrath. After all, Ylisse is not the only one who needs to pay for turning against me.

Plegia, Ferox and whatever anyone wants to call themselves nowadays, they will get what they deserve. Everyone needs to pay for what they have done to me.

I walk as I watch my achievement, the burning of Ylisse. Nobody, not even those messianics can take that away from me. No other so-called king was ever capable of burning this capital. But I did, I have made these people pay for what happened to me!

I will not be known only for this, but this will be my crowning jewel, and nobody will rob it from me. The beautiful smell of corpses burning, the buildings destroyed by the might of my army. Yisse is dead.

I see a row of people marching, guided by fucking Validar! They will be exterminated, no doubt about that. They will, but they aren't under my name. These cowards can't do anything in my name, always in the name of that stupid Grima! That stupid bitch who believes she is the incarnation of that damned god!

I need to see about those other payments and show how righteous my destruction and massacre are. Blood will seep into Plegia, just like blood stinks in this once cursed and now blessed place. They are going to pay. They are all going to pay!

I enter the city, but nobody acknowledges my presence. What blind idiots, they can't see what is in front of them. At least, there is something to be happy about . Glory, there is always glory in destroyed cities.

Now I need my army back, and I see soldiers plundering these streets.

"Listen to me, assholes. I need your help killing bastards. So do what I say as I'm your righteous king and kill all of them. Desecrate their bodies in my name, the most glorious thing there is."

None listen. They all go about their business, heedless of my glorious plans. What a problem, they don't deserve anything in their lives. Mustafa told me that he made an obedient army. Obedient my ass.

"Why are you not listening to me, your righteous king?! Stop doing what you are doing and help me instead. Stop picking up my stuff, you are robbing it!"

None listen to me. As if in mockery, they leave my sight outright. How dare they? I will make them pay as well.

I leave the good-for-nothing bastards. I will get an army and these assholes will see what they have done against me. They are going to pay for that insolence.

Ugh, fucking assholes. No wonder Plegia must be destroyed as well. They can't even help their own king. I'm going to kill them all, I'm going to kill them all. Fucking insolents assholes. Can't see perfection in their eyes!

I stop in my tracks when two soldiers approach me. "Oh, finally you idiots are coming to me! Listen, recall the army, I have a bunch of cultists to kill."

They exchange a look between each other and then draw their swords.

"What the fuck are you doing?! Can't you see that I'm the king?! You can never fight-"

Pain invades my body. I fall to the ground.

No! After all I have done, they can't see my legitimacy! These fucking asshole, I was so close to get what I want! I want to get that! They would see what true power is all about.

My vision is darkened.

No! No! NO!

Corpses lie on the ground and blood seeps into the soil as another one of the sacrifices joins them. The Vessel observes the ritual with utter indifference, as if it were all a minor ritual.

Sometimes she gazes at a purple crystal that flickers out of and into existence within the palm of her hand.

"We have come so far and at last Grima's dream shall be realized. There shall be no more Exalt to stand in our way and the end has begun. The cycle shall be broken forevermore."

Validar snaps his fingers as Aversa and the highest authorities of the messianic, enrobed from top to bottom, come with the final and most powerful of sacrifices.

"Oh Grima, your most humble and faithful servant offers you this final gift before you can break this cycle."

Grima turns to see Validar bowing before her as he offers the blue sacrificial dagger. The sacred dragon smiles as she takes a glance at the final sacrifice.

The Exalt and the twin-tailed blonde girl. The former glares at Grima while the latter shivers. They don't utter any final words, but the smaller one tries to get closer to the former leader. The guards, however, hold her into place and she starts crying. The older woman tells her something, but she just keeps on crying.

Grima rolls her eyes before approaching the Exalt and raising her blade to the woman's throat. The Exalt gives one final defiant gaze and closes her eyes. In one slash, her body drops to the ground and the horrendous weeping gets louder. Grima frowns and jams her dagger into the girl's face. The cry is soon replaced by gurgles until there is no more sound.

The accursed family of Falchion's wielders has finally been brought to justice. Yet, the knot in my stomach grows no less tight. It is a crude way for my body to say I should stay alert after my assistant disappeared earlier today. Hopefully Grima only took the idiot along for this one instance and he didn't kill himself, right?

During my musings, the Vessel cleans the blade before giving it back to Validar and telling him something that makes him nod in approval. I frown at the sight. Why does Grima keep indulging the whims of a man so treacherous? He may try to pose as a man of lofty and humble ideals, but he is so awful at it, that a snake feels less dangerous.

How can my father and mother believe in the words of such a person? Unfortunately an answer to such an inquiry would be harder to get than a path to the purest source of the dark art

"The end has come," Grima intercedes. "There shall be no more cycle will be broken. Children of Plegia, you shall receive what you deserve just as the Ylisseans have. Plegia shall recover from the ashes of its enemy. The very ash that will sow the earth in this new era. Away with the likes of Naga and her followers, whose very spirits shall be denied existence."

"This human body isn't enough for what is to come. As such, I shall rise from the old skeleton. We must return to Madinat Al Grima and end this world."

The one brought by the star,"

By the whims of the lanced sky

By the one which abandoned us

The cries of unborn children follow us

"The sand laid into the shadow

"By we which pray

The bones laying down to mother night

The hunger of the barren land,

"The grail we consume,"

"The dust we lay."

"The light in which we devour ourselves."

"The piety of the forgotten one,"

"From the hollow earth to,"

"The unclaimed sky."

"We lay bare to our crying,"

"To the rebirth,"

"To death," no, no, no.

"To the broken sun,"

"To the created moon,"

"AGrima,".

As the prayer comes to an end, Grima remains in silence as she watches over all of us. For some odd reason, the sacred dragon's gaze lands on me for what feels like a lifetime, as if I'm some indecipherable hex made cast over five hundred years ago.

"You shall have one hour until the next part of the procession. Use this time to rest, for there will be no other chance until the cycle is broken." Grima turns her back and walks away, Validar at her side. Her entourage of guards pushes away anyone trying to approach her.

I sigh as I look at the bodies. There was never a passage in the books that claimed the change of the cycle wouldn't be violent. This ritual, however, was more of a hedonistic blood fest rather than the more austere sacrifice I imagined.

"A most peculiar ritual, don't you agree, Tharja?"

I ignore Aversa's voice voice.

"Oh my. I wasn't expecting the rumors to be true."

I mutter under my breath and turn to her. "What kind of annoying rumors are you referring to, Aversa?"

She puts a hand in front of her mouth, trying to muffle her giggle. "Whichever you think might be the most fitting."

I glare at her, but her snark doesn't bulge. "I didn't think someone born from Ibrahim could be so gruff . Alas, you have proved such a thing is possible, Tharja."

"I'm not my father," I rebuke. "As boastful and extroverted his behavior might be, that has no bearing on me. I upheld the virtues of dark mages rather than just pursue my clan's glory.

The right-hand lady of the bastard scoffs at me. "Yet you have lost one of your sacrificial daggers. At least your father doesn't pretend to be something he isn't. The same cannot be said about you. Not when you were supposed to make sure the heretic of a foreigner was sacrificed."

I decide to keep my mouth shut.

"I'm glad you understand in what position you find yourself in," Aversa smugly says. "However, do not worry. The sacrifices were enough to make this setback insignificant in the grand scheme of things." I sigh in relief. "I can't help but feel a bit sorry for your father. It's a shame one of his family is so uncooperative when it comes to Grima's cause."

"Don't you dare imply I don't believe in Grima," I retort. " Whatever your concerns about my loyalty, I will not stand for this slander. I stand with the messianic and their project."

"If that is the case then follow Grima's final march until the very end. There are no more words for someone of your steem." She walks off after those words.

I turn away from her. How dare she question my loyalty when they keep poisoning father's mind? I wasn't the one who tried to involve outsiders into sacrifices.

I don't have the time to entertain these thoughts further, I have more research to do. Hopefully Gabriel finds his way back and stops with trying to stop Grima, so that he can go back to just helping me text hexes.

However, will the march allow me to conduct my experiments?

A group of dark mages approaches me, one of them offering me a hand. "Tharja, it seems you are finally alone. Don't you think it would be best if I helped with your research?"

I glare at her. "As my research stands, there is no need for useless help from others. So if you may, leave my sight."

The girl giggles, making me scowl at her. "I was expecting no less from you, Tharja. Though exploring more advanced topics would be exciting, don't you agree?"

I cut off any more words she could have uttered with a glare. "I don't need anyone to explore what you call 'advanced topics'. Such a generic saying does befit the likes of you, though. Now, out of my sight. Your help is a waste of time."

I walk straight past the dark woman. Of course as soon as my assistant disappears everyone comes to me as if I'm the source of all knowledge.

No matter. Too much has already been wasted on such frivolities, and I must still organize for the procession.

A mass of dark mages follows me, as if I were the Vessel herself. I wonder if Nosferatu would be enough to scatter them. Alas, such a test would just draw another kind of attention.

I take a different path and head for the large lake next to the remains of what used to be Ylisse's capital. Along the way, I take glances back at the crowd following me, which little by little disperses.

I wish there were a hex that could prevent people from trying to enter my good graces. They didn't even wait after Grima left, they went straight for me.

Such hopeless people. Couldn't they bother someone else? For Grima's sake, can they not act like such sycophants? Do they think of me as a gateway into my family's domain?

What else to say? Perhaps, fetching my assistant will prevent more of this annoyance.

Speaking of him, where did you disappear to? Why for the love of Grima, did you walk away? How can you be such an annoyance as to make Grima speak with me? Can't you bask in her glory?

Why, Gabriel, did you decide to run away? Couldn't you stop poking your nose where it didn't belong? Why do you have to try to waste your life like this? Why couldn't you be quiet and let events transpir?

Why do you keep saying you are just a system? Why can't you shut up and listen to others? Do we need to spell it out to you that you don't belong with the dead?

Gabriel, I will find you and you are going to learn a thorough lesson.

At the corners of my sight, I notice a figure standing in front of a lake. They stare at it so intensely, they must be in some state of hypnosis. They keep at it even when their hands go to pull the latches of their collar.

My breath hitches when and my legs break into a sprint when I recognize the figure is Gabriel. He spares me just a glance before he looks at the lake again.

"Gabriel, what are you doing? Don't you dare try jumping in."

He turns to me again, his face unreadable. "I wasn't thinking about that, you know." He turns his body fully to me and I sigh in relief. "My mind has solely been thinking about all the events that have happened. And all the what ifs of the many decisions I could have made to prevent them."

"I'm sorry but dwelling too much on that isn't going to help you at all." I extend my hand to him. "Please, let's go back to camp. I promise I will not let anyone annoy you."

He raises a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose and he lets out a sigh. "I'm sorry, Tharja. I'm not going back, no matter what you say."

I glare at him, but when he flinches, I scold myself and soften my look. "Gabriel, I know you failed to dissuade Grima. I shall not judge you on that. We don't know what goes through the head of a superior being. No matter how hard one may try or how friendly they may become, you can never know what their thoughts are."

"Well, to be fair, Tharja, I don't think I know the thoughts of anyone beyond me. Even with you and Henry, I can only ever discern a fraction of you at best. But I know some things I can never be convinced of doing. This is one."

I let out a sigh. "What thoughts have led you to this?"

He lets out a whiff and turns his back to me. "Failure after failure. After all that has happened, every human and dragon in this reality is going to die a painful death. All because I couldn't dissuade Reflet from her plans.. Add the motherfuckers at her side, and I can't go back. There is no way back for me, Tharja."

Anger floods me. "Gabriel, stop thinking she is going to destroy the world. Her methods are extreme and painful, I will not deny that. But there isn't any evidence she will not reconstruct the world when she is finished. The Vessel shall do what she claims. Nothing more, nothing less."

I hear the dark-haired man trying to sniff out his cry, gritting his teeth in the process.

"You are wrong. The more I know about her, the more I wish you weren't. From the bottom of my heart, I wish I never went through this madness."

He turns back to me, throwing away his collar as he does so. I gulp at the action, and his eyes staring at me with obsession. He places his bag in front of himself and opens it, grabbing a gray coat from within. The apostate also grabs the red dagger from one of the pockets. Gabriel, please stop whatever you are doing!

"The truth is, I never was from this world. I come from another dimension. One where I've seen where Grima's plans lead to. I will never belong in this place, but I will kill Reflet, even if it means that I have to go against the entire world.

My breath becomes ragged, and an owl flies into the sky as he utters his next sentence.

"Tharja, I don't want you to be killed after all my stupid decisions. After all this, are you with me or Grima?"

That is the last interlude of this fic.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter in spite of the many grammar mistakes committed in the writing. I'm quite a long way until I can truly write English without needing the help of Cavik, my beta reader.

Speaking of him, special thanks to him for helping me on editing this fic, without him Detachment wouldn't be possible on the way it is right now. Also, thanks for reading this fic and writing reviews on the fic. As such, reviews are always appreciated.

With all that matters resolved, it feels surreal to be so close to the end of this fic. There are only 8 chapters left to publish and yet, there is a lot of work to be done on there. Suffice to say, this will be the last chapter released this year.

Hopefully, I will be done with the fic next year. It ought to have been done last year, but for motives I wasn't able to do that. Let's see if I will be less lazy and be able to deliver a chapter in a more timely manner.

I created a server, feel free to join: discord . gg / 8fr7N8TCbW

Ascandas: Glad you enjoyed this fic return. Yeah, Gabriel's complicated mind has screwed up a lot of things. I assure you with this chapter, he is going to deal in a more direct manner this time around. Although, be prepared to get a lot of Gabriel being Gabriel moments. And yes, Gabriel is the person who wouldn't enjoy Genocide no matter what.

NoteBlade: Glad you enjoyed the chapter and the story overall. That is a valid interpretation, I wrote her with a deliberate ambiguity on what she actually was in mind, your theory is pretty valid and I don't have an answer for what she is. I'm glad you enjoyed their relationship, it was pretty fun to create their snark filled conversations. She is going to be missed.

Crowbars357: Glad to hear that.

Guest: Glad you consider the fic good and I think with this chapter you know what is going to happen next. To be honest, Gabriel killing himself in the end was one of the possible endings, but I decided to not go with it, since living is way harder than dying

Neverwaz: It's a compliment to tell that my story is unique. Glad you are enjoying this story with its eccentricities in mind. A lot of poetry, portuguese and the characters interacted come from the books I have read over the years and I'm overjoyed that it seems that it's working.

thus dud: Understandable on why you wouldn't enjoy this fic at first. Back in the beginning, I was extremely inexperienced at writing prose and English due to the fact that Detachment was my first attempt at doing both of them and it hurted the first arc. Glad that somehow it becomes one of your favorite takes on Awakening overall and you enjoy its weird qualities. Hopefully, you will enjoy the final arc.