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Chapter One: Part Ten

His name was Regulus Cairo. Lord Regulus Cairo. The youngest sitting member at the age of twenty-seven of the Council of Five in the Bianca Alliance. Dawa had heard of him, but this was the first time she laid eyes on him. She knew from the moment she saw him that she disliked him.

The full suit of the accursed white armor he was sporting didn't help matters, either.

Dawa stood on the pier of Potsfurt's harbor, the entire city guard standing behind her with their weapons drawn. Unperturbed, his lordship continued to approach in his small boat. A much larger vessel could be seen on the horizon. In the smaller boat with Lord Regulus were three other people; a nondescript man who was propelling the boat with a Water Rune, and two women in the same white armor. One had red hair the same shade as a candy apple; curly and tied back in a ponytail with brown eyes. The other had orange chiffon colored hair but it was cut short in a pixie cut with matching eyes. She looked older than twenty-three, so Dawa's brow rose at seeing an older soldier having short hair. As long hair was seen as a symbol of power and experience in Zelant, it was always unusual for her to see older people with short hair.

But his lordship has short hair as well, she observed, looking at Lord Regulus. His black hair was indeed short and stylized with a slight forward Mohawk style. As he drew nearer she could see that he had intense green eyes. He was smiling, but it did not reach his eyes. The two female soldiers were also smiling very fake smiles. All of them though appeared to be unarmed. It was because of this—and because Lord Regulus was a high-ranking member of the Bianca Alliance—that Dawa and her soldiers did not launch an attack on them.

Because she was ready to attack. Even after learning that Astraea had miraculously survived the Massacre of Innocents, Dawa was ready for war. Hearing the news that she was alive…the euphoria that filled her had mingled with still lingering pain of believing she had lost Astraea. The guilt that she had not protected her younger sister. But Astraea was alive…and she still could not be by her side, because called her to stay in Potsfurt.

Astraea is alive…but Milo, Barrett, Ritta, and the other children are dead. There must be retribution for them all.

Six meters away from the docks, Lord Regulus's small boat came to a stop. "Greetings!" Lord Regulus called out, his tone painfully polite. "You must be Lady Dawa Thorin!"

"I am," Dawa responded coldly. "And you are Lord Regulus Cairo of the Council of Five."

"That's correct," Lord Regulus confirmed. "We were in the neighborhood and decided to pay a visit to your lovely island. May we have permission to dock?"

His casual demeanor quickly got on Dawa's nerves. "Due to the escalating conflict between our two nations, you are hereby denied entry," she said with forced politeness. "I would advise you to return to your ship, Lord Regulus."

"Ah yes, the "escalating conflict"," Lord Regulus said gaily. "Such as our warship you sank yesterday unprovoked? And the 527 Alliance soldiers who were killed?"

He was still smiling and his tone was still light, but Dawa heard the underlining edge and saw the brief flash of anger in his eyes. Dawa however did not take the bait. "We have confirmation that the warship was sailing in Zelantan waters. It was perceived as a threat and it was handled accordingly."

"It was a miscalculation based on wind gusts," Lord Regulus said. "We have the message logs from the warship to confirm this. What we don't have, however, is message logs of any attempts by your forces to communicate with the ship to leave yours waters. Care to explain that, Lady Dawa?"

Dawa narrowed her eyes at him. "I am sure," Dawa said coldly. "That the Council of Five is aware of the Massacre of Innocents—"

"The Council of Five wholeheartedly disavows any knowledge or responsibility for the Massacre of Innocents, as we have already conveyed to King Franz Reiser," Lord Regulus quickly interjected, his own eyes narrowing and his smile slipping slightly. "The Bianca Alliance doesn't make a habit of slaughtering teenagers on their way to school, and we take offense to any suggestion that we would do so."

"We have evidence and the eyewitness account of one of our Crowned Princesses that your forces were responsible," Dawa retorted. "I will take the word of our Princess over your word any day, Lord Regulus. Or are you calling our Princess a liar?"

A rumble of building rage rippled over the Zelantan soldiers. The two women with Lord Regulus shifted, though their smiles remained plastered on their faces. Lord Regulus, however, did not even stir. His fake smile even returned to his face. "I would never make such an accusation against someone who suffered an assassination attempt," he said, obviously choosing his words carefully. "But the Bianca Alliance was not responsible. And the Bianca Alliance does not appreciate the wholesale slaughter of its soldiers in an unprovoked strike."

"'Unprovoked'?!" Dawa spat back incredulously.

"So you have some sort of confirmation that the people who tried to kill Princess Astraea—and who did kill the youths who traveled with her—were on that vessel you sank?" Lord Regulus asked with a raised brow. "Is that what you are saying to me, Lady Dawa?"

Dawa did not have all the details, but she knew that Astraea had assisted in sinking the warship. And she would defend her half-sister to her last breath. "There is no need for you to be upset about this, Lord Regulus," Dawa said. "The Kingdom of Zelant has declared war against the Bianca Alliance. It would be foolish for you to expect decorum from us."

"Oh, I don't get upset," Lord Regulus said, his tone once again light. "I'm too busy to get upset. I have people who get upset for me."

The moment the words left his mouth, the two women at his side immediately dropped their smiles. They frowned and their expressions darkened as they moved in unison to stand protectively in front of Lord Regulus. Their eyes challenged Dawa, as if daring her to do anything.

"Do you see that ship?" Lord Regulus continued, pointing to the vessel far behind him. "I brought with me the families of the men and women who were killed yesterday by you Zelantans. You lot want answers for the Massacre of Innocents? The Bianca Alliance can't give you those answers because we—are—not—responsible." His tone remained calm, but he enunciated his words in an obviously menacing manner. "Me, however?" he pointed to his own chest. "I want answers for what happened to our soldiers. Answers that you Zelantans—" he pointed to Dawa. "Can provide because you ARE responsible. On behalf of the Council of Five, I demand an audience with King Franz to get those answers."

Dawa's nostrils flared and she glowered at him. "I have given you the answer, Lord Regulus. We have declared war on the Alliance, and your warship illegally entered our waters. You claim that it was an accident, but as we are enemies we saw it for what it really was—a threat. We answered that threat. That is all that matters. You are not landing, so it would be in your best interest to return to your ship and return to your homeland."

Lord Regulus slowly lowered his hand. His face was still a chillingly calm mask with a chillingly fake smile, but his eyes were hard. Their gazes remained locked for a few moments before he finally looked away and looked to the women guarding him. "Dinah." He addressed the redheaded woman. "Nakoa." He addressed the orange-haired woman.

Dinah and Nakoa stepped backward and around Lord Regulus to stand behind him. "It is regretful that it has come to this," he announced. "But tell King Franz this—we answer his proclamation of war with our own. The Bianca Alliance will fight to avenge the soldiers we lost."

"And the Kingdom of Zelant will fight to avenge the children who were slaughtered!" Dawa snapped back.

Lord Regulus's smile shifted then. It felt more like a real smile, but…also sad? It was a peculiar expression. He said nothing more but motioned to the boatman to use the Water Rune to return to their ship.

Dawa did not move from her spot until she could no longer see Lord Regulus's boat. She motioned to the soldier to her right, who was commander of the second watch of the city watch. "Add seven soldiers to each shift. I will also be reducing the nightly curfew from ten to nine in the evening until further notice. I will be issuing a full written statement within an hour."

"Yes, Milady," the soldier said, saluting and hurrying off.

The soldiers and townsfolk who had gathered to watch at the docks dispersed. As the crowd thinned, Dawa saw Primrose standing two meters away. She swallowed her smile and approached. "Any word from the Magic Guild?"

"I just received notice from Lady Norma," Primrose responded, her hands clasped in front of her. "She wants me to stay here in Potsfurt for the foreseeable future to assist with the security here."

Dawa's brow rose. "She did?"

"I can show you the letter if you like."

Dawa shook her head. "I didn't think you would want to stay, Prim."

Primrose's brow rose in kind. "The Mistress of the Magic Guild told me to stay. I can't disobey an order from her."

Of course. But Dawa knew that it sounded passive-aggressive and so she swallowed the words. "Fair enough," she said instead.

"And also," Primrose added. "I'm here to support you, Dawa. I'm not just going to go away just because Princess Astraea miraculously survived."

Dawa smiled, but it was a wry smile. "That's a change."

Primrose looked taken aback by her words. Dawa almost apologize, but once again she swallowed her words. "As a member of the Magic Guild, you're the second-highest ranking person her with authority," she said. "Just below me, Prim. So I'm going to need you to be just as active here as I am."

"I can handle that," Primrose said. "You know I'm certified by the Guild as a Magic Trainer. I'll gather soldiers who are inclined towards rune magic and enhance their training."

"That's a great idea," Dawa said. "I'm a certified Combat Trainer myself, so I will also give aid for training. We should each set up training schedules with the city watch."

"Don't overdo it, Dawa. You're not getting enough rest as it is."

"I'm fine." Dawa said it quicker than intended. "I have to go draft my curfew update. You go and meet with the city watch commander." The she hurried off towards her mansion.

Primrose remained where she stood for a moment, her gaze the Alliance ship. After a moment she shook her head. "Something doesn't feel right," she murmured. "Does Dawa see it, too?"

After another moment she turned and walked away.

The Royal siblings did not immediately return to Blutkrieger. The destruction of the Alliance warship caused copious amounts of debris to flood the beaches, as did more corpses. They decided to stay another day to oversee the cleanup efforts and the mass burial of bodies. Though they were enemies, they would not leave corpses out to rot.

Astraea did not feel any better. Her stomach churned as their soldiers tossed body after body into the mass grave. It wasn't that she was unused to seeing death. She had been a child soldier, and had been exposed to death at an early age. But now? Now she couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right.

Something is off with the uniforms.

She remembered the texture of the butcher's uniform clearly, even though it had been a brief moment. But when the person she touched was trying to kill her, such things didn't easily leave the mind. After taking the Potch from the fallen soldier, Astraea examined other bodies of Bianca Alliance soldiers. Both men and woman. She squeezed their arms to clutch the metal of their armor, and grabbed a fistful of their uniforms in her hand. The texture between the armor and the uniform remained relatively consistent. Some were in worse shape than others, but they all felt the same to each other.

But none of them felt like the armor and the uniform she had touched from one of the butchers of the Massacre of Innocents.

It doesn't feel the same. It LOOKS the same from a distance and even up close, but it—it's not the same.

"Astraea?"

Astraea flinched slightly and looked over her shoulder. Sigrun approached and stood by her side, Ferdinand close behind her. Her eldest sister looked into the mass grave, her expression grim. After a moment she reached out and touched Astraea on the shoulder. "It's not easy to stomach at first, but your body and heart will harden to it," she said reassuringly. "We Reisers have to be hardened to such things. In time, such matters will be easier for you to deal with."

Astraea realized that Sigrun thought she was upset at seeing the dead bodies. She hesitated, wondering if she should say something. Ultimately she blurted out, "Sigrun?"

Her sister glanced at her. "Some—Something doesn't feel right," Astraea said.

"How so?" Sigrun asked.

Astraea quickly explained her concerns to Sigrun. While her sister's face remained largely unchanged, her brow had raised by the time she was finished. "That is peculiar," she mused.

"Why would the uniforms from the butchers of the Massacre of Innocents be so different from these soldiers?" Astraea wondered.

Sigrun shook her head and looked away. "There are only two explanations for this. One; the butchers used different armor and uniforms for the ease of their mission. The second…" she let her voice trail off.

"Yes?" Astraea wondered.

Sigrun looked back at her. "You know what the second option is, Astraea."

Astraea knew. And it made her stomach knot and it filled her with nausea.

The second option…is that they were not Bianca Alliance soldiers at all.

"I would recommend," Sigrun said calmly. "That you share your observations with our siblings. I do not personally believe that His Majesty would deploy us to sink the warship of a rival nation without just cause. But I feel your concerns are valid. Before you bring them before the King, however…please speak to everyone to get their assessments as well."

Astraea nodded slowly. She debated if she should simply thank Sigrun or give her a hug. After a moment she decided to give her sister a hug. "Thank you, Sigrun."

Sigrun seemed surprised and moved by the gesture. "Of course, Astraea. We're family."

Ferdinand remained silent until Astraea walked away. Then he looked at Sigrun. "Your Highness—"

"Please, Ferdinand," Sigrun gently interrupted him. "For the sake of our soldiers and our own peace of mind, we should leave this to Astraea."

"…All right," Ferdinand said slowly. "But may I add one last thing, Princess?"

"Yes."

"The gauntlet that was found after the Massacre of Innocents. The finish on it did not carry the same scent as the finish on the armor of these soldiers."

Astraea did indeed speak to all of her siblings about her concerns. And the response from each of them was not surprising…but also disappointing. Denzel immediately believed her, and he looked uncomfortable as a wrung a hand through his hair. "Then…Then the people who attacked you weren't from the Alliance?" he whispered to Astraea.

"I don't know," Astraea admitted just as quietly. "But I noticed a…difference. With the uniforms and armor."

"I'll take a gauntlet from one of the corpses," Musashi spoke up suddenly. Astraea jumped at hearing him talk. "I'll compare it to the gauntlet back in the capital. I should be able to see if there are differences between the two, no matter how small."

"You would do that for me?" Astraea asked him. "T-Thank you, Musashi."

"The Prince believes you, Your Highness," Musashi said bluntly. "If he believes you, then I will too."

"He's great, isn't he?" Denzel said with a smile.

The rest of her siblings, however…weren't as receptive.

"Was there anything else significant other than your brief touch of the clothes the butchers who tried to kill you wore?" Brendan asked.

"I…no," Astraea admitted. "But Musashi said he could—"

"Leave it alone, Astraea. We have our confirmation. No single uniform is unilaterally identical."

"The King would not have sent to attack the warship if he did not believe the Bianca Alliance was responsible," Vahan told Astraea. His tone was more reassuring than Brendan's. "Don't worry about it."

"Astraea, stop," Philomena said before she could finish. She rested her hands on her little sister's shoulders. "We did the right thing. Those people were coming here to hurt us. If the Alliance could send a warship with 500 soldiers on it over to us, they are more than capable of hurting you."

And despite the peace that had budded between them during the war battle…Kion was the most dismissive of her.

"I heard already," Kion said before Astraea could speak. He narrowed his eyes at her. "I heard you tell Denzel. What are you thinking? Saying such things in the presence of our soldiers? We had a decisive victory today, and if they hear you expressing doubts then it will affect their morale, Astraea?"

Astraea swallowed hard as her stomach dropped. "I didn't think of it that way," she admitted. "But Kion—something doesn't feel right."

"What you're feeling is squeamishness," Kion told her curtly. "If you think you'll stand a chance in Royal Combat, you'll need a stronger stomach. Harden yourself, otherwise your soldiers will never respect you."

Astraea's brow rose in confusion when he mentioned Royal Combat, but the latter part of what he said resonated with her. No matter what she was feeling, she was a Reiser Royal. People naturally looked to her as a leader. She couldn't show weakness.

But I know something is wrong.

"If I may, Your Highness," Gwenette said, moving to her side. "I believe you should lie down and rest. You have suffered a terrible ordeal, and you were given a doctor's order to take a therapeutic vacation." She glanced at her charge. "Prince Kion, it would not be seen as weakness if she were to retire early, would it?"

Kion glanced at her, and for a moment his expression softened. Then he glanced at Astraea. "Gwenette has a good point. The soldiers have already followed you into battle and we won. You served your purpose, Astraea. Perhaps with some rest you will have further mental clarity."

Astraea ducked her head. It had been just a moment, but for a moment she had thought that things would be better with Kion. Now it was clear that it wouldn't be. "I…will retire in a little bit," she said. "For now I want to do one last walk around and speak to my unit."

The pair watched her walk away. Gwenette looked around to ensure that there was no one nearby and then looked at him. "Your Highness, can you try please try to soften your heart towards the Princess?" she pleaded softly. "We all thought she had died. Princess Astraea is your sister and she loves you. She clearly values your—"

"You know nothing!" Kion snarled at her. His sharp tone caused her to jump and her heart rattled inside her chest. He started to storm off but then he stopped. After an uncomfortably long moment he turned back around returned to her side. "I'm sorry I yelled. My temper got the better of me. It won't happen again."

Gwenette nodded stiffly. "I'm sorry for prodding."

"It wasn't prodding. You are my assist." Then he turned and walked away.

Gwenette sighed quietly and followed him.

Day turned into night, but soldiers were still working round the clock to clean ship debris and bury bodies. Many had retired to bed, with Brendan being the royal taking first watch to supervise the Royal Army. A massive camp of 700 soldiers, hundreds of tents filling a field. Only a fool would think to strike.

But the Unicorn Blades—one of the more infamous bandit groups in Zelant—were not known for intelligent actions.

"Boss!" Froth shouted, pressing the binoculars hard over his brown eyes. He had oily shoulder-length black hair, a white band around his head, and disheveled clothes. In his thirty-six years of life, he had spent twenty-five of those years as a thief. He stood at the front of a small group of a dozen men. "Boss, I-I think they casted a shield! The whole area is blurry!"

"You're holding the binoculars wrong, you moron," a gruff voice rumbled behind him.

"Yeah!" a fellow thief, Goose shouted. He was a man of thirty-five, who had been a thief for thirty years, with messy carrot orange hair, an unkempt orange beard, and his own disheveled clothes. He pulled the binoculars out of Froth's hands. "You have to hold them like this!" Goose flipped the binoculars around the correct way, but then shifted them vertical and looked through one hole like he was looking through a periscope. After a few moments he shouted, "Boss, he's right! Everything's blurry!"

"You're both morons," the leader of the Unicorn Blades seethed, stomping forward and ripping the binoculars out of Goose's hands. Unlike his underlings he was dressed in deceptively fashionable blue clothing. He was a man in his fifties with short slicked back dirty blonde hair and hard blue eyes. The smirk that once always adorned his face long gone. He had come a long way, and had taken a hard fall from grace. Going from the top of his field militarily to being the leader of a band of moronic thieves. Losing his home. Losing his country. Losing the one person who ever mattered to him.

The world had dealt him a crummy hand…so Rowd was determined to smite the world right back.

"Boss, a-are we really going to rob the Royal camp?" a thief stammered behind him.

"Not all of them," Rowd said, lifting the binoculars. "But with this many tents, there is bound to be treasure. We'll avoid the central tents, as that is where the Reiser Family undoubtedly made camp. But we will raid the tents on the outskirts. Those who aren't doing cleanup are sleeping. Now is the time to strike."

"What if we get caught, Boss?" Froth asked.

"Yes, Boss?" Goose added. "What if we get caught?"

"Then you'll die," Rowd snapped at them. Froth and Goose both yelped and clung to each other in fright. "Just don't act like morons and get caught, okay?"

"OKAY, BOSS!" the Unicorn Blades cheered.

"And don't yell!" Rowd snapped. He shook his head in disgust. "How have any of you survived this long?!"

"The noose broke when they tried to hang me!" Froth announced proudly.

"Let's get going before they realized we're here," Rowd growled. "You, you, you, and you head west." He pointed to the thieves in kind. "You, you, and you go east." He pointed to them. "Goth and Froose—"

"Froth and Goose!" the pair chimed in unison.

"You idiots come with me along with you, you, and you," Rowd said. "Now move out!"

The Unicorn Blades quickly dispersed towards the tents of the Royal Army. Rowd kept this hand on the hilt of his sword as he moved. He chose the underlings for his group specifically. They were the dumbest thieves in his band, which was saying a lot.

If things go to Hell, they can be my meat shields while I escape. Won't be the first or last time.

Astraea did not sleep easily. She drifted into darkness for what felt like a short time, but then her vision was filled with red. She was back at the island. She saw Milo, Barrett, Ritta, Darko…she saw everyone with damaged and broken bodies. But—But they were all alive. They were alive and crying, wailing about the pain they were in. They reached for Astraea and begged her for help. But she didn't know how to help them. She couldn't help them. They were dead.

She tried to talk. To scream or cry. But here throat was paralyzed. Her body was paralyzed as they grabbed at her. Milo was able to get a proper grip on her arm, but he opened his mouth to speak…bloody geysered from his mouth.

Astraea awoke with a start, sweating and panting heavily. Her large tent was designed for comfort with a full bed and carpeted floors, but she wasn't comfortable. The air burned and the walls felt like they were closing in on her. She wanted out. She was wearing a nightgown, but she grabbed her robe and tied it on. Without thinking about it she also grabbed her knout. She exited her tent barefooted, and soldiers stood to attention. "As you were," she told them when they snapped to attention. She kept her tone low so it wouldn't tremble. "I'm going to walk around camp. I will be right back."

"Should we accompany you, Princess?" one soldier asked.

"No, thank you," Astraea said. "I'll be fine."

Astraea walked along the row of tents, hugging her arms tight. She moved away from the Royal tents. Her heart was hammering in her heart, but she didn't want to close her eyes. Whenever she did she saw the remnants of her nightmare.

I survived. I survived…but so many others died. And now…

They were victorious in battle, but it didn't feel like a victory. It didn't feel like retribution. Something felt so terribly wrong. Despite most of her siblings dismissing her, she couldn't shake the feeling.

I know uniforms are different, but this just doesn't feel right to me! Does…Does this mean that it wasn't the Bianca Alliance who killed my siblings? Then…who did it?

Astraea's breath stuttered, and she stopped in her tracks. She was nearing the end of the row of tents. She rubbed both hands through her loose hair. "I wish you were here, Dawa," she murmured.

At that moment the flap of the tent to her left swung outward rather violently, and an older man with orange hair stumbled out. Even though it was nighttime, torches were alit all around and she could clearly see that the man was not a soldier. His disheveled clothes, and the his arms full of loot were a big indicator.

Astraea gaped at the man in shock. He stared back at her with a slaw-jacked expression. Suddenly his eyes went wide. "Oh—Oh it's you!" he squealed. He began jumping up and down where he stood, more stuff falling out of his arms. He suddenly lunged forward, grabbed Astraea's hand, and shook it vigorously. "It's you, it's you, it's you! Princess Astraea! Our Princess returned to us!"

"Goose, why are you yelling?!" a second man with black hair stumbled out of the tent, also holding loot. He looked annoyed.

"Froth, it's her!" Goose exclaimed, pointing to Astraea. "It's the real Princess Astraea!"

"REALLY?!" Froth exclaimed. He dropped his loot and stumbled towards Astraea. He leaned in uncomfortably close to her face, and Astraea leaned away from away. Froth let out a throaty gasp and flailed his hands slightly. "Oh my God, it IS her! I've never met a real-life Princess before!"

"Me, too!" Goose said, still shaking her hand.

Me, neither, Astraea instinctively corrected him in her head. She was a little stunned to truly react.

"You damned idiots!" a third man with blonde hair burst out of the tent, his face red with rage. "I thought I told you to—DAMN!" he shouted when he saw Astraea. He drew his sword and wrenched Froth away from her. "You screwed us all, you morons!"

"Oh—Ohhhhhh," Goose said, as though realizing their situation. "Sorry, Boss."

"Goth, Froose, FIGHT YOU MORONS!" their boss shouted. He raised his sword and lunged at Astraea.

Astraea jumped back and grabbed for her knout. She unwound it and swung it over her head. Before the leader could swing his sword, the tip of her knout caught him in the temple. He shouted in pain and stumbled back. "THIEVES!" she shrieked.

The camp came alive in an instant. Soldiers burst out of tents when they heard their Princess scream. The bandit leader let out a stream of swear words before shouting, "RETREAT!" He grabbed Goose and shoved him in the direction of the charging Royal Army and took off running. Froth and Goose tried to flee, but they tripped over the loot they had dropped earlier and fell all over each other.

Astraea debated if she should move to attack or let them escape. The pair though looked so comically pathetic that she felt pity for them. Ultimately she stood her ground as they finally got up and raced after their boss. "I'm all right," Astraea said when the soldiers reached her. "I caught them before they stole anything, but there will be more. Search for them."

"Yes, Your Highness!" the soldiers dispersed.

Astraea looked down at the mess before her on the ground. "Astraea!" Denzel reached her side. "Are you all right?!"

"I'm fine," she said, kneeling down to pick up items. "I exposed some thieves."

"Did you catch them?" Philomena asked her.

"Our soldiers can do that," Brendan said. "For them to target our forces directly…they must have been the Unicorn Blades."

"Only the Unicorn Blades would be stupid enough to attempt this heist," Kion scoffed.

"We've wiped them out more than once, "Sigrun sighed. "But Rowd…he's determined to live a life of crime no matter how many of his subordinates are executed in his place, isn't he?"

"Nothing of value will be lost once he is rid of once and for all," Vahan said.

"They tried to steal these," Astraea said. "I will put them back."

"That's work for the soldiers, Astraea," Brendan told her.

Astraea shook her head. "Brother…I would like to keep myself busy."

The siblings fell silent. After a moment Denzel knelt beside her. "Let me help you," he said.

"Me, too," Philomena said, moving forward.

"It's time for my watch, isn't it?" Vahan said. "I want to get this done so we can get back to Blutkrieger faster."

"I agree," Sigrun said. "Let's get everything done so we can head back tomorrow."

From a distance away, there was a small campfire. One individual stood with his back to the fire, while the younger one sat across staring into the flames.

Viktor shielded his hands over his eyes as he watched the chaos occurring in the royal camp several meters away. They had made their camp a safe enough distance away that they would not be easily seen by the Royal Army, but they were close enough that they could see that people were being chased out of camp. Some had been captured. But there was no mistaking the man leading the retreat. "He abandoned his men again," he said, shaking his head. He turned and plopped down in front of the fire. "He's always had a nasty habit of it. I don't know how he keeps getting recruits for his band."

"He exploits desperate people," came the calm response from across the fire.

Viktor sobered slightly and raised his head to look at the young man. "Hey, kid," he said. "You getting tired of tailing that bastard?"

David Silverberg finally looked up. It sometimes hurt to look at his face because of how much that face reminded Viktor of Mathiu. David smiled sadly. "I need to get used to being on the move, don't I Viktor? There are worst ways of being on the move than trying to catch a thief."

Viktor sighed shortly, and for the umpteenth time he missed traveling with Flik. At lease he could get drunk with Flik and share similar stories. But he made a promise to Caesar, and he was going to see that promise through. "Let's take a break," he said finally. "We've seen every corner of Zelant."

"Not every corner," David said.

"Well…a bridge that broken will never be repaired. But let's bunker down in one location for a bit. I know someone here who will give us shelter."

David seemed to contemplate this for a long moment. Then he slowly nodded. "All right. But war has broken out here. It's dangerous for us here as foreigners."

"Yeah," Viktor said grimly. "But I owe it to some people to settle this old grudge, kid. We'll take care of that bastard, and then we'll go to the mainland. Sound good?"

David shrugged slightly but nodded again. "Sounds good."