Chapter 6

City of Shonio

Daylight was creeping over the horizon to the East as Bellona Sabina sat at her family's table, preparing for the day with a breakfast of fruits, eggs, ham, and biscuits. She'd been dealing with the idiocy of Marquis Castel and Mudra for the past couple of months, and to be fair, Prince Zorzal. The raven-haired lady knight of the Black Rose Chapter of the Rose Order had been active behind the scenes from the moment Zorzal and his party had arrived. She'd sent summons to local lords and hosted them here in Shonio at the palace, and one-by-one she was swaying them into supporting Zorzal's cause although the justification was less about taking sides with Prince Zorzal and more about taking sides with the Sabina family. There were many ways in which the nobles of the East had been brought over to their side, and Bellona used them all. Promises of preferential treatment in terms of trade and tax breaks in the future worked on some, promises to hand over lands of disloyal Senators and nobles for others, a few were swayed by the promise of loot and plunder and glory, while many simply were reminded of their oaths to answer the call to arms from the Sabinas and duty compelled them to honor their families' age-old traditions of loyalty and honor.

All Bellona had to do was offer Zorzal petty distractions to keep him occupied and out of her hair, and allow her to play her own games with his loins. It was a game she knew well. Men thought with their dicks when it came to their pursuit of women. And Bellona knew she struck Zorzal's fancy, so she played to that want, she wanted him desperate for her so she could sway and do with him as she needed. Because in the end, she wanted the crown of Empress, she wanted her children to inherit the throne. She wanted to prove to Piña that she was worthy of royalty. Her father had chosen to support Zorzal out of loyalty to tradition and honor. Her brother had donned his armor and taken up his sword because it was his duty. But Bellona was different, her reasons were personal, and had everything to do with her relationship with Princess Piña Co Lada, and the break-up of the Black Roses from the other Knights of Rose. To many in the Imperial heartland, the East was a behind-the-times and rustic sort of place. They would mistake the martial culture of the East with uncouth warmongering, they saw their adherence to duty as unimaginative and unsophisticated, and they saw their frontier pragmatism as rude and uncivilized. Bellona had experienced this insulting view first-hand, as had the other girls of the Black Roses.

She had ventured to the West, to the capital along with a number of the other daughters of nobility and aristocracy from the Eastern provinces during the Empire's thousand year anniversary. Upon arriving Bellona had seen that Princess Piña had been wanting to found an order of women knights, and so Bellona and the other girls liked this and joined the venture, with Bellona and Piña becoming close, and becoming leaders. Both girls excelled side by side with one another as they trained and as they grew. They not only trained in sword, bow, and lance, but they gossiped about boys, explored the latest fashions, and as they grew older began to involve themselves in the politics of the Empire. This was when their relationship started to turn from friendship to rivalry. It was rumored that the Emperor was broaching the subject of an arranged marriage to the powerful Sabina family, whom he saw as a potential threat due to their power and wealth and separation from Empire's main base of power. A link by marriage was thought necessary, and Bellona and Zorzal were thus chosen to be wedded. This idea had irked Piña, who, even then, did not like Zorzal and his brutish and nasty tendencies. She begged her father to reconsider behind Bellona's back. And when pressed to answer the question of why, Piña declared a noble from the East wasn't worthy of royalty.

At first, Bellona was sure it wasn't what she actually felt, that Piña didn't mean what she said, and it was an excuse so that she didn't have to watch her friend marry her brute of a brother. Then the friendship turned sour, Piña declared that they hadn't been friends, that Bellona was her subordinate, commander of one of her Order's chapters and nothing more and that she wasn't suitable to be empress and never would be. In her heart, Bellona thought that Piña had not meant it the first time, and that she was trying to create a stink around the marriage arrangement to get it to be annulled so Bellona would not have to suffer within a poor marriage. So, she went to publicly get Piña to apologize as if to assure her that she would be alright. The young princess had not been amiable to apologize, instead she doubled down and before many of her fellow Order of the Rose knights she declared that Bellona and the Sabina family was unworthy of marriage to the imperial family.

This, this was an insult that she could not have turned her back on. If her friend had been so stubborn and dishonest as to publicly denounce her own honor and her own family's honor then she was not worth keeping as a friend. So, the Black Roses had been told they were going home, and when they rode from their training grounds, the Red, the Yellow, and the White Roses were there to stop them from leaving. Bellona remembered that night as though it were yesterday, the day she drew a sword against a princess.

She was snapped out of her bitter reverie by the sound of laughter as Prince Zorzal arrived with his close entourage, namely Marquis Mudra and Viscount Herm with some local young nobles. They'd just returned from a hunt, taking down a leopard of quite some size from the back of elephants. Zorzal was quite pleased, back, mostly to his normal self as he plopped down in the right-hand seat next to her father's chair across from her where she sat with her plate almost empty by now. Mudra sat down next to her, loudly scraping the chair back as he then sat down and kicked his feet up onto the great table, causing Bellona to turn her head and glare at him.

"Get your feet off of my father's table, you slob," she said sternly, looking at him with her goblet of wine against her lips.

"Who do you think you are talking to in such a disrespectful tone?" Mudra snarled back as Zorzal leaned back in his chair.

"Marquis, don't be an ungrateful guest," Zorzal chuckled, "Have some manners."

"Hmph," Mudra said as Bellona took a drink from her wine and then confidently placed it down.

"Thank you, Prince Zorzal. If my brother had been here to hear your disrespect you would have been far sorrier for not knowing when to bite your tongue," Bellona said with venom in her tone.

"Ha! I am a Marquis and advisor to the Crown Prince! You nor your brother would not dare lay a hand upon me!" Mudra snapped at her.

"You're right, it would not be his hand or my hand, it would be a sword. And frankly your highness if such a thing were to occur, your cause would benefit," Bellona giggled confidently.

"What did you say?!" Mudra then stood up, throwing the chair aside and the standing guard Black Rose lady knights went from standing at attention in their armor with their hands behind their backs to going to the ready, with their right hands going to their swords. While each was a pretty young lady whose faces and bodies were just as suited to silk dresses, the looks in their eyes was nothing short of cold and predatory.

Likewise, the nobles of the East who were present narrowed their eyes, some of them in anger at the lady's sheer attitude towards a Marquis. Others angered with disregard for manners from the Marquis and the challenge to their lord's daughter and disrespect for this hall and Lord Sabina's hospitality. Zorzal's face went from a smile and laughing, to stern and very concerned with Bellona's own words and the situation around him. So, he sought to deescalate things, as much as he thought it humorous and gave a low chuckle.

"I might caution you, Lady Bellona, while your teasing is appreciated. Threats to the high nobility of the Empire are not to be said lightly," Zorzal said carefully as he leaned forward and clasped his hands together.

"Why, Prince Zorzal, it is a threat," Bellona replied with a confident declaration.

"And a threat is meant to be backed up, Lady Bellona!" an enraged Mudra drew his sword from his scabbard.

This resulted in the Black Roses, all dozen of them, drawing their swords as one, and stepped forward, surrounding the man from a few feet away.

"Mudra!" Zorzal stood up.

Mudra looked around for a moment, not expecting the result of his action to be what it had turned out to be. But no one expected what occurred next. When the Marquis turned to look towards Bellona he saw her on her feet, and her sword was emerging from its scabbard in a lightning quick move as the razor-sharp blade then met the flesh of his neck and passed through with a song of steel against flesh. The man's head then fell forward onto the floor with a dull thump and his body crumpled. Both Herm and Zorzal was left to gasp aloud in fear at seeing Mudra beheaded before them so suddenly. Herm stood up and was left gawking as the body spurted blood upon the marble floor, and snarled at Bellona.

"Watch your manners at my father's table, Viscount," Bellona said with a sideways smirk, which made the shorter man gulp somewhat, and then sat back down slowly, still glaring at her, "Good boy."

She took her sword and slid it back across the silk toga on Mudra's body and cleaned it calmly and snapped her fingers to two guards who came over and picked up the body, and a third man picked up Mudra's head. Bellona then signaled a servant who walked over and held a message out to Zorzal from across the table. The other Black Roses sheathed their own swords and made to join their commander, each somewhat smug at having watched Bellona rid herself of the Marquis with absolute ease and brutal efficiency.

"A message came from my brother, his mission was a success in acquiring new weapons for your army from the Dwarves of Zophia. But, Marquis Calasta forgot his manners too."

"You can't mean…" Herm gawked.

"On the bright side, your highness, your new weapons are indeed quite lethal," she replied, "I shall see you for our afternoon strategy meeting."

When she and her knights departed, Herm went to Zorzal's ear and was urgent in his tone.

"Your highness! The Sabinas cannot be trusted!" he whispered immediately, "They have murdered two of your most loyal advisors in cold blood! This can't be allowed to go unanswered or else they will hand us to your sister and to the invaders."

"No…" Zorzal chuckled, "No, Herm, she has something which we need, a killer's instinct and a warrior's strength. She will suit us well but keep an eye on her. Someone who is willing to kill so easily cannot be fully trusted."

Town of Cragshell, Outskirts

To say things were tense was an understatement. The Japanese-American scouting force had rushed to the shore of the river and had begun to scan and call for Sergeant First Class Kuribayashi, hoping to find her along the banks, perhaps injured but otherwise alive and able to be rescued. But the longer things went, the less some of Recon 3 joked about the situation. Then, they heard the gunfire across the river. But, no one saw her, but they saw the flashes of gunfire in the darkness and then saw the rushing about of soldiers in the town. Then, the shooting stopped, and then the enemy soldiers settled, and began to mass at the bridge. Wagons, barrels, and other debris was piled up at the opposite side of the bridge right on top of the town, and they knew at that time that this mission to see to the expulsion or neutralization of Zorzal's forces had turned into a very different mission. Kuribayashi was captured, or dead. Either way, Itami was not about to leave her behind.

Unfortunately for them, the enemy was just as prepared here as they were at the other bridge. Now that they knew what to look for they could quite obviously see that the Imperial force had stashed three small barrels of gunpowder underneath one of the pillars of the bridge, right where it would do enough damage to bring the structure crumbling down. The potential of watching more of their personnel or vehicles going into that raging river was not at all palatable to Lieutenant Itami or Lieutenant Killian, nor was the possibility of coming under concentrated gunfire on such a narrow chokepoint. They already had one wounded and one missing, more casualties was not going to be acceptable to their chains of command at this point.

Now they were awaiting not just orders but also reinforcements from the six-man squad of the locally-deployed from the Special Forces Group. A C-1 tactical transport aircraft had been scrambled. This special forces team had been wheels-up now for an hour with them being patched into updates that Itami and Recon 3 were able to gather so they could better plan and execute their plan for extracting Kuribayashi from the current danger she was most definitely up to her neck in. A company of paratroopers from the JGSDF's 11th Airborne Division were also being placed on high alert, seeing as they were the only element able to deploy that far out with sufficient combat power. The Americans had vowed to be ready to deploy should they be called upon, however they were still establishing their logistics and they didn't have their helicopters present with enough support infrastructure to be fully operational at scale. But without doubt the thing that had caused the biggest ripples behind Kuribayashi being reported as missing and likely captured was the report of Zorzal's army now having made use of gunpowder weaponry. The major and obvious advantage of the JSDF was their technology and the lack of it on the enemy's side leading to their lopsided victories.

As Itami stood next to his vehicle, leaning on the hood with his elbows up he was scanning with his binoculars down at the town, he was searching for anything that might have been useful for them. But he found little that he didn't already know. The same was said for everyone else as light began to creep over the horizon to the East, rendering a dull orange glow behind the clouds, contrasting against the dark of the dense clouds above while a low blue tint was around the town and its dots of candlelight in the windows of the town. Perhaps with morning they would be able to see enough to figure out where Kuribayashi was being held. A rescue like this was not unknown to the JSDF, but it was the first time that Itami had been on the other side, such as when the Rose Order captured him. But that was less of a rescue than it was stumbling into a misunderstanding. This time things were different and very much higher stakes. It was going to take all of Itami's knowhow to sort out this situation.

The sounds of horses galloping up behind him let him know that whatever plan he had, it was time to get to it. He turned to see Lady Panache galloping over with her officers, both men and women. Lieutenant Killian noted their arrival as well and Itami nodded to him. They would begin their meeting now.

"Lieutenant Itami, our forces are on the march, we found a ford to the north across the Cragshell. My scouts have already crossed and are awaiting the rest of the army," Panache declared.

"Have you told your forces not to engage?" Itami inquired, "I don't want you to lose any men unnecessarily to their gunpowder weapons if we can help it."

"Our troops are aware, we should be able to cut off their escape to the east while your superiors send assistance," Panache responded, but averted her eyes, "Have…you seen any sign of the noble Sergeant Kuribayashi?"

"Nothing yet, I'm afraid, but perhaps you can aid us now that the sun's rising," Itami turned to the town and pointed before offering his binoculars, "Perhaps you can help identify the enemy force's commander or home region for us."

"Of course," she said in turn, and took the offered binoculars, and began to search the town. It took a few minutes until she spotted something, lowering the binoculars before she lifted them back up in alarm, "Lieutenant…I'm afraid I know who we face. I am sorry that I did not say anything before because it had not been confirmed. It is General Axios El Sabina, of Shonio, far the east. He was the general who actually led the Imperial Army in the subjugation of the Warrior Bunnies."

"Judging by her reaction she's seeing something that worries her," Lieutenant Killian stated, not liking the tone and body language of the White Rose.

"She says it is someone named Axios El Sabina who is in command of the enemy force, a capable general, I guess," he replied to him before turning the lady knight, "Lady Panache, is there anything you know about him that will give us an advantage?"

"All I know of him is that he is a dangerous commander to face, but in this context, he is known for his ability to learn and for personally leading scouting missions and personally observing his foes. I suspected he was involved in this campaign from the East by the fact it was being done so well, Zorzal's previous forces behaved like lumbering beasts. But Axios is known for being swift and precise, and he likewise is beloved by his armies for being conservative in his tactics and not wasting lives unnecessarily. And I am guessing that he is fighting for Zorzal because his sister, Bellona, was promised to him, with Zorzal as Crown Prince their family had been in line to have their daughter as empress and their children as the heirs to the throne," she further explained, "And worse still, the Sabina family has the resources to muster great armies to try to do so, and they have the Black Rose Chapter of the Order of the Rose. Bellona is their commander."

"Obviously both of them learned well from reports from previous battles because now they're trying to mimic us," Itami noted before turning to the American, "This guy's the brother of Prince Zorzal's fiancé, apparently, they still want to inherit a place on the throne and have the muscle to wage full-scale war. So, it seems like he's leading a scouting force to verify what he might face."

"Enemy with firearms and a smart commanding officer," Killian murmured to himself, "But it does beg the question, if he were so smart why did he stay here and allow himself to be boxed in against the coast?"

"Good question," Itami replied, turning back to Panache, "Why would he come here and allow us to trap him against the sea if is said to be a great general?"

"I…don't know, Lieutenant, perhaps he was lured by the prospect of seizing a noble hostage or wanted to steal ships to sail back to the south."

"Well, he did take a hostage alright, one of ours," Itami replied sourly, "Let's make sure he doesn't leave with her. Lieutenant Killian and his men volunteered to move out with your troops and screen your army against an attack by the Sabina forces, they may be armed with firearms, but they're still not as capable as our own. We are awaiting our own reinforcements from a special unit who will be able to assist us in rescuing Kuribayashi. My team will cover the bridge and keep them from crossing in case they try to make a move north to avoid battle with your forces."

"And who shall be our translator?" Panache inquired, a degree of concern at this declaration.

"This is Arpeggio El Lalena, Lelei's sister. She can translate for you in basic terms to their language," Itami responded and gestured to Arpeggio who stepped forward having understood that as Itami now handed her a spare radio he'd already programmed, "But just in case you need to contact me directly, take this. Tap this button and then speak into it, release the button when you are done speaking. This knob controls the volume. The rest you don't need to touch, if you hit anything and this screen changes, just give it Lieutenant Killian, he can reset it correctly," he gestured to Killian, "Lieutenant, are you still planning to get onto that wooded hill to the east?"

"Affirm, I'll get my snipers up there and with you up here, we should be in solid shape to place the town in a crossfire."

"He will be on that hill, if you should need him," Itami pointed out for Panache.

"Very well, I can have a number of my soldiers join him," Panache graciously took the radio, "We shall do our part in rescuing your missing comrade, Lieutenant. You need only call and we shall answer."

"Good luck to you then," Itami nodded, and turned to the Lieutenant, "Lieutenant, Lady Panache's forces are already on the march. They have located a ford across the river and have secured a crossing point already. As discussed, your troops will screen their blocking position. Arpeggio's going to go with you to help translate as necessary. My team will remain here on guard against a possible breakout attempt across the bridge in case the enemy is trying to bait us into abandoning our blocking position here."

"Roger that, ETA on your SOF element?"

"Two hours," Itami checked his watch, "Hopefully we don't have to move in before then."

"We'll get her back," Killian offered a hand, and Itami shook it, the two then nodding as a silent acknowledgement that their plan now needed to commence.

Panache and her officers waited as the American unit then began to muster and mount up into their large number of vehicles. The assortment of JLTV's began to head out, armed to the teeth and disappeared from sight. This left the Japanese team alone, now left with one wounded and one missing. But that would not be what Itami most feared as he turned and was face-to-face with a very annoyed Rory Mercury who was pouting at him as he turned back to face back towards his team.

"Itami! Why aren't we going into battle?" Rory growled at him, her great axe planted into the ground.

"Why me?" he groaned to himself quietly, "Because, Rory, my team's two down, we're left with eleven able-bodied troops and one wounded. The American team is better suited for a full-scale battle, they have more men, more vehicles, and more heavy weapons."

"And who exactly is in charge here then? Are these newcomers the leaders now?" Rory snarled back, seeing what she interpreted as weakness from someone she greatly admired in the form of avoiding battle at such a time when he needed to be strong, "When you found out that your people were prisoners of the Empire you fought them in the very throne room! What has changed now?"

Itami narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists, knowing that to an extent she was right. But his better sense knew better than to let his emotions get the better of him in such a high-stakes situation.

"Because I have no wish to see one of my soldiers be killed," Itami replied after he composed himself, "I care for each of the personnel under my command, Rory. But I cannot put my pride ahead of their safety. If I go in, guns blazing, it is just as likely she ends up being killed in the fight that occurs. The fact is we are up against a capable enemy now, an enemy who is learning. We cannot expect to win without changing and adapting in turn. If that means stepping aside and losing face for the sake of my people, so be it."

Rory pursed her lips and then sighed. She then lifted a hand and laid it softly against his cheek and patted it kindly. She offered a quiet smile as well.

"That's all I wanted to know. Thank you, dear. But don't make a habit of keeping me from battle," Rory stated, jabbing Itami with enough force through one finger to knock him backward slightly.

"Hey easy!"

Town of Cragshell, Dockside Inn

The crackling of a fire to her right got Kuribayashi's attention as she finally started to come to. The young sergeant was groggy, her head hurting, and a soreness that she recognized coming from several bruises and cuts on her face. She only felt like this after a rough day or night in the dojo. But she likewise felt another pain, slightly worse in her leg. As she blinked her eyes open she began to slowly recall what had led to the circumstance she was in. Things then slammed into her mind as she felt her self and sense of balance and orientation be regained. Shino realized she was on her side, laying on a cot beneath a blanket next to a fireplace. Around her she recognized the surrounds of a room for an inn, fairly sparse but with a pair of chairs and a table with a candle upon the wall and one on the table. Her ponytail was still in its place, tried by her pink scrunchy.

Her arms didn't answer her orders, she then felt the pressure around her wrists as her mind forced the issue and Shino's whole body began to try to answer her demand to move. But, sure enough other bindings were present around her ankles which she realized were bound together and now missing her boots and socks. The heartrate she felt in her ears and her chest began to skyrocket. Her memory fully reset her mind to the terrifying reality she now faced. Although, of course her first priority as a woman was to check her own body. While she did feel her hands and ankles bound very tightly she did feel that her uniform was still present, neither did she feel the telltale discomfort that would have come from an assault of her person. But this wasn't enough, she squirmed quickly, and knocked the blanket off her body, and sighed in relief, noting how her uniform was still present. But, she did note that her right leg had its cloth cut away, and the cut she recalled as present was bandaged tightly. It was an odd sight which she hadn't expected at all.

Now sitting up, she felt dizzy and ill, her face came off with a peel from the dried blood she'd bled onto the pillow. She could feel the thin dried sheet of dried blood across her face in multiple places and felt several sore spots, probably either swollen and bruised. But she fought through it to regain her composure and craned her neck to look at her bindings and examine her options. She saw that the enemy had indeed bound her ankles and wrists tightly, her wrists crossed over one another with a strip of soft leather which she grunted repeatedly trying to break. But it was of no use. This situation terrified her, and the possibilities of what might happen to her tore through her mind. She remembered the terrible deeds done at the hands of the Empire to Japanese female civilians who'd been captured, and forced in sexual slavery, like had happened to the young Noriko Mochizuki. Her struggles had apparently gotten someone's attention, because voices were heard outside the door.

It didn't take much longer before the door opened and she was faced with two armored men who stepped inside, and stood to attention with their hands on their swords. Then the familiar face of the man which Kuribayashi had fought against and been subdued by. She saw, with a degree of satisfaction that he was not wearing armor, and had a bandage across his side with a light pink tinge of blood on his side. Shino recalled how she had managed to stab into his chainmail-armored side. Obviously, it had not done a lot of damage but the fact she drew blood there and drew blood there and both bruised and drew blood on his cheekbone and his chin. This was Axios El Sabina. However, she had to remind herself that she was the one now tied up and a prisoner. Likewise it was in her training to know what not to do and what not to say. But there was a degree of fear in the back of her mind which crept in regardless of her training and the confidence it gave her.

"Do you understand me?" Axios inquired of her as he came forward.

Shino didn't respond, and for a split she debated on whether she wished to reply affirmatively. Instead, she chose to keep her mouth shut and averted her eyes. Although apparently this didn't seem to have the intended effect.

"I will take that as a yes," he replied, subtly reading her face for the slight eye movements that said she did in fact understand him and was thinking about what was asked of her, whereas if Shino had simply glared at him it would have been obvious she didn't understand his language. But this too elicited no vocal reaction but did get a narrowing of her eyebrows, clearly the petite young woman was still full of fight, "You are a prisoner now, you understand that by now I would presume?"

He walked over towards her and leaning down Shino's eyes flashed a momentary primal fear and anger at what her instinct said was sure to be an unwanted sexual advance made upon her, and despite her recoiling against him he simply grabbed her and then with one hand lifted her arms to double check her bindings. Once satisfied he let go, having done very little in the way of even really laying hands on her in any way. This was an immense relief to her as she watched him then lift the blanket off of her legs and checked her ankle bindings and then checked the bandage. It wasn't bloody, in fact it was still rather clean, so the cut must not have been that bad. With this quick check done he dragged over a chair and a wash basin to the bedside as Shino watched him suspiciously.

"Who are you?" he inquired to her as he put the basin down and dipped a cloth into the water and watched her eyes go to his hands, clearly wary and guarded, "It is not torture, I give you my word. You're a mess."

"What does it matter to you?" Shino now looked him right in the eye, and spoke for the first time, "You did this to me, didn't you? What difference does it make if I'm looking like a mess? You're just a thug, one prisoner's face means no more to you than your own men's lives."

"Don't speak to me of indifference," Axios growled, leaning forward, "I lost twenty-three men last night. All of them friends, sons of friends, and fathers of friends. Men and boys whom I've known all my life or all their lives. Their lives meant something to me. Even those six that you killed yourself. As their general, it was my duty to bring them home. Yet, here we sit, with you unmolested," he reminded her, "In fact, who do you think put that bandage on your leg? And who placed you beneath a blanket by the fire?"

"So why treat me any different to the way your people have always treated their enemies?" Shino demanded to know, scorn still evident in her tone, but she was likewise somewhat curious.

"If there is to be any brutality in the campaigns to come, it will not be I who sets those events into motion. I will have blood on my hands, but it will only be that of my enemies who take mine, not innocents," Axios replied evenly.

"And you're calling me an innocent?" Shino said, somewhat mockingly.

"If you are a soldier who only wants to serve and defend their people from harm, it's a different kind of innocent."

This made Kuribayashi think for a second. In fact she had never really thought about that before herself.

"Why treat me with any kindness at all?" Shino said after a second, speaking a little bit more softly, feeling like she was being offered something akin to an olive branch of a kind.

"I know of your army's capabilities second-hand," Axios said with a smirk, "I figure if they see you in such a state, they will exert themselves to inflict greater harm to my forces."

"So, you're afraid of my people after all," Shino leaned forward with a smirk in return.

"I know to respect them enough to avoid giving them any more reasons to fight harder," Axios shrugged.

"And capturing me won't be a reason for my people to fight harder?" Shino deadpanned.

"I said more reasons," he corrected her as he reached forward with the damp cloth, and wiped at her face, although she did recoil slightly at his touch.

"Don't think this means I like you touching me, you know," she warned him after a moment of silence.

"Hmph," Axios replied as he wetted the cloth again, looking down as he grunted his amusement, "Funny, I wouldn't have expected you to think I'm your type."

"I am not, wh-why would you think I think I would like any of this?"

"In my experience, girls find more to like about me than to dislike," Axios smirked in turn.

"Don't flatter yourself," she replied indignantly and then made a mock look over him, "You're not my type anyway."

"Shame, you seem to be my type," Axios said in turn, which made Shino frown disapprovingly.

"Why does it that feel less like I'm being complimented and more like I'm being threatened with me being tied up?" Shino lifted her wrists out as if to demonstrate her feelings on the matter.

"I would untie you, but I'm pretty sure you'd immediately try to kill me," Axios noted as he straightened his posture.

"Hmm…you aren't as stupid as I thought," she nodded.

"Glad to meet with your approval," Axios responded, and turned slightly to his men and dug into a coin sack on his belt and held out a gold coin, "Ask the inn keeper to bring bread and water for the prisoner," he ordered.

"Yes, my lord," the man stated, taking the coin and stepped out.

"Now what? Are you going to feed me by hand?" Shino said, somewhat in dismissive disbelief.

"Like I said, you're not to be trusted," the man noted without hesitation.

"Not even when under guard like this?" Shino replied with a questioning expression.

"Nice try," Axios smirked back in response.

"Worth a try," she shrugged in turn as the man sent to retrieve the requested bread and water returned as instructed with a young girl there carrying a wooden board which had a clay cup and a few pieces of bread.

"My lord," the girl said uneasily with a bow as she entered.

"Miss, would you do me the favor of feeding my prisoner?" Axios nodded to Shino, who narrowed her eyes at him in turn, "What? Did you really think I was going to give you a chance to bite me?"

"Here I thought you were gonna be fun," Shino responded in a mocking reply.

Truth be told though, she had been intending on biting him the millisecond his hand came anywhere near her teeth.