Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Dedicated to Sam Hall whose encouragement led to me finally writing the first page of this journey, and to Hezekiah Crocker, who was stuck outside our apartment for two hours while I was engulfed in my writing one night.

Introduction

What it’s like to be twelve in a different world

Allow me a brief digression for an important consideration before you take a step further with me. To begin, this story is not an original world or story. What you are about to read is, for all intents and purposes, a fan fic story of Fire Emblem The Blazing Sword: a series I have been deeply engrossed in for over a decade and a half when it first made its international debut. A fair amount of what you read (except for what is written about the Tactician. more on that later) is taken from the actual installment in the series, not out of plagiarism, but to pay homage to the wonderful tale that was told to a self-secluded twelve-year-old with few friends and a wicked internal antagonist. It would be an inglorious crime not to state this important fact for a series I respect and credit for being an inspiration for my writing and a reason why I am still here to write this. 

And on another note, this introduction is going to kind of act as a foreword as well because this is the first time I’m writing one for one of my stories. It’s kind of strange to be at this point—bittersweet, if you will. To have been working on something for so long and to actually complete it with everything I intended to be in it. And now, all that’s left is for me to write this introduction that I have neither experience in writing nor any direction to go with. Who knew this would be the hardest part of writing this story?

2003 was a weird time for me. I was entering middle school and on the cusps of puberty. And the entire time, I was completely oblivious to what would eventually become one of the most grueling points in my life. We have a lot of friends when we’re young (hopefully). Not all of us, I know. That’s an unfortunate fact for some people. Another sad fact is that some people have a lot of friends when they’re young, but then at some point, those friends turn on you. And you eventually figure out why, but the problem is that you don’t know who to blame. 

The school counselor became a very close friend of mine in middle school (and I hope she’ll forgive me because I forgot her name).  She always had the doors to her office open, and a lot of my friends hung out in the couches in her office. But things started to change for me when my friends started becoming friends with new people I’d never met before. The next thing I didn’t know (that’s not a typo) was that my friends didn’t really want to associate with me because I was weird. And I spent more time with the counselor between and even during classes, just trying to make sense of what was happening.

No one can really blame my former friends—I don't. That’s just how middle school works. It’s great for some and an absolute hell for others, and no amount of anti-bullying and sensitivity training seminars is going to alter the way teenagers act in school. It was the latter for me. I was made fun of for my lack of social maturity. Girls friend zoned me on the daily (honestly, smart move on their part), and I had that group of bullies that carved that discouraging nickname into the wall next to my desk in my favorite class which caused me to question my value.

I never played sports and was never invited to hang out with people after school. Not like in elementary school. So I would return home and put off doing my homework for the next day in order to take some time to leave my depression behind in the world to join a new one where I was welcomed—hell, even exalted. The story you are about to read is one of those worlds. 

I remember the first time I had heard about Fire Emblem. Like most Americans, I was playing Super Smash Bros. Melee. My brother and I had to play the game in secret most of the time because our parents were traditional conservative Christians (whom I consider to be a blessing to this day.) We had just unlocked a new character named Marth, who was this traditional fantasy swordsman fighter, and my brother was trying him out. After the match we played, another swordsman appeared looking quite similar to Marth, and after defeating and unlocking him (Roy) as a playable character, we discovered that both Marth and Roy were from the same game series: Fire Emblem. 

Now this was the early 2000’s. Facebook wouldn’t even be a thing for another couple of years, and Wikipedia was still in that phase where your English teacher wouldn’t accept anything from that site as a credible source. The big online gamer sites like IGN or Gamespot or other online resources weren’t as mainstream as they are today. So the only way a couple of kids knew how to find information about these new characters was from my monthly subscription to Nintendo Power. These new faces in an All-Star Nintendo lineup had been a popular topic of discussion in the pages of the magazine, but it wouldn’t be until a year later that Nintendo Power announced that the Japanese only franchise would finally be getting an international release. 

At this point, Roy had become my brother’s go-to character, so when Fire Emblem was released for the GBA in 2003, he took what money he had been saving and got Mom to drive him to Toy’s R Us. I had never been interested in the Fire Emblem characters when we played Smash Bros (I was always a Bowser man myself), so I had never invested much attention to information about the upcoming game other than the cool pictures (my ADD didn’t help my attention span). However, like most games we bought. My brother and I would “share” the games we got, which in sibling rivalry terms meant we would steal games from each other when we weren’t playing them and wouldn’t return them until the other complained to Mom.

I did this one night. Snatched the game out of my brother’s GBA while he slept and popped it into my own. I had no idea what to expect from this game. A part of me assumed I was going to be playing some kind of hack-and-slash platformer like the adventure mode in Smash Bros. So it was quite a shock for me when I selected a new game and was asked to enter my name and birth month. This was a new feature for me. Until now, the only video games I had ever played were from Nintendo, and Nintendo was not usually in the business of personal avatar creation games (that were E for Everyone). So this was my first experience with role-playing elements in a game. And Fire Emblem added another new feature: characters interacting with the player. 

Thus, the seeds of this story were planted. Looking back on the game now, I can agree that the feature of the Player being inserted into the game as a silent onlooker is more contrived than it should have been. I do not doubt that is why the developers removed this feature in the later games. But the interaction that happened between the characters and I provided just the right amount of freedom for my brain to start building this story (though in a far more unhinged and unstructured process), and I’m not ashamed to admit that in the number of times I went back to play this game, I would respond to the characters out loud (but not so loud that people would hear me).

Such responses, even from a newly molting teenager, are the mark of a good game. The goal of any creative medium should be to pull the individual into its world. And Fire Emblem did that for me. Even after I put the game down, I would continue to sit there stuck in my imagination, replaying the events while playing a more active role. I would imagine what I would say to the characters and how I would react to the events that happened. These private vacations that I didn’t have to pay a single cent for became some of my most treasured memories with a game in a time in which my life wasn’t the easiest.

My imagination saved me. Some might look at it as pathetic to have imaginary friends after the age of five. But in my personal opinion, anything that keeps you from harming yourself or others to any degree is ALWAYS preferable. However, I’m also not a doctor, so what would I know? Well, I do know that playing this story out in my head kept me from ending my story early. It’s not the only thing that saved me, but it was a major contributor. And as you read this story, it is something you will likely pick up on. 

The Tactician has gone through multiple revisions over the course of writing this story. I didn’t become serious about writing this particular story until I was out of college, and by then, I had finally written enough to adequately write a character. There is a reason I wrote him the way I did, and I won’t go into much detail about how and why, but I will say that the final product was not what I was expecting and didn’t happen until about three months ago. These moments (that I love to call the “nailed it” moments) are the reason why I love writing so much. As I have stated before in another context, “characters are the lifeblood of a story.”

The timing of this story is weird, though. Here I am 15 years later (and I can’t believe that’s how long it’s been). The inner heckler is coming to point out how my knee is getting messed up, and I’m getting on in the years. That’s part of the reason I’m glad I finally sat down and finished this story. It took four years to write this, and it shouldn’t have. I started writing this, became disinterested, and wrote the ending to feel like I had “accomplished” something (as I’ve normally done with stuff I write). But it was just another incomplete story that was the constant result of almost anything that was more than 100 pages in length. I never planned to finish this story. Why? Because I never had any aspirations to work any harder.

If you aren’t born with the talent for something you are passionate about (Lord knows I’m not), you know what it's like to look at your art and compare it to others. To never be satisfied, to always cringe at what you make, and then to look at others who do the same things you do, and you know you will never be able to emulate that. I’m sure you’ve also heard that pretty saying not to compare yourself to others (I get this pain in the back of my head every time someone mentions that). The problem is that we all have a wicked antagonist that likes to poke and prod us with that mentality. Every day we are bombarded with the idea of perfection—that we are never good enough and must strive to be better than who we are. But the problem is, at the same time, we are being offered balms and participation awards for even attempting to try something. I’m probably going to get some flack for this, but it needs to be said. While it's nice to acknowledge someone for trying to kick a ball and score a goal rather than for them to sit on the bench, not encouraging them to practice and push them to actually score a goal is like planting a seed in a pot, sticking it in the shelf in your closet, and forgetting about it. 

Such sentiments are poison to people who have potential over talent. It ruthlessly stunts growth. It is all well and good to praise some for trying something regardless of the outcome, but to say “that’s good enough” is to say there is no more need to improve. Anyone passionate about the work they are invested in should never utter this phrase. Nothing that humans in this world can create is ever good enough. The game I played back in 2003 wasn’t good enough; this story isn’t good enough, nor will any story after it be good enough. I could do so much more with the story to make it even better than it is, but now it is merely finished. I’ve run out of time with it. I have other stories I must move on to, so it is time to let this story go out on its own.

I have been teaching English in Japan for two years now, and I don’t believe any of my students’ English skills are good enough. However, I only have a limited time to teach my students—to do my best to help them cultivate their language skills before they graduate and climb up to the next stage of their lives where I cannot follow. It's not my job to follow. The same idea applies to my writing. My stories are my students. My writing is my profession. I put in as much work as possible to the best of my ability with the time I have. And when I’m finished, I know I could’ve done more, but the story and I must move on. 

And this is the student that came to me at graduation and said, “Thank you for your dedication to me. You are a great teacher. Please keep working hard for your other students like you did with me.” (See what I mean about imaginary friends?)

Now let me be clear for those of you who might be looking at my statement as a form of constant punishment. I’m not saying that you should never consider any of the work you put time and effort and tears and rage and most of who you are into to be bad all the time. Why would anyone do something that constantly made them feel inadequate (God knows that’s how I’ve felt at times). What I mean is that you should never be content with just trying. If you’re serious about your art, you should always say, “Okay. I did this. How do I change it to make it better now?” That’s what revision is for a writer. You should always want to move forward. I’ve been reading this self-help book to help keep me motivated with life in general, and one of the chapters is titled “Compare yourself to who you were yesterday, not who someone else is today.” That’s what I mean when I say don’t settle for good enough. Today, I am the writer who actually completed his story compared to the person yesterday (or two years ago if we’re going to be accurate) who was content to leave it unfinished.

I want to say that writing this story was a smooth trip through and through. The sad and honest fact is that it wasn’t. Like I said, I wrote about half of this story, wrote the ending, and then put it away with the rest of my unfinished work. It wasn’t until I gained a new perspective on my writing that I loaded this story back up and pushed myself to finish. And I'm glad I did. Even if you are one of the three people who actually end up reading this entire thing, the feeling of accomplishment for me to actually see this story through to its completion is a milestone for me.

For those of you who have never played a Fire Emblem game, I hope the story of the Tactician will engross you in the amazing world as it did for me. If it gets at least one of you interested in actually playing the game, I’ll consider that a bonus. And for those of you who are fans just as I am, I hope this will be a wonderful trip back to a time you might have forgotten. 

Invariably, there will be those who feel I’ve done an injustice—who will have had a different experience with the game than I did and will vehemently defend their original adventure. To that, I will say that this has been my interpretation of the story, and I wrote this story in a way to emulate what it would be like for players to go through this game. I’d also encourage you to write your own version—maybe you’ll have as much fun as I did. And I think part of the beauty of Fire Emblem is that the stories are so intricate and the characters are all so unique that each person’s journey will be different when they play the game, and that these dynamic experiences are why this series is one of the greatest in existence.

But in the end, this is just a journey I wanted to see play out. For me, this journey is at an end, and I’ve had a blast. For you, it is just the beginning. 

—April 13, 2018

Chapter 1

            My shadow grew larger… vaster… stretching further until it had consumed the group of people on the green walkway before me in a steadily encroaching sea of gloom. Their countenances were stained with shock and abhorrence, but it was the three closest to me that had raptured my attention. The hulking armored man gritted his teeth, and his grip tightened around his golden axe so firmly I could hear the leather under his steel-clad gauntlets rubbing against the polished metal. The man with blazing hair struggled to keep his greatsword above him while he attempted to regain control of his horse that bucked in terror.  

And a woman… she stood in frozen, terrified awe at the sight of me with her sword hanging by a few trembling fingertips. I did not recognize any of these people, yet I spoke to them with evident familiarity.

            “Hector, Eliwood, Lyn. You must strike now! Do it before I call them back. Use the weapons. Strike me down now, or this whole world will be scourged in fire!”

            “But Mark,” the man on the horse began to say, pulling tighter on the reins.  

            “Do it now!” My voice boomed like thunder rumbling over a mountain range as a more bestial tone engulfed my words.

            The axe-wielder let out a furious grunt and made the first move, charging down the walkway. The man on horseback watched his friend run past him with distress, shackling him from taking any action. There was far more turmoil upsetting his countenance that made his horse appear relatively docile in comparison. Finally, he shook himself from his immobility and urged his horse to charge as well.

However, the woman remained as still as stone, staring at me, not with a gaze of horror as before but a tear-filled mien of utter sorrow that made her eyes shimmer like emeralds. Her presence bolted my gaze upon her with a sharp turn of the key that broke off in the lock. I still did not know who she was, but my voice spoke on its own once again.

            “Lyn…” My voice was completely inhuman now, yet it still managed to emit a shred of sane sorrow in the single pleading word it spoke. “Please…”

            Her eyes slammed shut to cut off her tears, and she rushed forward with such speed that she caught up to the other two men in a matter of seconds. Their weapons glowed brilliantly as the distance between us closed. The man with the axe unleashed a furious roar; the one on horseback shifted his position to prepare his enormous sword. And the woman… The tears had broken free from underneath her shut eyelids as she sprinted toward me. All at once, they brought their weapons around, but I did not witness the outcome of their attack. Fire consumed my vision before everything faded to black.

My body sprang up from its prone position while I gasped down a rasping, terrified breath. Beads of sweat slid down my forehead, attempting to wash away my distress. By the tone of my labored panting, my voice had returned to normal, and I calmed as I saw I was no longer on the walkway. The group I had loomed over was gone. Now, I was sitting on a cot made from the hide of something moderately soft, surrounded by simple wooden furnishing in what appeared to be a single-room building of some sort. A torch hung on the wall near the entrance, flickering in the soft breeze that pushed through the curtains covering the entryway. No looming darkness, no fear-stricken individuals, just a cozy abode with a calm atmosphere. Had it all been a dream? No, definitely a nightmare, and it made a comeback.

            “You’re awake,” said a gentle voice.

            My head snapped toward the source of the voice to find a woman standing next to a pot over a small fire. A blue woven garb covered most of her body with an intricate design of browns, golds, and blue faded in white, running along the edges of the wrapped outfit. Golden earrings hung underneath her long green hair, tied in a high ponytail. Around her waist, a braided leather cord held a shortsword at her side with a simple brown sash tied beneath to keep the garb from flowing freely. The bottom half of the outfit split along the sides to fall between her legs and ended right before a pair of boots made from the leathery hide of an animal.

Other than the earrings she wore, there were no artificial additions to her face, giving her a simple beauty. But her face set my heart racing back to its distressed beat. She was the woman from my dream! After what I’d seen, I thought she would pull that sword out and run me through. But her strident green eyes had a softness that set me at ease the longer I beheld them. She did not pull out her sword. Instead, she came over and handed me a bowl filled with a viscous brown broth and an assortment of vegetables and chunks of meat floating on the surface. She did so with a smile. A smile that welcomed me into her presence, a smile meant to be paired with those soft green eyes to assure me that she had no intention of hostility toward me. And for some reason, it seemed to light up the room more than the torch. “Eat this. It will help restore your strength.”

            “It’s you…” I replied, holding the bowl tight so as not to spill it due to my shaking. “You’re… You’re… real?” I struggled to find the words, but I was at a loss for them. Was I still dreaming?

            Her eyebrows furrowed. “Yes… I am the one who found you unconscious in the field.”

            My strange response had unnerved her, so I feigned a grateful smile, attempting to salvage what little saneness I could before she decided to run me through for her safety. “Ah yes… Yes. That was you I saw.” My previous encounter with her had to be a dream. Otherwise, she would have said something. And the fact that I didn’t remember her name reinforced that notion. But then again, how could she have been in my dream if this was my first time meeting her? Now that I was thinking about it… I didn’t remember much of anything. And by anything, I meant everything. How did I end up unconscious in a field? Where had I been before this woman found me? Who… was I? I couldn’t remember anything. I had no memories except for my dream. “Thank you, uh…”

            The bright smile returned. “I am Lyn of the Lorca Tribe. This is my Yurt. You’re safe now.”

            Lyn! That was the name I had called her in my dream when she stood before me in tears. So did I know this woman?

            “Who are you?” she continued. “Can you remember your name?”

            She didn’t know my name either. This was the first time we had met each other. It was just a dream, but that still didn’t explain why she was in it. And my memories were still missing. The only memory I had was the dream. And I did have a name in it.

            “I’m Mark,” I replied, recalling what the red-haired man had called me.

            “Mark,” she repeated. “That’s a good name.” She looked me over. “I see by your attire that you are a traveler. What brings you to the Sacae Plains? Would you share your story with me?”

            Well, it would be useless to lie to her. But if I tried to tell her about my dream, she might consider me insane. “I’m a tactician,” I said out of nowhere. “I’ve been traveling the land selling my knowledge and skills to armies or other well-paying individuals. Although, I will be completely honest with you; I have no idea how I ended up here in the Sacae Plains.”

A tactician? Why did I say that? Just like in the dream, my voice had spoken on its own. And yet, it felt right. My mind suddenly became flooded with battle strategies, troop movements, and combat mechanics as if I had studied them all my life, although I could not remember anyone who might have employed me. So for the most part, my statement held truth.

            “A tactician? That is rare to find in a traveler. I’ve heard that most tacticians are-”

            A painful yelp alerted us.

            “Hm? What was that noise?” Lyn said, getting to her feet. She pulled her sword from its sheath and turned back to me. “I’ll go see what’s happening. Wait here for me, Mark.”

            I obeyed as she left the Yurt as quietly as a nightingale leaves its nest while my mind continued to dig out more information I might have had about this woman. She said that she was part of the Lorca Tribe. My mind struggled to discover some information on her tribe or these Sacae Plains I was currently in, but the only thing I could determine was that “tribe” must have meant she was part of a nomadic group. For a moment, I wondered if I could be part of this tribe since I was a traveler, but Lyn didn’t seem to know me, and she had said that tacticians weren’t usually travelers.

            Lyn burst through the entrance curtain, breaking me from my thoughts. “Oh no! Bandits! They must have come down from the Bern Mountains! They must be planning on raiding the local villages.” She paced around the Yurt, apparently unsure of what to do. “I… I have to stop them. If it’s only two of them, I think I can handle them on my own.” A weak determination lifted her fists as a form of assurance to me. “Stay here, Mark. You will be safe.” I spotted a slight wavering in her movement as she turned to leave, and though navy gloves covered most of her hands, the ends of her fingers were bone white and taut around the handle of her blade.

            Before I knew it, something within compelled me to get up and go with her, and I was out of the Yurt right behind her. Maybe I knew this woman, maybe I didn’t want to stay, or maybe I couldn’t let her go off to face bandits alone. Whatever the case, I was glad I chose to follow her because upon exiting the Yurt, I found out why she seemed so uncertain about facing the bandits. Except for a more bulbous building at the other end of the field, there was no village here. Where was Lyn’s tribe?

            My legs burned in pain as I made my way toward Lyn, causing me to stumble to the ground. Lyn heard my crash and turned around. When she saw me struggling to return to my feet, she rushed over to aid me.

            “Mark, what are you doing? I told you to stay in the Yurt. It’s too dangerous for you out here.”

            “I’m not going to let you confront those bandits alone.” I may not have known anything about myself, but I at least knew better than to let someone face danger alone.

            “But Mark, you’re injured,” she said, still supporting me. “You can barely stand, let alone wield a weapon.”

            “I can help in other ways,” I replied.

            She raised a brow. “What do you mean?”

            “How confident are you with that sword?”
            Lyn did not respond right away. She didn’t appear offended by the question, but it did give her pause for consideration.

            “It’s all right, Lyn,” I said, trying to sound encouraging. “I saw the way you hesitated in the Yurt, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I’ve trained your type before.”

Hopefully.

 “I would tell you to run away. You should never enter a battle if you’re not confident you can win. But I can see that is something you will not do. So if you won’t make the smart decision, let me help you with your swordplay, and we’ll deal with these bandits together.”

            The bright smile reappeared, and she nodded in agreement. “Okay, we’ll go together. But stay behind me. I’ll protect you.”

            I chuckled as I steadied myself without her assistance. “Don’t worry about me. This isn’t the first skirmish I’ve been in unarmed.” I couldn’t remember any skirmishes I had been in unarmed or otherwise. But if I knew the ways of combat, I had to have been in some battles, right? Either way, my confidence seemed to give her a boost in her own, and she glided across the field toward the first bandit. That newfound confidence she had gained doubled inside me. I took a deep breath and lifted one leg after the other, trying to endure the burning pricks that spiked through me every time I took a step.

            We can handle this. After all, it’s just a couple of burly men with axes and a thirst for blood.

            As Lyn had said, there were only two bandits out here. One paced in front of the larger building shouting at the residents inside. The other stood over a man he had slain, searching his corpse for spoils. Lyn seemed to have the same idea as me choosing to deal with the closest bandit first. She came to a stop in some tall grass about 50 yards away from him.

            “Okay,” I whispered, coming up next to Lyn. “The bandit hasn’t seen you yet. You can dispatch him easily if you can sneak up behind him and deliver a thrust to the back of his neck.”

            “Alright.” Lyn moved forward as quickly and quietly as she had when she left me in the Yurt. In a few seconds, she was already halfway to the bandit, who was still busy looting his kill. I moved forward as well to get a better view. But I became hasty in my movement, and a harsh pain shot through my leg, causing me to crumble to the ground with a sharp cry. Remembering the situation we were in, I threw my hands over my mouth to silence myself. But it was too late. The bandit turned around to find Lyn approaching him, and he moved to attack.

            Lyn’s pace slowed, and her stance became rigid. She was frightened—not significantly, but enough to put her in a vulnerable position. Her confidence had fled like a deer that had been startled by a predator. I had to fix my blunder and fast. “Lyn, stop moving and lower your stance.”

            She obeyed, halting her advance, crouching low, gripping the handle of her blade, ready to strike. The bandit was only five feet away. He brought his axe up to strike. I saw the opening. His stance and the way he held his weapon revealed that he would swing diagonally. A tricky strike to dodge if you don’t know it’s coming.

            “Now, step left and duck, strike at his waist, and come around with a downward chop.”

            Lyn ducked under the axe just in time, slashing the bandit’s waist on the draw. The bandit had heard my command, though, and he managed to redirect his weapon quick enough to slice Lyn’s back. Lyn flinched but followed up her attack by spinning on her foot, seizing the opportunity to strike while the bandit was still staggering from her attack. She brought her sword over her head and dropped it into her enemy’s back, felling him. With her opponent slain, Lyn slumped to the ground and reached for her injury.

            “Lyn!” I exclaimed, rushing up to her and ignoring the intense burning sensation in my legs. “Damn it! I’m sorry. I should have stayed put. I was trying to get a better angle.”

            To my surprise, she smiled at me like I had merely bumped into her in passing. “It’s fine, Mark. I know you didn’t mean to do that. And thanks to you, I was able to defeat that bandit.”

            “But you’re injured,” I said, motioning to her tunic soaking in her blood.

            “I have a vulnerary in my satchel here.” She pulled the satchel from her belt and produced a leather flask handing it over to me. “Use it on my wound.”

            I popped open the container, and a stout herbal scent assaulted my nostrils. I waved it away and then moved to pour the remedy on Lyn’s wound, but I stopped short. Lyn had unlatched the top part of her nomadic garb. The injury wasn’t nearly as severe as it had looked on the outside, but it was slowly bleeding out over her now showing undergarment that was causing my chest to tighten and my face to become warm for some reason.

            “What’s the matter?” she asked, noticing I wasn’t moving.

            I shook off the strange sensation. “Oh uh, nothing. Sorry.” I moved in and applied the vulnerary to the wound, trying to figure out what had happened to me. That strange feeling hadn’t arisen when I first saw Lyn in the Yurt nor at any point out here in the field. It only just happened now. Why? Was it because Lyn had killed that bandit, or was it because she was injured? I had felt guilty about my mistake causing her to be wounded, but seeing Lyn now produced an entirely different feeling—a stirring that caused my heartbeat to accelerate. But it wasn’t until I had seen Lyn pull off her garb that the sensation happened. Why?

That would be a question for another time. The feeling had passed. In a matter of seconds, the bleeding stopped, and Lyn pulled the top part of her garb back up. “Thank you, Mark. That feels much better. Why don’t you use the rest of that to alleviate the pain in your legs before we head to the Ger?”

“Good idea.” I started to drink the vulnerary but spit it back into the flask as soon as it touched my tongue. It was a vile liquid, but the tiny bit that did make it down my gullet sent instant relief through my body and straight into my legs. I endured the bitter drink to finish it off, and the ache in my legs eased.

With both of us rejuvenated, we turned our attention toward the final bandit, staring at us from the Ger. He made no move toward us, so we moved toward him with caution. At 25 yards, the bandit lifted his axe into a battle-ready position.

“Who do you think you are?” he said with an arrogant tone. “You think you can stand up to Batta the Beast?”

I set a hand on Lyn’s shoulder and whispered to her. “Be careful. This guy looks stronger than the previous bandit. But he also looks a bit slower. Use your speed to make the first strike, then move out of the way of his retaliation.”
            “Okay.” Lyn moved closer to Batta and prepared to draw her sword. Batta took a few steps toward Lyn, and she spotted her opening without me. She lunged forward, pulling out her sword and slicing his chest. Her sword made contact, but it did not slow Batta down. He swung his axe horizontally. Lyn attempted to dodge to the left. The axe caught her, grazing her stomach. Lyn staggered backward, putting a hand over the wound but keeping her sword up in case of a counterattack.

I cursed myself for not considering that this brute could withstand an attack long enough to strike back. Thankfully, Batta didn’t move for another attack. His wound must have forced him on the defensive just like Lyn—at least for the moment. I had to think of something fast to give Lyn an opening. I scanned the ground for any rocks I could throw at the brigand and distract him. There were none, so I tried the only other thing I could think of.

“Hey, you dastard,” I shouted, trying to put intimidation behind my words. “You got some nerve attacking a woman like that! Why don’t you pick on someone more honorable?”

“Coming from a man having a woman fight in his stead,” he replied not turning to look at me. “This woman wields a sword like any other man. She is plenty honorable. Once I deal with her, you’re next, little man.”

Ouch. That shot to my pride went deep.

“Mark,” Lyn said through gritted teeth. “It’s all going to come down to this next blow.” She took a deep breath and readied her blade. “If I fall, I want you to flee. You must escape!”

My first response would have been to say I’m not leaving. But I knew better. I had no weapon, and if Lyn fell, there would be nothing I could do. If I didn’t flee, Batta would cut me down. But where would I run? Batta left no more time for me to think. He stepped in with a two-handed horizontal slash that Lyn would not be able to deflect with one hand on her injury, and he had moved in so close that there was nowhere for her to dodge.

I took a risk on the first idea that popped into my mind. “Lyn, jump!”

What happened next caused me to believe I was still dreaming. Lyn’s figure flickered and then split into three as she sprung upward over the axe leaving it to pass through where she had been standing. Batta had to recover from his unwieldy swing, and the three Lyns brought their swords down in one swift blur. One through his right bicep, another through his waist, and the last one into his back and driving through his front.

            The axe fell from Batta’s hands. He stumbled forward, clutching his wounds. “What? How… How did you…?” The brigand crashed to the ground. Lyn wiped the blood from her sword on her slain enemy's clothes and sheathed her blade. I let out a sigh of relief and went to congratulate her, but I wasn’t the only one.

            A crowd of people emerged from the Ger, and an elderly lady stepped up to Lyn.

            “Thank you, young one. You have our gratitude for dealing with those bandits.”

            “I was glad I could help.” Lyn looked back out at the slain nomad that the first bandit had killed. “I’m sorry I couldn’t save him.”

            “Yes, it is unfortunate that Rayson fell. But he died doing his duty, and we will give him a proper burial.” She turned back to Lyn. “As for you, please allow us to tend to that wound you suffered in the fight. We can’t have our brave defender bleed out after attaining such a victory.”

            “Thank you,” Lyn replied, struggling to bow. “I accept the kind offer.” She walked toward the Ger, and I followed after her.

            “And just where do you think you’re going, young man?” The elderly lady chastised. “Looking to steal a peek at a young woman, while we treat her wounds? Have you no shame!?”

            “Huh…?” I didn’t have a response to that. What was wrong with me watching them treat Lyn? I had just treated another wound of hers a few minutes ago. “I just want to make sure my friend will be okay.”

            “Your friend will be fine. But you will have to wait out here until we finish. You have no business being in here.”

            “I’ll be fine, Mark,” Lyn said in that tone she had when I first woke up. “Go ahead and return to the Yurt. Eat some more of the stew to regain your strength. I should be back sometime later tonight.” Another woman came up next to Lyn and urged her to follow her into the Ger. Lyn complied and disappeared inside.

            I was about to argue but thought better of it. As ridiculous as the nomads were being right now, they didn’t intend to harm Lyn, and Lyn herself seemed to be calm about the situation as well. So, I began to head back to the Yurt.

            “Young man,” the elderly woman called.

             Sharp pain throbbed in the back of my head at the sound of her voice. But I turned to her with a forced smile. “Yes?”

            A smile appeared on her face. “Don’t think that your part in the fight went unnoticed. You have as much of our thanks as she does.” The woman pulled a small pouch out and extended it to me. “Here, take this as compensation for the danger we put you two in.”

            My forced smile relaxed into a natural one, and I put my hand up. “Please keep it. Your gratitude is payment enough for us. Just take care of my friend.”

            The elderly woman nodded. “I promise you we will.”

            With that, we parted.

It was dark by the time Lyn returned. I had just finished another bowl of stew when she walked in. They replaced her nomadic garb with a fresh one, and if there were bandages, they were hidden beneath the garb. Her demeanor also appeared to be healthy. If I didn’t know any better, I wouldn’t have assumed her injured at all. Those nomads certainly knew their first aid.

            “How are you doing?” I asked as she stepped over to the stool across from me.

            “Much better. I’m sorry if I worried you.”
            “I should be the one apologizing. I sorely underestimated that bandit’s power.”

            “It’s not your fault, Mark,” she replied. “I should have been quicker.”

            Was she defending my mistake? Had she lost too much blood?

            “I’ll need to be stronger if I am to survive,” she said under her breath.

            The statement caught me off guard. “What?”

            Lyn’s gaze dropped to the ground for a moment with the mien of someone trying to hide a serious injury. “Mark, there’s something I want to ask you.” Her tone turned grave. “You have experience in the ways of war. I was wondering if you would allow me to travel with you.”

            I nearly fell off the cot in shock. Lyn wanted to travel with me? Even after I had almost gotten her killed twice? She really had lost too much blood. Yet, her countenance was sober. I couldn’t deny that she wasn’t wholly adept with a sword. She hesitated before going to fight the bandits, but she seemed to gain more confidence when I told her I would help her. She valued my aid; I could see that much. However, I really didn’t know where I was going to go next.

            But that didn’t matter. This wasn’t about traveling to some destination. This was about training a woman who probably hadn’t received much training. To her, I must have been her chance to grow stronger to the point that she could defend herself and others. The battle today had given her a taste of what she could become. And I would be overjoyed to be the person to help her become stronger. But I couldn’t just say yes.

            “I will allow it, Lyn, but only if you get permission from your parents.” As protective as those nomads in the Ger were, her parents must have been doubly so. The last thing I wanted was for an angry father to hunt me down for stealing his daughter.

            “You… want me to get permission from my parents?” Lyn’s voice became even more solemn, and she turned her gaze back to the ground. “My mother and father died six months ago.”

            Damn! That explained why there weren’t other nomads living in this Yurt with her. I was stupid to assume that her parents might have been in the Ger. No one had claimed her as his or her daughter. By the eight! I was such an idiot.

            Tears streamed from her eyes. “My people—the Lorca—they don’t…” A painful inhale interrupted her. “I’m the last of my tribe.”

            So not only were her parents dead, but her entire tribe had also perished. She didn’t even have any relations in that Ger.

            “Bandits attacked, and… they killed so many people,” Lyn continued through her tears. “The tribe was scattered. My father was our chieftain, and I wanted to protect our people. But I was young, and our people were old-fashioned. They wouldn’t follow a woman. No one would follow me.” She subdued a sob and looked up at me with an apologetic look. “I’m sorry. I’ve been alone for so long.”

            She took a deep breath to suppress her crying. “No. No more. I will shed no more tears.” She remained silent for a moment longer before looking back up at me. “Thank you. I’m better now.” She smiled at me as if nothing happened.

            Was she really over it? That was quick. Either this woman had some strange mental disorder, or she knew how to deal with sorrow. Crazy or remarkable, I knew what I had to do.

            “Mark, I want—” she said before I could speak. “I want to become stronger so that I can stop the bandits from killing others. Today’s battle taught me something. I won’t become stronger by sitting here alone. Mark, tell me you’ll train me, that you’ll let me travel with you!”
            “Well, Lyn. Considering what you have told me, I think it would benefit us both to travel together. You want to get stronger through training with me, and I don’t have any memory of who I am or where I came from, so I might as well—”

            “Wait,” Lyn interrupted. “You don’t know who you are? But you said your name was Mark.”

            She caught me. “I did, but I…” I didn’t want to tell her that the only reason I said that was because that was what I had been called in my dream. “That’s all I know: my name and my tactics. I have no memories of my past.”

            She tilted her head. “You’re an amnesiac, then?”

            “I guess so.” I pinched my chin to dredge up something more but to no avail. “I have no idea how I ended up here. And seeing as I don’t really know where to go, it would be in our best interest to travel together.”

            Lyn’s face lit up, and she jumped to her feet, clenching her fists in triumph. “This is perfect! We’ll be better off working together, I know it! You’ll be my master strategist, and I will be your peerless warrior. And together, we can figure out something about your past while we travel. Oh, thank you, Mark, thank you!” She threw her arms around me suddenly, and I threw my arms back, trying to catch us.

            “Oh! I’m sorry, Mark!” She released me and stepped back. “I forgot your legs are still healing.”

            “You’re fine. I should be better by tomorrow morning. Do you know where the nearest town is?”

            Lyn nodded. “Bulgar is the commercial center of Sacae. It's just a few miles east of here.”

            “Great. Then tomorrow we will head for Bulgar. Perhaps we can pick up a few jobs at a guild to make some money. That would be a good way for us to start.”

            “Then let’s get some sleep,” Lyn replied. She extinguished the torch, and the darkness enveloped us. “Good night, Mark.”

            “Good night.”

Despite her excitement, Lyn fell asleep quickly. It took me a little longer to fall asleep, however. I feared that my nightmare from before would recur. There was no doubt in my mind that Lyn was one of the people from that dream. But there was still so much left unanswered. Where were the other two men, and how had I been towering over them? It was pointless to worry about it. Right now, we were in the middle of a field, away from any foreboding green halls. And tomorrow, we would be heading out for an adventure of our own.

*     *     *     *     *

We arrived in Bulgar just past noon the next day. The town was bustling with activity, and there were plenty of merchants to fulfill anything we might need for our journey, whatever journey we might have been going on. We hadn’t decided on where we were heading yet. After Lyn and I stocked up on supplies, we planned to head for a guild to try and find a job. But a part of me remained hesitant to go there. Lyn had barely been able to take down the two bandits from yesterday, and I had nearly gotten her killed twice. There might not have been any jobs within our league.

            Of course, that was a stupid notion. There would be something that we could handle. And I was starting to feel stronger. I could wield a sword of my own again. At the very least, we could handle a simple delivery request or potentially an escort so long as we didn’t travel into too dangerous territory. I would have to rely on Lyn’s judgment for that consideration since I was unfamiliar with the area.

            “Mark, over here!” Lyn called to me, waving from the fountain near the entrance to the town. A couple of bags packed to the point that the straps strained unhappily were at her feet. “There’s an adventurer’s guild in another district. We can get there by crossing the field through this gate.”

            “Wow, Lyn. That’s a lot of stuff,” I said, eyeing the packs as I approached her. “How were you able to pay for all that?”

            She hoisted one of the bags over her shoulder. “I sold my Yurt and my belongings inside.”

            “Wait, what?” I replied, dumbfounded. As far as I knew, that was all that she owned. “You sold your Yurt? Where are you planning on living when we return?”

            “Well, we’re not going to be back anytime soon,” she replied. The unconcern for her choice was plain on her face. “If I didn’t sell the Yurt, bandits would eventually ransack it. I can always find another Yurt if we return.”

            “If we return?”

            Another pleasant smile appeared. “Of course. There’s no telling where our journey will take us. It could be years before we ever came back here.”

            I tucked my hands behind my head and exhaled gradually as I thought about where our future travels would take us. “So you’re in this for the long haul, huh?”

            Her smile disappeared. “Are you not?”

            “Ye-yes! I mean no!” I swallowed any more words that tried to escape through my careless stammering. “No, I mean I am.” I came up with a valid excuse as quick as I could. “I’m just still trying to piece together who I am. You have a goal, and I… Well, I guess I’m along for the ride.”

            Now she frowned. “So helping me train to be able to fight bandits isn’t your goal as well?”

            “No! I mean, yes. No, I did mean no. I mean... Gah!” I clutched my head to shut myself up.

            Lyn put a hand over her mouth to smother a mischievous giggle. “Mark, relax. I’m just teasing you.”

            “Teasing?”

            “Yeah. I’m having fun at your expense.” Her cheeks flushed as she glanced off to the side. “Though that sounds a little bad when I say it out loud.”

            “Oh.” I wiped my hands over my face, still not understanding what she meant. I guessed it wasn’t negative by the way she smiled. “What I’m trying to say is I’m with you, Lyn. Whatever we face, I will be there to guide you.”

            “I know, Mark,” she gave me that brilliant smile from when I first woke up. “And I truly appreciate your willingness to take me on as your pupil.” Her complexion returned to normal. “And who knows? Maybe somewhere along our journey, we will find out where you came from.”

            I returned the smile as I picked up the other pack, trying not to let the worry of my mental complications show. “Yeah, maybe.”

            “Oh, my heart! What a dazzling vision of loveliness!” a voice rose over the din of the town.

            A man in a green suit of light armor and tufts of brown hair poking out of a headband came riding up to Lyn on his horse with a big smile. I recognized the armor as being common among Cavaliers. Thick plates covered his forearms, shoulders, and his chest, as well as the front of his shins. However, he only wore the leather buffer under his armor around his hands and lower torso to make riding and fighting from horseback easier. But these types of fighters were usually seen as part of conventional armies or serving royal houses, none of which existed here in Sacae, according to Lyn.  

            Lyn confirmed my confusion with an equally baffled look at the man. “Hm?”

            The man clasped his hands together and leaned down closer to her. “Wait, o beauteous one! Would you not favor me with your name? Or better yet, your company?”

            Lyn glared at the man. “Where are you from, sir knight, that you speak so freely to a stranger.”

            No one could fault her for being disrespectful, at least.

            The man pushed his chest out and crossed his fist in front of it. “Ha! I thought you would never ask! I am from Lycia! I hail from the Caelin canton, home to men of passion and fire!”

            “Shouldn’t that be ‘home to callow oafs with loose tongues’?” Lyn responded, unimpressed.

            “Oooh… You’re even lovely when you’re cruel.”

            The guy was persistent, but Lyn scowled and turned to me. “Come on, Mark. I have nothing more to say.”

            “Wait, please…” the man said as we began to walk past him. We hadn’t made it two feet when another cavalier with bracing orange hair and red armor came riding up in front of our path.

            “Sain! Hold your tongue!” the other man said, completely oblivious to us.

            “Ah, Kent!” Sain replied, apparently forgetting about his “vision of loveliness.” “My boon companion! Why so severe an expression?”

            Kent’s face contorted in anger. “If your manner were more serious, I wouldn’t have to be so severe! We still have a mission to complete, Sain!”

            “Sirs, if you would,” I said, attempting to grab their attention.

            “I know that,” Sain replied. “But how could I remain silent in the presence of such beauty? It would have been discourteous!”

            “Gentlemen,” I tried again.

            “What do you know of courtesy!?” Kent yelled at his companion

            “Excuse me!” Lyn shouted even louder.

            Both heads turned toward her.

            “You’re blocking the road. If you would be so kind as to move your horses…”

            “O-of course!” Kent grabbed his reins and pulled his horse aside. “My apologies…” His words faded as he stared at Lyn like he had fallen into some trance.

            “Thank you,” Lyn replied. “You, at least, seem honorable enough.”

            “Hm?” He said, coming out of his trance. “Pardon me, but… I feel we’ve met before.”

            Lyn raised a brow of confusion toward him. “I beg your pardon?”

            This guy too? It was becoming quite suspicious that these two men were taking such an odd interest in Lyn. And they were utterly disregarding me. Maybe that’s why my chest was growing hotter.

            “Hey!” Sain cried out. “No fair, Kent! I saw her first!”

            Lyn clenched her jaw and her fists. I could hear the anger injected into her words. “It seems there are no decent men among Lycia’s knights!” She grabbed my hand and pulled me past the cavaliers. “Let’s go, Mark! I’ve run out of patience.”

            “Wait, please! It’s not like that,” Kent called. But Lyn was deaf to his call. I could make out the conversation he was having with his comrade as we left the town.

            “Sain, you lout!”

            “Huh? Not like that? I thought you were…”

            “I am NOT you!” The townspeople must have been looking at them because Kent returned his tone to normal. “Come, we must follow her. I suspect she might be—“

            “Be what? She’s our mission? You’re joking!” The sounds of hooves clattering over cobblestone echoed behind us. “Wait!”

            “Lyn, I think we’re going to want to hurry into the woods.”

            “Why?” she asked, turning to look at me. Her eyes went past me back toward the town. “Oh no, those knights are pursuing us. Hurry! Run!”

            Lyn pulled me out into the field, and we were halfway to the forest when Lyn looked back past me to see where the cavaliers were. “Good, it seems the guard has stopped them. We should be able to lose them in-”

I pulled Lyn to me out of range of the axe coming for her.

            “What?” She followed my stern gaze to her assailant.

            A creepy smile wrinkled the brigand’s grotesque face. “Heh heh hehhh… Aren’t you the pretty one!”

             “What do you want?” I questioned, stepping in front of Lyn. Someone needed to be honorable for once.

            The brigand didn’t bother to look at me. “Your name is Lyndis, is it not?”

            “What did you call me?” Lyn asked, concern heavy in her voice. “…Who are you?”

            The brigand cracked an even dirtier smile. “Such a waste. An absolute waste. The things I’ll do for gold… Ah, well. Time to die, darling!” The brigand raised his axe to strike again, but this time I pulled out my sword and deflected his blow.

            The smile disappeared. “Get out of the way, boy.”

            “You really think it’s going to be that easy?” I stated.

            “Mark, what are you doing?” she whispered. “You’re still too weak to fight.”

            “He doesn’t know that,” I whispered back. “It’s all part of the strategy. Now quick! Give me a hand!”

            Lyn nodded, pulling out her blade and coming up next to me.

            The brigand gave us another amused smile. “I woulda made her death clean and quick. But I guess now I gotta share the fun.” He cupped his hand next to his mouth. “C’mon out, boys!” Three more brigands appeared out of the trees surrounding us.

            “Oh no,” Lyn said. “There’s more than we can handle.”

            “It’s okay,” I reassured her. “Follow my lead.”

            “Okay,” she said, finding her confidence.

            I’m glad she found it because I was bluffing. I honestly had no idea what we were going to do. I was currently next to useless in a fight, and Lyn’s last enemies were those brigands from yesterday that almost killed her. If all four of these brigands rushed us, we would not survive. I had to think of something fast. These brigands were slow… Maybe I could wait for…

            “Hey! There she is!” A familiar voice called from behind.

            “Huh?” The lead brigand looked past us.

            We turned around to find Kent and Sain riding up to us.

            “Hold! You there!” Sain shouted at the brigands. “What is your business?”

            “You knew the cavaliers were coming,” Lyn said to me. “Good thinking. They can help us out.”

            “Huh,” I replied, still in utter shock at our good fortune. “Uh, I mean, yeah. That’s right. Certainly these two gentlemen will be willing to help us out, right guys?”

            “Indeed,” Sain agreed. “Such numbers against a girl and a cripple? Cowards, every one of you!”

            “That’s right!” I joined in on his heroic speech. Then I processed what he said. “Hey, wait, I’m not a cripple!”

            “Really?” Sain said with a shocked expression that I could not discern as sarcastic or legitimate. “By your slight limp and poor fighting stance, I assumed you were debilitated at birth.”

            Lyn giggled, and I flattened my gaze at him. This must have been that teasing Lyn mentioned earlier. “Look, I was injured recently and still recovering. Can you give us a hand?”

            Sain puffed his chest up again. “Any man willing to step in to protect one so beauteous is a comrade of mine.” 

            Lyn stepped forward. “Thank you. You are the men from—”

            A brigand charged forward to attack Lyn, but Kent rode between them, cutting him off with his horse. “We can discuss that later. It appears these ruffians mean to do you harm. If it’s a fight they want, let them look to me!”

            Sain rode up next to his companion, drawing a lance. “Stand back! I’ll take care of this!”

            “You both can have at them!” I yelled. “Sain, you take the one on the left. Kent, you take the one on the right. Lyn and I will take the two in the middle.”

            “Right!” Kent said, charging for his target.

            “Watch me, my angel!” Sain called, heading for the brigand attempting to determine how to fight a knight on horseback.

            “You’re sure we can handle those two, Mark?” Lyn asked. “They seem a bit tougher than the two we fought yesterday.”
            “Look again,” I said, pointing to the brigand next to the leader. “That one is intimidated by the cavaliers and will be easy to dispatch. Watch his movements and strike when he is open. I’ll be right behind you.”

            As I predicted, the brigand was slow, and he telegraphed his attack plainly for Lyn to parry. The two trained knights of Caelin easily defeated their foes, though Sain took a little bit longer because he was trying to make sure Lyn saw his heroics, and he was trying to fight an axe wielder with a lance until Kent told him to use his sword.

When the leader was all that was left, I ordered Kent and Sain to flank him. With his attention having split between three enemies, it only took a few seconds for him to leave an opening, and Kent was able to cut him down from behind. After the battle, I had the two knights sweep the area for any more brigands while Lyn and I checked the corpses for valuables and supplies.

            “We’re lucky those knights came along, aren’t we?” Lyn said to me.

            “Yes.” I took a deep breath. I knew what needed to be said. “Lyn, I need to be honest with you. I wasn’t sure what we would do back there before they showed up. In all likelihood, we would have been killed.”

            “I know, Mark. I could tell by the way you stood in front of me. My father did the same when the bandits attacked our tribe. He told me to run… I’m glad you didn’t.”

            I turned and looked at her expecting to find a dark and sorrowful expression of recollection. Instead, she caught my gaze with a small smile that, for some strange reason, filled me with warmth as it had back in her Yurt when I awoke. Although she remembered a painful memory, she did not cry or even frown, and I was starting to see the veritable strength of this woman.

            “The forest is clear, Mark,” Kent said, riding back up to us. “That was the last of them.”

            His arrival broke me from my thoughts. “Ah! Good work. Thank you all for your help.”

            “Our pleasure,” Kent said, bowing his head to me. “May we have a word with you two?”

            I turned to Lyn for her response.

            She gave me an incredulous look, likely expecting some objection. I merely shrugged. The knights had come to our aid. I figured they deserved to talk with us if they wished. When she saw where I stood on the subject, she let out a deep sigh and turned back to Kent. “I suppose your assistance merits a moment of our time. You may speak, but any irritating attempts at charm and we part ways without another word.”

            “Agreed.” Kent shot a look at Sain.

            Sain dropped his head in melancholy. “Agreed.”

            “We have ventured from Caelin,” Kent started, “in Lycia, in search of someone.”

            “Lycia…” Lyn said to herself. “That is the country beyond the mountains in the southwest, isn’t it?”

            “Correct,” Kent replied quickly, ensuring Sain didn’t get a chance to say anything stupid. “We’ve come as messengers to the lady Madelyn who eloped with a nomad some 19 years ago.”

            Lyn’s eyes grew wide at his words. “Madelyn?” She recognized that name.

            “Our lord the marquess of Caelin’s only daughter,” Kent continued. “He was heartbroken his daughter would abandon him so. Eventually, the marquess simply declared that he had no daughter.”

            Sain spotted his moment. “And then this year, we received a letter from Lady Madelyn. It said that she, her husband, and their daughter were living happily on the Sacae Plains. The marquess was ecstatic to learn he had a granddaughter of 18 years.” Sain tilted his head back in a wistful fashion. “I remember the smile on his face when he announced that he’d suddenly become a grandfather.” Sain regained his solemnity when he saw Kent giving him a look. “The granddaughter’s name is Lyndis. This was also the name of the marquess’ wife, who passed away at an early age.”

            “Lyndis?” Lyn repeated.

            “That she should bear this name thawed the marquess’ heart,” Sain continued. “Now, his only wish is to meet his daughter’s family at least once. This is why we’re here.”

Up until this point, Kent had been fervent in his explanation, but now he became thoroughly downcast. “We didn’t know that Lady Madelyn died a few days after sending her letter… We only learned this shortly after we arrived here in Bulgar. But we also learned all was not lost,” Kent replied, finding his enthusiasm again. “Her daughter yet lives. We heard that she was living alone on the plains…” Kent stared away toward the ground for a moment picking his words carefully. “I… I knew it immediately when I saw you. You are the lady Lyndis.”

            Lyn folded her arms, unconvinced. “Why would you think that…?”

            “Your resemblance to your departed mother is remarkable,” Kent replied.

            “What?” Sudden curiosity sparkled in Lyn’s eye like a ray of light against a raindrop. “Did you know my mother?”

            Kent shook his head. “I’m sorry to say I never met her directly, but I saw her portraits in Castle Caelin.”

            Lyn let her gaze fall to the ground as well, not out of sorrow or pain but in quiet contemplation. “To the rest of my tribe, I was always Lyn. But when I was with my parents… When it was just the three of us, I was Lyndis.” She inhaled and lifted her head to the sky, shutting her eyes. “It’s all so strange. I was all alone in the world, and now I have a grandfather. Lyndis… I never thought I would hear that name again.” Lyn’s eyes burst open. “Wait! That bandit!” She looked to me. “He called me Lyndis, too!”

            “That’s right…” I agreed, remembering the bandit’s words. “He did.” I turned toward the cavaliers with severe suspicion. “How did a bandit know that name?”

            A look of genuine shock wrinkled Kent’s face. “He did!? How could he—”

            Sain interjected. “He was a henchman of Lord Lundgren, wasn’t he?

            “Lundgren?” Lyn repeated. “Who’s that?”

            “He’s the marquess’ younger brother,” Kent explained. “Everyone assumed the lady Madelyn was gone forever. This made Lord Lundgren heir to the marquess’ title.”

            I finished putting the pieces together. “Which means Lyn is the only person standing in the way of him and the throne.”

            Sain nodded at me before looking at Lyn. “Your existence is an obstacle to your granduncle’s ambitions, milady.”

            “That’s—” Lyn couldn’t understand it. “But I have no interest in inheriting any title!”

            “Unfortunately, your granduncle is not the sort of man to believe that,” Sain said. “We believe the attempts on your life will persist.”

            Kent nodded in agreement.

            Lyn crossed her arms and released her tension in a shrug. “What should I do?”

            “Accompany us to Caelin,” Kent stated. “Continuing on this way is dangerous.”

            Lyn looked to me for my opinion again. I merely shrugged again. If she really was going to be hunted, then two trained cavaliers would be better able to keep her safe than I would. Yet, I couldn’t rid myself of my suspicions about where these two cavaliers’ loyalties lied and if what they told us was the truth. It seemed rather convenient that these two show up right as bandits are hunting for Lyn. But they had aided us against those bandits when they could’ve easily killed us themselves, and Kent’s surprise had been authentic. For the time being, they seemed trustworthy. And regardless of my misgivings, it seemed Lyn wanted to see her grandfather, the only family she had left. I doubted my mistrust of the knights would convince her not to seek out her remaining kin. I was disappointed we would have to separate so early in our journey, but I couldn’t let my selfishness or my caution keep her from happiness if the knights genuinely meant to see her safely back to her grandfather.

            Lyn let out a heavy sigh. “I feel I have little choice. I will go with you.” She turned back to me. “Mark… I’m sorry. This changes everything.”

            I forced a smile. Her fate was out of my hands now. “It’s all right, Lyn. This is fantastic news. You have a grandfather, and he wants to see you!”

            Her complexion brightened. “I know, and now we have a direction we can take while you help me train.”

            My head tilted in confusion. “Help you train? You mean you want me to come with you?”

            “Of course! Your companionship would do much to ease my journey.” Lyn revealed her own confusion. “Did you believe I did not wish for you to join me?”

            I opened my mouth to reply but closed it and shook my head first. “I don’t know. I guess I’m just foolish.”

            She grabbed my arm and found my eyes that had wandered away in embarrassment at believing she wouldn’t want me to come with her. “Mark, you know your advice is invaluable to me. I would never dismiss you so simply. But I know the journey will be long and dangerous, so I don’t want you to feel obligated to follow me if you would rather go your own way. But…” Her hand fell away. “…I must do this. My grandfather… He’s the only family I have left.”

            I had already known my decision since she told me that she still wished for my companionship, but apparently, she still didn’t know me that well. I put my fist under her chin and lifted it up so she could see my eyes. “Hey, come on. Don’t look like that. Ever since that first bandit injured you yesterday, I have felt responsible for your safety. And I would feel even worse if I abandoned you now. So if you will have me, I will go with you, Lyn.”

            “You will? Are you sure?”

            “I’m sure,” I said, not mentioning the fact that my concern for her safety was in regard to these knights.

            Her face beamed radiance while she hugged me. “Thank you, Mark!”

            My hand almost moved to my sword out of defensive instinct as Kent rode up to us. “Your grandfather will be overjoyed to see you, Lady Lyndis. I promise you.” He extended his hand to Lyn. “Please allow our horses to bear you as we travel.”

            Lyn grabbed his hand, and he pulled her up to his horse. “Thank you, Kent.”

            Sain rode up next to me but did not extend a hand. He just stared as Kent trotted away with Lyn. “Awww, Kent. Why do you get to carry the lady while I’m stuck with the cripple?”

            I rolled my eyes as I pulled myself up on the horse. Probably because he doesn’t want you scaring off your lady, you arse, I said in my head, secretly hoping that my reservations would prove true.

Chapter Text

Chapter 2

 My sword came up just in time to block the incoming blade that tried to catch my shoulder. I pushed back against the blade, took a step forward, and engaged my offense by striking low then high. My opponent retreated back a few steps. Our swords clanged together. I had the advantage, but my opponent did not leave me with an opening. I would have to attempt a different approach. I feigned a high strike. When my opponent moved to block, I slid back to slash low.

 For someone with a slower reaction time, my attack would've likely cut a hamstring, but my opponent knew how to read my moves. They dove over my blade before rolling away to gain some distance to recover. I didn’t let up, rushing in with an overhead strike to try and catch my opponent by surprise before they could return to their feet. My haste allowed me to bear down on my opponent, but they got to a knee and used their other foot to spring up at me like a coiled snake.

The strike forced me back and threw me off balance. I repositioned my sword to avoid the incoming thrust just in time, but I stumbled to the ground. Air exploded out of my lungs when I impacted with the ground. My body groaned in protest, refusing to cooperate until I supplied more oxygen. I should've been smarter. I underestimated my opponent's skill level, and now they had me dead to rights, stepping over me with their sword pointed at my face.

 "Guess that means I win this round," Lyn said, her sword grasped in both hands.

 "Not quite,” I replied. Lyn had made a fatal mistake, and I wasn't about to overlook it. I swept my legs sideways, bringing Lyn's leg out from under her. She threw out a hand to catch herself. And already on the ground, it was a simple matter for me to turn over, plant my forearm against the flat part of her blade, and move over her to bring my sword close to her neck.

 "Never stand so loosely. It will leave you vulnerable. Look at the difference between the position you had me in, and what I have you in now. Go ahead, try to break free."

 Lyn acquiesced, throwing her legs up in an attempt to flip me, but I had positioned myself further up from her legs, making the effort futile.

 "Nope, that won't work. You're not going to be able to flip an opponent like me. Here..." I pushed myself up to give her a bit more room. "Now tuck your legs into your chest and try again."

 Her knees came up, and she planted the bottom of her boots against my stomach. This time she pushed me back to my feet, and jumped back up ready for me to attack her again.

 "There you go. See the difference? You'll have a better chance to push an opponent off of you if you get yourself into a position where you can use more of your muscles. However, most enemies are not going to give you a chance to get into that position. And if a bigger opponent gets on top of you, even that maneuver probably won't save you. I'm not that heavy. But let's say that a bandit like Batta was to have you in that position. He's going to be too heavy to push off of you."

Seeing it was time for a lecture, Lyn let her sword arm drop to her side. "So I should avoid getting too close and just focus on dodging attacks?"

 "Not exactly…" My head tilted to the side as I thought about the next part of my explanation. "A stronger opponent is likely going to have more endurance than you. If all you do is dodge, then fatigue will eventually settle in." Something came to mind, and I held up my sword. "Here, let me show you something."

 Lyn mimicked my stance.

 "Okay. Now I want you to strike me as hard as you can."

 I put up my sword up ready to receive the strike. Lyn stepped in and pulled her sword back. Then with a loud cry, she swung her sword down into mine. The impact forced my weapon down, but my feet remained firmly planted in the grass, whereas Lyn took a step off to the side to recover.

 "Now it's your turn."

 Lyn put her blade up and widened her stance. I came at her with an overhead strike. I only put about seventy percent of my strength into the attack. As I predicted, the blow caused Lyn to stagger back.

 "This is your bane. Blow for blow, you're going to be overpowered by your opponent 90% of the time if you strike head-on. Do you remember how you defeated Batta?"

Lyn nodded. "I got behind him and was able to inflict a killing blow."

 Actually, you somehow split yourself into multiple replicas that each attacked on their own. But since I can't seem to come up with any explanation for it, I'm going to consider it a hallucination brought upon by desperation and whatever blow to my head that left me an amnesiac. There was no way Lyn would believe that.

 "Correct. Your boon is that you are incredibly agile and can land multiple hits on an opponent when you attack. There is no need for you to land a killing blow in a single strike. Multiple strikes will do an opponent in just as well, and it will be more effective in a prolonged engagement. If your opponent's only advantage over you is his or her strength, then your ability to dodge their attacks will nullify their advantage, leaving them open for you to unleash a flurry of strikes. Then you move back out of their range. Of course, that's considering that your opponent is on foot like you are." I motioned toward the two cavaliers who had been watching us spar. "Fighting a mounted opponent will require a different strategy, but that's for another time. It appears our companions are getting anxious to start the day."

 "Alright." Lyn folded her hands and bowed to me. "Thank you for the lesson, Mark."

 "You're welcome, Lyn."

 We went to join the cavaliers, and when they moved to meet us, my instincts to defend myself tried to force my arm to draw my sword. I repressed the urge but stayed on guard all the same. Just because they usually fought on horses didn't mean these two couldn't be deadly on foot. I had faith that Lyn and I could fend them off were they to become hostile. But these knights had years of experience behind them.

"You're quite knowledgeable in the ways of combat, Mark," Kent said. "What nation do you hail from?"

"Well…" I glanced toward Lyn with an expression asking for her aid. "I actually don't know. Lyn found me unconscious in the fields outside her home a couple of days ago, and when I woke up, I couldn't remember anything other than my name and my knowledge of military strategy."

Lyn continued the explanation. "We were planning to travel together in hopes of finding some answers about his past. And that's when you two found us."

"Is that so?" Kent rubbed his chin in deep thought. "It's not much to go on, but I have not heard of any tacticians matching your description in the employ of any noble houses in Lycia, so you might be able to mark that off as a potential origin."

"Could his golden eyes be characteristic of a certain region?" Sain asked.

Kent shook his head. "I thought about that. But I cannot think of any place where such a trait is commonplace."

"Golden eyes?" That was a strange observation to point out. Granted, I had never known my eyes were gold until now, but why was that a distinct characteristic? Lyn had never made specific mention of my eyes. And having different colored eyes seemed natural. Lyn had green eyes, Kent and Sain's eyes were brown, and there was a range of different eye colors in the citizens of Bulgar. Though now that I thought about it, gold was not one of those many colors. "Is there something wrong with that?"

Kent shook his head. "Not that I'm aware of. You are just the first person with such a peculiar feature that Sain or I have ever seen."

"I'll admit that I found it odd too," Lyn replied with a hint of shame. "I didn't want to be rude because I thought it might be a natural attribute of your home. My knowledge of the nations outside of Sacae is limited." She looked to the knights. "You said it was unlikely that Mark came from Lycia. But could he be from one of the other nations?"

Sain shrugged. "Not unless there is some undiscovered attribute with a race of people that hid away from the rest of the world. As Kent said, this is our first time seeing eyes like Mark's. If there were others, it is likely that reports of such groups of people would spread quickly."

"It's a trivial matter," I cut in, becoming uncomfortable with this attention. "We have no lead on my origins, and we already have a mission to carry out. Where are we right now?"

"We're about sixty miles southeast of Bulgar," Kent answered. He appeared just as eager to continue the journey. "There is a small town we passed through on our way here that we are planning to stop at tonight."

Lyn perked up at his words. "Ah! If that is true, would you all allow me a short detour? There is a sacred sword enshrined in an altar east of here. The people of Sacae go there to pray for safety at the onset of a long journey."

"Oh, how quaint!" Sain responded jovially.

Kent gave a nod of agreement. "The teachings of Elimine have the most followers in Elibe. It is nice to see that here, at least, the ancient customs are still observed."

"Elimine?" I asked having been entirely left behind in the conversation.

"She is a saint from the great war known as the Scouring that occurred almost 1000 years ago," Kent explained. But before he could continue, a woman awash with distraught came up to us.

"I beg your pardon. I did not mean to overhear you all. But did you mention you are headed east? To the altar?"

"Yes, we are indeed." Lyn acted on the woman's dismay first. "Is something wrong?"

"Please, you must hurry and help the priest there. I saw a band of local ruffians head in there not too long ago. They seemed intent on stealing the altar's sacred sword!"

"The Mani Katti…" Lyn's tone matched the urgency of the woman. "They're going to steal it? I cannot allow this to happen!" 

"Lyndis, what are you planning?" Sain asked, noticing that determined look.

Kent already understood Lyn's intentions. "The brigands will probably be expecting retaliation. If we go to the priest's aid, we will need to prepare."

"Perhaps you can benefit from something I saw earlier," the woman replied. "The bandits may have the main entrance guarded. However, one of the altar's walls is cracked and in poor repair. You might be able to create another entrance."

"That is helpful information." I nodded my head low in gratefulness. "Thank you."

"Please hurry. We're all counting on you!"

We set off immediately with Lyn guiding us. The temple wasn't far from where we had stopped. To avoid drawing attention on our way in, I had Lyn take us through the trees off of the path, and we arrived at the back end of the temple near the west side without being spotted by the bandits that were patrolling at the front. The woman had undersold the severity of the damage on the wall. There were already several broken bricks scattered in the grass, leaving a few holes in the side of the temple. I checked our surroundings to make sure no bandits were patrolling back here too, and then we approached the temple, leaving the horses in the trees.

I moved up to the damaged wall being careful not to touch it. Seeing it this close, it was a wonder that it was still standing even now. There were two men inside the temple. One was pacing in front of an altar that held a sword in its scabbard planted in the stone, and a fatter man watched him from the pillars closest to the platform.

"I only see two of them in there,” I whispered to my companions. “The others must be out front guarding the entrance." I stepped away from the wall. "Here's the plan. Kent and Sain will go and retrieve their horses. When you're ready, I will push on the wall. Then ride through the opening and make for the entrance. The man at the altar probably won't give chase, but the other should become distracted by you. Lyn and I will dispatch that ruffian while he's distracted, leaving the one at the altar all alone. It should be easy for us to deal with him if you two can keep the other bandits outside at bay. Use the narrow hall to reduce the number of enemies you will have to face at once."

"Understood," Kent said with a nod. "Let's go, Sain."

The cavaliers headed back to their horses, and Lyn stood up on her toes to try and see over me. "What kind of weapons are the ruffians using in there?"

I stepped aside to allow Lyn to take a look into the temple. She peered inside, being just as careful not to touch the wall, and I whispered to her. "The one up at the altar appears to have a sword, and the other is carrying an axe."

I waited for Lyn to examine her opponents. We would be the ones facing them so I wanted to make sure she prepared herself mentally. Our first few battles had been up against slow-moving axe-wielders that Lyn could outmatch easily with her speed. The man with the sword would be a different fight for Lyn. Though, I was confident in her after our training session today. And the fact that it would be two against one if everything went according to plan, I had no doubt we would succeed.

Someone big inhaled quietly behind me. I threw myself forward, pushing Lyn aside. But it was already too late for me. Pain erupted through my arm as an axe blade sliced into it, and in my instinct to avoid further damage, I threw myself away from it. This evasion resulted in me diving head first into the crumbling wall that came crashing down to the ground along with me. I threw my hands over my head to protect myself from the falling debris. Lyn grunted and there was a painful cry from what I guessed to be the man who attacked me being struck down.

"Mark! Lady Lyndis!" Kent shouted over the steady hoof beats of his approach.

My head sprang up. The swordsman at the altar stayed put, but the other man had pulled out an axe and was coming forward to execute me.

"Keep going," I shouted, pushing myself off the ground. I only made it up to one knee before my injury flared. I tumbled off to the side of the hole to clear the way for the cavaliers. Sain was the first to come riding into the temple, gaining the attention of the axe bandit by jabbing his lance at him while he maneuvered his horse toward the entrance. The strike had been meant as a feign, and Kent dropped a savage blow into the back of the distracted foe as he rode through the hole.

"Mark!" Lyn cried, stepping over the rubble to me. "Are you-" Her eyes told me the truth of my injury.

"Don't worry about me. There's still one more guy. Lyn? Lyn!" She was in too much shock to hear my words. "Lyn! Focus!" I grabbed her by her chin and directed it back to my face. "I'll be fine. You need to take care of that last bandit."

Lyn blinked a few times, and then I saw her coming back to reality. "Yes… Yes! Right."

"Remember our training session," I said, lowering my voice to not make the same mistake as our first encounter. "Use your speed and don't put yourself in a vulnerable position."

"Okay." Lyn stood back up and stepped toward her enemy.

"Who do you think you are?" He questioned coming down the steps toward her. "What chance do you think you have against me?"

Lyn responded by bringing her sword up and lowering her stance to prepare for an attack. The corner of the swordsman's mouth curved in amusement. He pulled out his sword, letting it hang low at his side as he approached. There was no mistaking his overconfidence by the way he seemed to swagger toward Lyn. He was confident the young woman who was a head shorter would not be able to put up much of a fight.

Lyn struck first, swinging her sword diagonally. The swordsman blocked the strike with one hand still wearing that smug grin. And if he had given Lyn more credit, he might've noticed her bringing her sword from below. She landed a hit on his sword arm. The man shrieked as his sword arm dropped. He stumbled away, using his other arm to help bring his sword back up. That ostentatious mien was gone now; his hubris was his downfall. I had expected nothing less.

This time Lyn waited for the swordsman to strike first. A smart move considering that the injury he had suffered frustrated his movements. He broadcasted his attacks plainly. Lyn was able to bring up her sword to block the strikes until he overextended himself. She dashed to the side. Her blade sliced through his other arm The man howled but did not let up. He knew he was on the ropes. He tried to catch Lyn while she was still in close. His blade came up in an underhand swing. Lyn stepped back two steps, just enough that the sword missed her by inches, only ruffling the hair from around her ears. The gap in his shirt stretched wide to display his barren chest. Lyn twisted her wrist and stabbed her sword straight through him.

"Argh!" The man gurgled, dropping his sword. "You… you…" Blood dribbled over his lips, and he crumbled.

Lyn didn't waste a second longer on her deceased enemy. She left her blade in him and rushed back to my side. "Mark! Hold on!" She pulled a vulnerary off her sash and brought it to my lips. "Drink."

I obeyed, taking down big gulps in spite of the disgust I had for the bitter remedy to put Lyn at ease. Instant relief flooded through me, and the pain diminished enough that I could stand back up, though Lyn clutched me tight.

"I'm sorry, Mark. I should've been paying attention to-"

"Hush. I have just as much of the blame as you. This isn't like how you got injured that first day."

"Mark!" Kent's voice echoed from the temple entrance. "Were you hurt? Is Lady Lyndis in trouble? Do you need assistance?"

"We're fine!" I called before Lyn could overexaggerate what happened to me. "How is the situation outside?"

"We finished off the last of the ruffians," Kent replied as he and Sain came back into the temple and dismounted their horses. "We saw you crash through the wall after getting hit by that brigand. How’s your injury?"

"Lyn gave me a vulnerary. I'll be okay."

"Did you see the priest anywhere?" Lyn asked.

"I am here."

We all turned to find an aged man hobbling out of a room behind the altar.

"Your clothing…" He was staring at Lyn with a certain sadness. "Are you of the Lorca tribe?"

She nodded. "I'm Lyn, the chieftain's daughter. Are you hurt, sir?"

"Thanks to you," he replaced the sadness with a cordial smile, "I am unscathed. You have my gratitude."

Lyn glanced toward the altar. "And the sword? Is it safe?"

"Yes." He stepped up to the altar. "I have sealed the sword safely away. Until I remove my spell, the sword cannot be drawn." He waved his hand over the sword and a low hum grew loud then faded. "Now, as a token of my gratitude, I shall allow you to lay hands upon the Mani Katti. Touch the blade's pattern, and pray for a safe journey."

"Thank you so much!" Lyn stepped up to the altar and grabbed the handle of the blade. And as soon as she did, the blade emitted a flash of light, causing Lyn to retract her hand. "What? The sword… It's… glowing."

"Ah. Hm…" The priest rubbed his chin as he moved in closer to examine the sword. "It's the power of the spirits. Lyn, they have looked into your soul, and they call out to you."

"What does that mean?"

"You are its rightful owner. You are to wield the Mani Katti."

Lyn staggered back in shock. "No… I can't… I couldn't…"

"It is the sword's wish. If you require proof, draw it from its sheath."

Lyn looked back to the sword, still unsure, but reached out and took hold of the sword once again. And this time, when she pulled the sword, it came out of its case. Lyn held the sword in her hands, staring at it in disbelief. "It came out… effortlessly."

"I never dared hope that I might meet the wielder of the Mani Katti in my life." The priest set a relieved hand on his chest. "I am indeed fortunate to see your sword reach your hands."

"My sword?"

There was a high air of peace about the priest now. "The spirits have foreseen your journey. You face a great many ordeals ahead of you, Lyn. Grip this sword, and meet your destiny head-on."

"Yes… Yes, sir!" Lyn descended the steps still gazing at the sword as she approached us.

"So this is the Mani Katti…" Sain said, enraptured by the glowing sword in Lyn's hands. "A blade with no equal."

Lyn’s shoulders sagged. "This is all so unbelievable. Perhaps the most famous sword in all of Sacae… in my hand."

"It's not so strange," Kent replied. "In fact, many legends tell similar tales… Special blades all over the land call out to their proper owners. And yet, when I saw you draw that blade, Lyndis… I felt something extraordinary. That sword was waiting for you. You were meant to draw it."

Lyn blushed furiously. "Stop it! I… I'm nothing special!"

"Clearly the blade disagrees." I took the sword from Lyn, and as soon as I did, the blade ceased to glow. But the moment I placed it back in Lyn's hand, the radiance returned.

"Think of it this way," Sain added. "Some weapons feel more comfortable in your hand, right? Well, the Mani Katti itself feels very comfortable with you. Does it make it any easier for you to accept? It doesn't appear that any of us can use it."

"It… does feel right in my hand. A blade that only I can wield. That seems reasonable enough. I can understand that." She looked at me and beamed just as brilliantly as the sword. "Look at it, Mark! My own sword! This must be a good omen."

"I don't know that much about omens. But if a sword has chosen you as its wielder, then it seems only reasonable that we should continue training. But we must return to the road before it gets any later." I turned to Kent and Sain. "Let's clean up the mess we made here and be on our way while we still have daylight."

"Ah! Mark!" Lyn grabbed my shoulder on my uninjured side. "That wound is worse than I thought. We must treat it now or it might become infected."

"We'll have time for that when we stop, Lyn. I'm feeling just fine. We need to clean this place and return to the road as soon as possible."

Lyn did not let up on her grip. "The vulnerary is just numbing your pain. We need to apply it to your wound directly, or else you might collapse trying to move one of these bodies. Kent and Sain can handle disposing of the bodies, right?"

 Sain slapped a fist against his chest. "Yes, there is no need for our lady to dirty herself with the refuse of war. Tend to Mark, and then afterward, I pray you might treat the wound that I suffered."

Kent grabbed the plate covering his comrade's shoulder and pulled him along. "Your bruise will heal just fine on its own."

Lyn did the same with me, dragging me out of the temple through the hole I had created until we were in the middle of the field. "Okay. Now take off your cloak and shirt, and lay on your stomach."

I was about to say something, but the glare she was giving me told me she would "help" me if I did not comply. So I complied. I unhooked my cloak and removed my shirt as she ran off to the trees where she had hidden her bag, and then I laid spread eagle in the grass and waited for her return. Lyn was digging through her pack when she came back. Then I heard her take in a sharp inhale and the contents of her bag jostled roughly together. There was more going on with Lyn than being worried about my wound, but I decided it would be in both our interests if I just stayed silent and let Lyn do what she felt she needed to.

Lyn took out a cloth and poured some of the water from her flask onto it. "When I told the nomads who tended to me that first night that I was planning to leave, they gave me some healing ointments and bandages. Your wound is deep. I'm sorry. This is going to sting a little bit."

She started by wiping down the area around the wound with the cloth. And then she worked on preparing the ointments. If they were meant to sting, then the vulnerary must have dampened my senses. Other than a slight burning sensation, I didn't feel much as she applied the medicine. But it did take her a while. As she rubbed the ointment into the wound, I could feel just how bad the damage was. The axe hadn't just sliced through my arm. It had made it across my back as well, curving downward. The injury wasn't just wide either based on how deep Lyn's finger went into my flesh. So much had happened in that short amount of time and my adrenaline had kept me from assessing the damage.

Out of curiosity, I took a look at my clothes. My cloak hadn't been stained that badly, but half of my tunic had been dyed red by the blood. It didn't surprise me all that much. The gash had been bleeding this entire time. What did surprise me was the quiet sniffling Lyn was trying to repress as she rubbed the ointment on the inside of the laceration.

Why was she crying? I wasn't dead. I wasn't even in danger of dying. This injury wasn't that severe, and it wasn't her fault that I suffered it. There wasn't any need for her to be upset. Ever since she had noticed my wound after the battle, she had been treating it like a spear had impaled me. There was no need for this level of despair. It wasn't healthy for her mental state.

"Lyn…"

"Okay." Her voice had become incredibly weak compared to the force that had undressed me and sent me to the ground a few minutes ago. "Sit up now. I'm going to wrap your wound."

I sat up, and she had me hold up my arm as she wrapped the bandages around the cut. It wasn't as big as the cut on my back, so she finished it in a matter of seconds. Then she moved behind me and I put my hands on my head. But as she wrapped this part of the wound, a sob burst from her mouth.

"Lyn? Are you okay?"

"I'm…" She paused to take a deep breath. "I'm fine…"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I told myself no more tears."

"I'm not going to die, Lyn. Your medicine is going to help me."

"I know… I know. I'm just… not used to seeing gruesome injuries up close."

That was a lie. Her unsteady tone made that obvious. But I still couldn't figure out why she was so upset. Regardless, I decided not to press her further. She was trying to restrain herself, and if she didn't want to be crying, I didn't want to push her further into her anguish. If she wanted to tell me what was wrong, she would.

Lyn came around to my front with the bandage and tied it off on my chest. Her cheeks still pulsed red, but she managed to smile. "There, that should do it." She glanced over my shoulder. "And it looks like Kent and Sain have finished. Do you need help getting up?"

"Na," I stood back up on my own, rolling my arms in an attempt to ease her anxiety. "The ointment is doing its job. Let's not waste any more time and get back on the road."

"Right." She bent down, retrieved my cloak, and handed it to me, but kept her head bowed to hide her face under her hair. "Your shirt is badly stained. I'm sure Kent or Sain will have an extra one you can borrow until we get to the village."

When I had taken my cloak from her, she headed off toward the trees without another word. I watched her go, still baffled at her strange dejection.

 "How are you, Mark?" Kent asked as he and Sain arrived. "Will you be okay to travel?"

"Yeah, I'm well," I replied, still watching Lyn as she entered the tree line.

"Did something happen to Lady Lyndis?" Sain asked, taking notice of her odd behavior as well.

 "She just needs time to recover from the battle," I lied since I didn’t know the actual problem. "This was her third fight and she’s still new to all of this. But I’m sure she'll be fine."

*     *     *     *     *

The rest of the day went by without incident. We did not encounter any more bandits, and Lyn returned to her usual benevolent self once we made it back to the path. We had been traveling east to get around a mountain range that separated the nation of Bern and Sacae, and then we would have to pass through Bern and head west to reach Lycia. With Kent and Sain’s horses, the four of us arrived at the village they mentioned at the foot of the mountains before sunset. But what we found shocked all of us, including Kent and Sain.

 "This place…" I said, aghast at the tragic scene before us. "It's…"

 "What happened to this place?" Kent said, just as shocked. "This village was still buzzing with people when we first passed through…"

The village appeared deserted. Some of the buildings had damage ranging from broken windows or doors to half of a house crumbling in on itself, and the signs of raging fires speckled the village like terrible black sores.

 "The entire area is in ruins," Sain replied. "Why didn't the marquess do anything to help?"

 "These are the Taliver Mountains. They’re home to a gang of vicious, ruthless bandits." Lyn's tone was as dismal as the village. And it seemed like this devastation didn't surprise her. "No marquess holds power here. My village was near here, on the other side of the mountains. My people were…" She dumped her head. "The Taliver bandits came at night. It took only one night. The survivors numbered less than ten, including me." Tears were pooling underneath her eyes when she raised her head again. But there was also fire burning over those repressed tears. "They're soulless beasts. I will never forgive them. Never."

 "Lyndis…" Sain could see the fire too. Kent did not say anything.

 "I am not running away. I will be back…someday. I'll be stronger…I will break their swords beneath me like twigs beneath a stallion's hooves. I will avenge my people. I'll do everything in my power."

 And just like that, the mask came off.

Sain sat up straight on his horse. "When the time comes, bring me with you."

 Sain's words shocked Lyn for a moment, but then the fire in her eyes died, and she smiled at him. "Sain."

 "Don't forget me either."

 "Kent…"

 I did not say anything. There were too many things running through my head at the moment. The most prominent being that the sympathy from the cavaliers was meant to bring Lyn's guard down so that she would easily fall into the trap they had set up here. It seemed almost too convenient that this once bustling village had been suddenly decimated on their way back through. How could I trust that the village wasn’t like this already? I couldn’t, so I came up with an idea to test their words.

 "There might still be bandits lurking in here." I dismounted from Sain's horse and drew my sword. "Let's take it slow through there. Kent, Sain. You two take the lead and keep watch for any ambushes. Lyn and I will watch the rear."

 "Understood," Kent replied as Lyn dismounted from his horse.

 The two cavaliers directed their horses along the main road scanning their respective sides for anything suspicious. Lyn did the same behind Kent. I kept my focus on the cavaliers, staring off to the side every so often if one of them looked my way. I also stayed within proximity to Lyn, ready to grab her and pull her through any of the ruins at the slightest sign of duplicity from the cavaliers.

Though as we continued through the village, I started seeing the truth more and more. The signs of destruction were fresh. Smoke still billowed into the sky in the distance around us, and the buildings that were still intact appeared to be boarded up. As we passed by one house, I spotted a face in the window that disappeared when it saw me look its way.

 "Hold up," I called, moving up to the house. "Hello? Is someone there?" I motioned Lyn toward me to act as support. If this was an ambush, I wanted her away from the cavaliers so we could make a run for it.

 "Leave us alone, you thugs!"

I stopped in my tracks. I was not expecting that response.

 "Go away! Go away! We've no more gold for you!"

 "No, wait!" Lyn spoke up. "We're not bandits! We want to help the village. Please listen!"

There were several seconds of silence in which I glanced around, appearing to check our surroundings. In actuality, I wanted to keep an eye on the cavaliers. Then another voice came from the house. "Remain inside, everyone. I'll go see what's happening." The door cracked open, and a man slipped through before shutting the door behind him. There was a bow strapped to his back and an archer's guard covering the left side of his chest. He regarded Lyn and I with a leery glare. "Not bandits, huh?" He ran his fingers through a few loose strands of his brown hair, looking us over. "So, who are you?"

"My name is Lyn. My companions and I were just traveling through when we saw the destruction. Did bandits do this to the village? Was it the Taliver?"

Before the archer could respond, a shriek pierced the air drawing all our attention further into town. Kent and Sain kicked their horses and took off in the direction of the distress. Lyn followed them too. I tried to call out for her, fearing that this was the trap the cavaliers had set, but her speed put her at the second house before I could say, "Lyn, hold on!" So I chased after her.

 "Hey! Wait!" The archer called.

I didn’t stop. The shriek filled the air a second time, and Lyn and the cavaliers were nowhere in sight. But after making it around a ruined wall, I found them in a small plaza. There was a group of disheveled men surrounding a white horse with two spotless wings coming out just above its front legs. A couple of the men were trying to keep it under control while three more were restraining a young woman with hair the color of lilacs, who struggled against the men and begged them to leave the horse alone.

"Florina?" Lyn called out from between Kent and Sain's horses. "Is that you, Florina?"

"Ah!" The young woman's eyes grew wide at the sight of her. "Lyn?"

"Florina! What are you doing in a place such as this?"

"Lyn!" The men restraining Florina were surprised by our arrival, allowing her to free herself from their grasp. She ran up to Lyn and grabbed her arms as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing. "Is it really you? I… I…"

"Come now, no crying!" Lyn drew Florina in close and rubbed her back.

"I'm sorry."

"You know each other?" I asked as I joined them.

"She's my friend. This is Florina, a Pegasus Knight in training from Ilia. She's a little uncomfortable around men." Lyn tapped Florina's back to get her attention since she had her face buried in Lyn's shoulder. "Tell me, Florina, what happened here?"

Lyn wasn't kidding about Florina's timidity. She almost seemed to completely disregard everyone else around her, even speaking low as if she only intended Lyn to hear her.

"Well… um… When I heard that you had left…I decided to follow you. Then I saw this village…I saw those men and flew down to ask if they had news of you. I didn't see the other two, and…well…"

"Did your pegasus land on them?" Lyn asked.

"Well, I… A little…" She nodded.

"Aha!" One of the bandits hollered. Admittedly, he did look a little more ragged than the rest. "You heard her! She admits her fault! Her flying mule stepped on me and my friend, and now she's got to pay!"

"Did you apologize, Florina?" Lyn asked, ignoring the man.

"Yes. I told them I was sorry many times over. They just wouldn't listen…" She buried her face back into Lyn's shoulder.

"Don't cry. It's all right."

The men seemed irritated, but they hadn’t become hostile toward us, so I guessed they might have been reasonable. We had some gold leftover from Lyn selling her Yurt, so I stepped forward to calm the tension. "Hey guys, listen. There's no need for any further trouble. This girl didn’t mean to hurt you. So let's just be on our way, okay? You don't appear to be too badly injured. Let's just give her back her pegasus, we’ll give you some gold for your injuries, and we can all move on with our lives."

"No chance," the man in front replied, pulling an axe from his back. "The girl goes with us—by force if need be!"

 I reached for my sword to deflect his attack but got kicked in the chest instead. My wound screamed in protest when I hit the ground, throwing half-visible stars into my vision. I turned over onto my stomach and pressed my head into the ground to try and alleviate some of the pain. When the stars disappeared, I looked up to see what had happened.

After being assaulted, I hadn't expected Lyn or the cavaliers to stand by. But there was no noise. Florina had been left alone with her hands over her mouth. I spun back onto my rear to find the man who had kicked me lying face down on the ground next to Lyn. Her Mani Katti steadily dripped blood and was pointed at the rest of the men. None of them made a move. They appeared to be too scared even to draw their weapons. Doing so probably would've been their last move. Kent and Sain had flanked them on the other sides But it was Lyn the men continued to stare at.

To my left, I spotted a man with a sword crawling along the roof of a house that was right over Lyn. I was about to shout a warning when an arrow caught him in his neck. The man grunted, and his limp body rolled off the roof. The archer from the house came up beside me, keeping an arrow drawn as he scanned the other houses for any more hidden enemies.

"Are you Taliver bandits?" Lyn demanded. Her tone was as sharp as her sword, and now I could see that both Kent and Sain looked a bit unnerved. "Did you destroy this village?"

None of them responded.

"ANSWER ME!" Lyn shouted so stridently that even the cavaliers' horses were spooked a bit.

"N-no," one of the men replied as timid as Florina. "Those guys would even kill women. We have more honor than that."

"I can attest to that statement," the archer replied. "I saw the bandits that came through and razed this village. These men were not part of that band."

"Very well." Lyn lowered her sword. "Return the pegasus and leave this village. I will allow you to keep your lives today."

The men didn't waste the pardon. They were practically stumbling over each other as they retreated to the mountains, glancing back every so often, fearful that Lyn might change her mind. I couldn't help but wonder about how Lyn had been looking at them. The men hadn't taken their eyes off her, even with two cavaliers at their backs. She had been facing away from me during that exchange, but the way she demanded an answer from the men, who had been trembling like frightened children before her, was a far cry from the tone she had used when I first woke up.

It wouldn't have been implausible to believe her reaction was due to the safety of my life. There wasn't a doubt in my mind that Lyn was fiercely protective of her friends. But the tone she had used was the same grave tone she had when we first arrived at this village. The Taliver bandits must have been the ones who killed her family—her entire tribe. I pitied Lyn, but there was more under the surface. This pain she was carrying ran deeper than just remembering a terrible loss.

"That's finally taken care of," Lyn said once the bandits fled her gaze.

"Lyn!" Florina ran up, moving in a wide arc around me.

"Florina…" Lyn was back to normal now. "Why did you follow me? It's so dangerous."

"Do you remember the knighting ceremony of the Pegasus Knights of Ilia?"

"Yes, you join a band of freelance soldiers to further your training. Is that what brought you here?"

"Uh-huh. I wanted to talk to you before I set out. But when I went to Sacae, I heard you had left with some strangers and…"

"You were worried about me?" Lyn smiled sweetly at Florina and hugged her. "Thank you, but I'm more worried about you."

"Me?"

"Listen, most mercenaries are men, right? Bands of men? I can't imagine you being at all comfortable around them."

"I know, I know. It's just… I've always dreamt of being a Pegasus Knight. I imagined I would just work it out. Somehow." Florina dumped her head, and her tiny body began to shudder. "After today, I'm not so sure. Maybe I should just…give up…"

Lyn bent down to find her friend's face. "Florina… Don't cry…"

"Yes! There's no reason to give up your dream!" Sain jumped in behind Florina, causing her to shriek and retreat to Lyn's back. "Lovely Florina! I have the most brilliant idea!"

"Sain!" Kent yelled, trying to call off his companion.

"You should come with us! With the addition of the archer here, we're a fine group of soldiers, and freelance to boot!"

The archer started at the mention of him. "Wait, did you just include me?"

"Of course!" Sain ran over to the archer, throwing his arm around him and dragging him over to the rest of us. "We were destined to meet here! It's fate!" There was some ridiculous dreamy quality to his countenance now. "Come now, Lyndis' band of mercenaries is as good a training group as you will find anywhere!"

 "Sain…" Kent pulled Sain aside with a head bowed in embarrassment. "This is no joking matter!"

"Tactically speaking," (and I hated to agree with Sain) "traveling with us would benefit Florina. Florina appears to be comfortable around Lyn, and we have few enough…" I glanced at Sain for a second, "…benign men in our group that it would do well to help if Florina is uneasy around men."

"Lyn…" Florina peeked out from behind Lyn's shoulder. "Who's that?"

"This is Mark. He's a traveling tactician I met in Sacae. He's teaching me how to fight while we travel."

"Oh, I see… Uh…" Florina stepped out but did not stray too far from Lyn. "I'm pleased to meet you. Thank you for helping me."

I did my best to mimic the smile Lyn gave me when we first met and bowed to Florina. "Think nothing of it. I was happy to be of service. Just ask Lyn. I tend to end up on the ground when there's trouble. Unorthodox strategies are my specialty." The joke succeeded in relaxing Florina, so I continued. "And what do you think of Sain's offer?"

"Lyndis? Um, Lyn? Mercenaries?”

"I can give you the details later. This is all a bit rushed. However, Sain is right. Will you come with us, Florina?"

Florina's eyes lit up. "Travel with you, Lyn? Truly? I would be so… so happy!"

"Fantastic! Beauteous Florina! I am a knight of Caelin. My name is Sain-"

"Eeek!" Florina sheltered herself behind Lyn once again while Kent pressed a hand to his forehead. "Stay back! Don't get so close."

"Ah… Beautiful, and yet so modest!"

"Kent!" I called, grabbing Sain by his backplate. "Will you and Sain please make a round of the village and ensure that the bandits have left? We will camp here for the night. I want to leave this village with at least one night of peace."

"Right away, Mark," Kent replied, taking Sain from me.

"Alas," Sain replied dejected as he and Kent returned to their horses. "A knight's duty is never done."

Florina decided to escape the presence of all the men by going off to tend to her Pegasus, and I returned to Lyn. "I'm sorry if it was too forward asking Florina about joining us. If you don't think it's a good idea…"

"No, I approve. We can't leave Florina on her own. She requires special attention. Traveling with us is the best idea. I'm sorry for overwhelming you. I was not expecting all of this to happen so suddenly."

"Not at all. Having more people join us will make the journey safer. Speaking of which…" I turned to the archer. “What about you?”

“Me?”

“Thank you for your aid earlier. What’s your name? Do you live here?”

"The name's Wil. And no, I'm a traveler of sorts, too.

A thought crossed my mind that he might have allied with the cavaliers when they first came through, and this meet-up was another part of the ambush, but if that were the case, they would’ve turned on us by now.

"Is it really all right if I travel with you?"

His question broke me from my suspicions. After taking out the sneaking swordsman, I had no reason to distrust him. Refusing him would be more suspicious on my part. "If you would like to. We don't want to take you away if you have friends or family here."

"Actually, I'm very grateful. Truth be told, all of my money was stolen, and I'm… at a bit of a crossroads. I would be honored to count myself as one of Lyndis' Legion! I will gather my things and join you all shortly." He secured his bow to his back and then headed off back to the house.

"Lyndis' Legion?" Lyn spoke under her breath. "This is getting stranger with every day."

"Indeed." An image of those terrified men flashed through my mind again. "Lyn…"

"Yes? What's on your mind, Mark?"

My gaze traveled over to the corpse of the man Lyn had killed, still lying face down in the dirt, soaked in his own blood. "You killed that man."

Lyn looked at the body and then back to me, curious about my statement. "He meant to kill you, and he would've if I had not stepped in. I killed the bandits that threatened us at the temple as well. Is this strange?"

"He did attack me. You fought back in self-defense. And you fought in self-defense at the temple as well. But what about the others? The ones that ran away? Would you have killed them?"

"If they had chosen to attack us instead of run, yes."

"What if they had said ‘yes'?"

 "What?" Lyn's eyebrows furrowed.

"You asked them a question. You screamed at them. You demanded to know if those brigands were Taliver bandits. What if they had said yes?"

Lyn crossed her arms and glanced away. "I don't know."

"I think you do. You wouldn't have asked that question otherwise."

"They weren't Taliver bandits, so it doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does. Those men were scared of you."

Lyn brought her gaze back to me, and a wave of contempt fueled by rancor hit me with full force. That fire I had seen when we first arrived at this village had reignited and burned deep within her green eyes like a forest had caught fire. "If those brigands are finally feeling the fear they instill upon innocent people, then that's a good thing."

I stood my ground against the blaze. "Is it though?"

"Why not? They are not innocent. They should share in the pain they cause."

"Why?"

"They hurt people, Mark! They kill people!"

"So you should do what they do?"

"I…" The fire started to waver.

"I understand the necessity of killing another when they threaten your life or the lives of others, Lyn. I also understand what an awful sin it was for those bandits to murder your tribe. What those bandits did to your tribe was abhorrent. They are vile, disgusting pieces of filth. I am not standing here telling you to forgive them, nor am I telling you to forget what happened. But I am telling you not to become the very monsters you despise."

Lyn tried to hide her face underneath the bangs of her hair, but I grabbed her shoulder to ensure she was still paying attention. "Don't lie to me, Lyn. You weren't okay when you were treating my injury. You were afraid I was going to die. You know who gave me this injury? A bandit. A bandit that held no value for human life and actively sought to destroy it. The bandits we've faced may be reprehensible people, but they're still people. And if you choose to be the aggressor, to take the power you have gained from my teaching and hunt them down, and kill them out of some thirst for vengeance, then you are no better than they are. You are responding to evil with evil. You are no longer a victim if you do that. When you make that choice, you lose that shield. When I agreed to train you while we traveled, I did so with the intention of training a defender of the innocent, not a remorseless punisher."

Lyn pulled herself away from my grasp. The fire was nothing more than smoldering coal now, doused by the tears creeping from her eyes. "You would have me do nothing after what happened? Leave the innocent blood they shed to dry into the ground? Let my father’s and mother’s death go unpunished?” She shook her head in defiance before she stepped away from me. “I cannot do that… I won't… "

Chapter Text

Chapter 3

 The knights from Caelin hadn't prepared a trap in that village for us. The night passed as calmly as it had come, and the next morning, we talked to the villagers about what they would do next. They said there was another village not far to the south. There was no point in staying in their town any longer, and they thanked us for remaining to protect them until the morning. Lyn did not say anything when the bandits were mentioned.

 We traveled for a few more days without trouble. Kent and Sain always offered to keep watch during the night in case of an ambush, which caused me to be doubly wary of them. Still fearing that my suspicions might be valid, I forced myself to stay up during the night. And when either of them urged me to sleep, I told them that my insomnia was keeping me up, which was actually true. Thankfully, we did not run into any more bandits, so that was one other concern I could put aside. But I thought it best if Lyn and I took a break from our training sessions. After our argument, Lyn had become relatively cold whenever she was around me and only talked to me if we were discussing something about our travels to Caelin with Kent and Sain. As such, I put our training sessions on hold as I doubted I would've been able to teach her properly.

 The sun was setting behind the trees on our fifteenth day when we came across a ruined fort. The roof of the fort no longer existed after some battle long ago, and now an assortment of vegetation had made its home in the remains, creeping out of gaps in walls to provide some vibrant color to the sun-bleached stone. I took Sain and Wil ahead with me to make sure the coast was clear before we moved in. Sain wasn't too thrilled about my choice of location, however.

 "This mildewy old fortress? Is this the best we can do? Come, Mark! Surely you jest!"

 Wil provided me with support for my choice of "lodging" for the night. "The bandits keep everything in turmoil around here. No one has time to worry about travelers. And there are rather a lot of us."

 "Besides, Sain," I rebutted. "If any of Lundgren's hired goons try to attack us again, I would rather not put innocent townsfolk at risk."

 Lyn put a firm hand on my shoulder. "This will be fine." She knew how Sain and I got along outside of my wariness of him and Kent, of which she was still unaware. We didn't despise each other. We just didn't always agree on everything, and unlike Kent, he would continuously second-guess my decisions, thinking I didn't have the female members of our group in mind. To a point, he was correct. I wasn't just considering the women in our group. I was taking everyone's safety into consideration, including his, despite my mistrust! But his narrow-minded flirtatious persona wouldn't allow him to see that.

 "Who wants to be stuck inside anyway?" Lyn replied, knowing Sain would agree to anything she said. "I prefer a place where I can feel the wind blow."

 Florina shuffled up next to Lyn, hiding from the overly aggressive green knight. "As long as I'm at Lyn's side, I'll be fine."

 With both women in agreement with me, Sain quickly changed his tune. "And for your protection, your man-at-arms Sain will be right here by your side, ladies."

 I was about to remind Sain of his nightly duty, but Kent beat me to it. "Sain, both you and I are to remain awake. We will alternate the watch."

 "Ah, alas…" Sain said, defeated.

 For the first time since joining these knights, I actually felt more at ease being around them. Kent always kept Sain in check whenever he became too rambunctious for the other members of our group, especially Florina. The two knights were opposites, and it was refreshing to have Kent's propriety, even if I didn't fully trust him. He was also readily available to give his input whenever I was going over battle strategies. I considered his interest as him contemplating the right moment to betray us. But he always agreed that he and Sain should be at the forefront of any battle plan as he correctly pointed out that them being on horses provided a superior defense over the on-foot foes. It was like having a second me around, and a small part of me hoped that this distrust was all irrational paranoia.

 We entered the fort and began to settle in for the night when Wil heard soft footfalls coming down a nearby hallway. A woman who looked to be in her early thirties approached us. Her clothes were as ragged as her hair, her skin was greasy with moist dirt, and I spotted her left leg wobbling with each step. "Your pardon, milady… I… Forgive my intrusion… My name's Natalie. I'm from a village not far from here…" She tried to step closer, but her left leg buckled, and she started to fall. "Ah! Ow!"

 Lyn caught her and helped her back up. "Are you all right?" She noticed Natalie's leg was abnormal. "Your leg… it’s…"

 Natalie struggled to smile through the pain. "It's fine. Don't worry. It's from a childhood sickness… I can't travel far on it, but it doesn't trouble me much."

 I could tell she was lying. The small winches she was making showed that her leg caused her a great deal of pain. The closest village was miles away from here. Why had she come this far on that limp?

 Lyn had the same question in mind as I did. "What are you doing here all by yourself?"

 Natalie pulled out a small scrap of paper. "I'm looking for my husband… I heard he was in this area. He said he was going to raise money to have my leg mended. He left the village and hasn't returned. He's a kindhearted man, but I think he might be involved in something dangerous. I got so worried…" She handed a scrap of paper to Lyn. "Here's a sketch of him. It's a poor likeness at best, but…"

 Lyn examined the sketch before handing it to me. She wasn't kidding about the poor likeness, but it was better than I could've drawn. The man appeared to have medium-length wavy hair, a large, rounded nose, and a strong jawline.

 "His name is Dorcas. Do you know him?"

 I showed the picture to the rest of the group, and no one seemed to recognize him. But as Wil handed the picture back to me, he leaned in and whispered, “We should be wary. The only type of work to be found out here is fighting bandits or joining them.”

My suspicions spiked in my chest again. Not for the cavaliers, Sain had made it clear he didn’t want to stop at this fort, but the possibility of Natalie being bait for us to be ambushed. A woman with an injured leg out in the middle of nowhere all by herself? Any traveler with a heart would stop to help and be led right into a trap. I hid my concern as I handed the picture back to Natalie and shook my head.

 "I see…" Natalie replied, disheartened. She didn’t seem to be putting on an act. "If you do meet him, please give him a message. Tell him Natalie is looking for him."

Lyn grabbed Natalie's hands. "I will tell him. I promise."

The promise rekindled a small spark of hope within Natalie, and a warm smile brightened her face. The moment was short-lived, however, as Kent came back, alerting us to impending trouble.

 "Lady Lyndis! Mark! Outside the fortress! Bandits! At least a dozen of them have gathered outside."

 "Are they the same ones we fought a few days ago in that village?" I asked not looking in Natalie’s direction.

 "I believe they are," Kent confirmed.

 Sain crossed his arms and scowled. "Persistent bunch, aren't they?" He turned to me, not in irritation, but in legitimate anticipation of my orders. "What do you think, Mark? Shall we go out and face them?"

 I was about to give my orders when I remembered Natalie. If this was the ambush I feared, then that’s exactly what they’d want us to do. But if this wasn’t Natalie’s doing, we could not leave someone so vulnerable unprotected. The bandits had been ready to enslave and sell Florina. There was no telling what they might do to a helpless woman with a limp. And I needed to figure out if she was genuinely looking for her husband. "No. Natalie cannot move, and that would put her in danger. We stay here and defend this fort. There are few enough entrances that we can bottleneck the bandits and take on only a few at a time."

 I made a quick run around the fort, checking each entrance. As far as I could tell there were only two, but there was also a weak wall on the west side. The bandits would likely try to break through there as well. I returned to give everyone their orders. "Our goal is the defense of Natalie. We have an advantage in this structure. Remember the golden rule of combat: if you do not think you can win, don't enter a fight if you can avoid it. Keep that in mind. Don't chase the bandits. Let them come to you. Kent and Sain, you two take the main entrance to the south. Use your horses to fend off the bandits and keep them from pushing into the fort. If you get overwhelmed, call for assistance and I will send someone to help you."

 Sain mounted his horse and the two knights made for the southern entrance.

 "Wil. There is a crumbling wall to the west. There are holes large enough for you to take shots at any bandits trying to break in. Florina I want you to go with him.”

Florina stiffened in uneasiness at my order. I knew she wouldn’t be comfortable going with a man, but I wanted her with Wil because he was more nonthreatening than any of the other men. Spending time around him would help build Florina’s courage.

“Don’t worry. If there are too many, I don’t want you to stay and fight. Wil, if it looks like the bandits are going to break through, send Florina to the east entrance and I will come to assist you."

 "Okay," Wil said, grabbing his bow and heading to his position. Florina nodded with less apprehension and urged her pegasus to follow after him.

 I turned to Lyn. "You're with me on the Eastern entrance. I will fall back first if anyone needs assistance, but be prepared to move back should we need you." I looked at Natalie, who stared at me with trembling eyes. If this was all a ploy, she was a damn good performer. "Natalie, we will do everything in our power to protect you, but there's no telling what we will face. For your safety, I need you to return to the room you were in before and find someplace to hide if you are able.

 "Okay," she replied without any argument. She started to limp back into the room. Lyn made a move to help her, but I stepped in instead. I needed a bit more time to evaluate Natalie’s behavior. "I got her, Lyn. Head to the east entrance; you will be better able to handle any bandits that come."

 Lyn nodded and headed off while I helped Natalie back into the room. There was a substantial pile of debris on the left side of the room. I led Natalie around it and found that it created a C-shape facing away from the entrance that blocked vision from the front. It wouldn't hide Natalie completely, but it would at least cover her from anyone who peered into the room.

 "Are you okay?" I asked when she was safely sitting on the ground behind the debris.

 "Yes. Thank you," she replied with a genuine smile. "I'm sorry I am causing you all so much trouble."

Good sign. She wasn’t trying to become involved or argue my orders. I smirked as my mistrust of her started to wane. "We should be the ones apologizing to you. I'm pretty sure these bandits are after us. Stay here, and wait for us to return. If you don't hear from us by sunrise, then there were too many, and I had us lead them away from this fort. But I'm confident we will prevail here. We have the more strategic ground."

She reached out and clutched my hand in hers. “Please be safe.”    

I nodded; my suspicions vanished. "We'll be back before you know it." With Natalie secure, I headed for the eastern entrance. As I passed the south entrance, I saw the bandits were already attacking Sain and Kent, but the two knights were keeping them at bay without much trouble. For a brief moment, my suspicions about the two knights also disappeared. And I hadn't heard crumbling rocks either, so I assumed everything was okay at the western end. Lyn apparently hadn't run into any trouble either because I found her leaning against the wall, arms crossed, staring intently at something outside like she was trying to make out the foreign writing on a sign.

 When she saw me approaching, she pushed off the wall. "Is Natalie okay?"

 "Yes," I said with a nod. "She is well hidden. What's the situation over here?"

 Lyn led me over to the entrance and pointed out to a bandit wielding an axe about 70 yards away who stood unmoving in the middle of the field. “That bandit hasn’t moved since he saw me standing here. “And look closer. Doesn't he look somewhat like that picture of Natalie's husband?"

 I squinted to try and get a better look. The man certainly didn't look like the other bandits. For one, his appearance had more care put into it than most bandits—like someone other than him had taken time to help him look clean. He also had wavy brown hair and a strong jawline, much like the picture Natalie had shown us as rough a sketch as it had been.

 "You know, I think you're right, Lyn," I replied. "What do you want to d—"

 Lyn had already left and headed straight for the bandit.

 The bandit likewise started moving toward her. But as Lyn approached him, he threw a hand axe at her. It went wide, so Lyn barely had to lean to the side to dodge the axe. It had been a warning, but I second-guessed my assumption as I ducked to avoid it taking off my head.

 As Lyn drew closer, she called out to the bandit. "You! Tell me, are you Dorcas?"

 The bandit stopped in his tracks and stared at Lyn with a bewildered mien. "…How did you know my name?"

 "Natalie told me," Lyn replied. "What are you doing with these rogues?"

 "I need money…" Dorcas replied. He packed his words with raw guilt—clearly, a man left with very few choices.

 "That may be," Lyn replied, "but joining up with bandits?"

  "It's the only way to earn gold in these parts." Dorcas dropped his head. "I'll do anything… even this."

 Lyn crossed her arms and leaned to the side. "For gold? Anything? Would you hurt your wife? Natalie is here! We're protecting her within this fortress!"

 Dorcas looked up at her in shock. "What!?" He looked past her to me for confirmation.

 I nodded.

 "Natalie's… She's here?"

 "She was so worried that she came looking for you." Lyn threw her arms to her side. "Think, Dorcas! Would your actions please your wife?"

 A long, tense silence passed between them. I worried that he might still attack Lyn, but surely even this man wasn't so debased as to harm the people protecting his wife.

 "…You're right," he finally said. "I understand. I can't do this. I'm done with these bandits. Here and now."

 "Really?" Lyn asked full of hope.

 "Yes," Dorcas replied. "And I would repay you for your kindness toward Natalie. Allow me to fight for you."

 "Hey, Dorcas!" They turned to a bandit that was approaching them. I recognized him as one of the men from the village. "Caught one of the girls already, I see. Oooooh, this is that insane lass too." He licked his lips as he stared at Lyn in a way that caused my chest to tighten with resentment. "You weren't actually the fighting type at all, were you? We'll make sure you know your place." He fiddled with the dagger in his hands while he looked Lyn up and down. "Good work, Dorcas. I'll take her to the boss."

 I was about to head out and drive my sword through the bandit. But before I could even detach myself from the wall, Dorcas pulled out another hand axe and slammed it into the bandit's head. The only change in the bandit's expression was his eyes widening in nonplussed surprise as he crumbled to the ground.

 "Good work, Lyn," I spoke up when they returned to the fort, trying to gratify her before she could revive our argument from the village. "Your diplomacy is a useful asset. Natalie will be overjoyed to see her husband."

 To my surprise, Lyn gave me her usual benevolent smile. "Thank you, Mark. Could you take Dorcas to see Natalie? I'll handle any more bandits that come this way."

 "Of course," I replied. "I need to check on the other entrances anyway. Follow me, Dorcas."

 I headed down the hall with Dorcas following right behind me. When he turned the corner, and I was sure we were out of sight from Lyn, I pulled out my sword and brought it in front of Dorcas, who threw up his hands and backed against the wall. "Listen, Dorcas. You may have convinced Lyn you changed, but she is also very trusting. I, on the other hand, am not.” Another possibility of Natalie being in league with these bandits was spinning concern in my head. “You were a member of those bandits, and yet your loyalty to them was so easily broken? How can I be sure your loyalty to us is not just as weak? Tell me, Dorcas, what guarantee can you give me that you are not going to betray us?"

 Dorcas didn't respond right away. He stared calmly at the tip of my blade I aimed at his neck, but his breathing was thick and audible with tension. His eyes were steadfast, but I could see that he was searching for an answer and not a dishonest one. I kept my gaze unyielding so as to not give him further explanation for my actions. The concern over him and Natalie was disappearing with each second I watched him.

 "I can't give you any guarantee," he said plainly after a few more heavy seconds. "I only wish to protect my wife. I have no intention of harming those who would do the same."

 I stared at him a moment longer, studying his eyes, searching for any deceit that might be lurking within. But the only thing I found was desperation for his wife, so I sheathed my sword and my doubts. "I believe you. I am also sorry for the distrust. As the tactician of this group, I have to consider every possibility, including a scenario in which you are pretending to join our side to find our weaknesses so your cohorts can exploit them. And you would do so all so you could make money because deep down, you care more about getting the money even if it means breaking your wife’s heart, as terrible as that sounds.” I spared him the misgivings I had for Natalie. “Forgive my candor." I pointed down the hallway where Natalie was hiding. "Your wife is in there. Go and see her, then I will assign you your position."

 "Thank you," Dorcas replied, bowing his head in respect. "If it will ease your concern, I do know something about these bandits that might prove valuable."

 I cocked my head in interest.

 "These bandits may be brutal, but they do know something of honor. That is why I joined them. We had no intention of harming the women. That is why I purposefully missed with the axe I threw at your friend."

 "You nearly took off my head, though."

 "Forgive me," Dorcas said with another bow of his head. "These bandits also will not fight past dusk. The leader has poor eyesight and fears fighting in the dark. If you can outlast them until the sun has set, they will retreat."

 "Will they now?" I asked, raising a curious brow.

 "Yes. I overheard them speaking of the attack. We were attacking now as to finish before dark. Unfortunately, the bandits underestimated the strength of your group."

 I turned my head toward the south entrance where Kent and Sain dispatched two of the bandits that were harassing them and smirked on the side of my face that Dorcas couldn't see. "Thank you for this information, Dorcas. Now go and see your wife. She's apparently been looking for you for a while. I'm sure she will be overjoyed to see you."

 Dorcas did not wait for another second, and I waited until he had finished seeing his wife, and then assigned him to replace Wil at the wall the bandits had almost broken through. I sent Florina to aid Lyn, and Wil supported the cavaliers while I kept an eye on Dorcas at all times. True to his word, he never betrayed us. And just as he had told me, the bandits retreated once the sun had set.

 "The enemy's fled, Mark!" Lyn announced, coming down the hall. "We've won."

 "Good work, everyone," I shouted. "Pass out the vulneraries and tend to your wounds."

 Natalie emerged from the room she was in. "Dorcas!"

 Dorcas dropped his head. "I'm so sorry, Natalie…"

 "All's well that ends well, right Natalie?" Lyn said, attempting to lighten the mood.

 "I'm just glad you're okay, Dorcas," Natalie replied, hugging him.

 "As am I," Dorcas replied. He turned to Lyn and I. "Our village is close. I'll take Natalie home and return tomorrow."

 "What?" I blurted out surprised. Was he leaving his wife again?

 "Why can't we just say our farewells today?" Lyn asked, not catching his meaning.

 Dorcas looked directly at me with the same eyes he had when I had held my sword against him. "I talked it over with Natalie. If you'll have me, I'd like to join your group."

 "I feel you should know that we're going all the way to Lycia," I replied bluntly. "And we are not a normal mercenary group. It will be a long time before we can pay you properly."

 He turned to his wife. Natalie clutched his arm and smiled at him. "I have to go somewhere to earn money. If you think I'll be of use, I'd like to fight for you. You helped my wife… I owe you."

 "Dorcas…" Lyn replied. She must have been as conflicted about this as I was. Honestly, I was surprised Dorcas would want to join us after my private altercation with him. Apparently, he understood my mistrust. Although, it was possible that he might rendezvous with the bandits on his way back to us with his wife safely returned home. Again, I had to consider every possibility.

 "Please," Natalie spoke up. "We are both in agreement on this. If you are willing, please allow him to travel with you. Watch over my husband."

 Lyn and I exchanged looks. Neither of us said anything, but I could see that she supported the idea. Wariness of this former bandit still lingered within me. If not for his wife, I would have turned Dorcas away. But he did need the money, and the money he could earn from returning a marquess' granddaughter home would be lucrative. Lyn didn't protest, so I turned back to them and smiled. "We will wait for you until noon tomorrow. Be safe traveling home."

 Both of them smiled and thanked us, and then Dorcas picked up his wife and carried her into the forest. With things finally calming down, Lyn and I returned to the others who were preparing the fort for the night.

 Kent approached and stood at attention as always. "We'll continue taking turns keeping watch. Please rest easily."

 "Is that all right?" She looked at Sain. "Are you sure, Sain?"

 Sain fumbled his vulnerary and turned to her with a smile. "Oh! Er, yes! Of course!"

 Lyn's tone became deadly serious. "Let me warn you… If bandits sneak up on you, they'll cut you down without mercy. Do you understand that?"

 Astonishment washed over both the cavaliers. They would have expected me to say something like that, but not Lyn. Even I was somewhat surprised by her bluntness. A part of me wondered if that hatred for bandits was resurfacing. And yet she seemed so trusting of Dorcas after he joined our side, while I still could not bring myself to cast off my concerns for the cavaliers.

 Sain shook off his astonishment and put on a heroic expression. "What, do you doubt my bravery? Am I not a knight? There's no need to worry!" He turned to his fellow cavalier. "Right, Kent?"

 Kent nodded. "If there's anything suspicious, we'll take care of it. Rest assured."

 That benevolent smile replaced Lyn's grave mien, and she returned the nod. "Well, good night then."

 The four of us began to separate, but I swallowed my distrust to grab Kent and pull him aside. "A moment, if you will, Kent."

 "Yes, Mark.?"

 I looked back at Lyn to make sure she was out of earshot and then whispered to be doubly sure. "We have a new member joining our group tomorrow. That man Dorcas."

 "The former bandit?" Kent asked, matching my volume. "I overheard."

 "That's right. I want you to keep an eye on him during our travels. He may have helped us fight against these bandits, but I still can't be sure of his loyalty."

 "I was thinking the same thing, Mark. I am glad to see you are just as wary as I."

 "It's a responsibility I bear with this profession," I smirked at him, trying to hide any hint of my distrust of him. "Keep a sharp eye out tonight, and alert me if you think there will be trouble."

 Kent nodded. "As you wish." He saluted me, then returned to his horse and rode out to Sain.

Sleep evaded me again that night. My mind was abuzz with the possibility that our "loyal" cavaliers might not be all that loyal, and now I had the worry of a former bandit returning to us with cohorts of his. With another wary night ahead of me, I decided to sit in the back of the fort where the ceiling was missing, and I could stare up at the stars gathered in the darkness above. I took in a deep breath of the crisp night air and once again set my mind to wander and try to piece together my unknown past.

I knew all these battle strategies and combat tactics, but I didn't know if I had commanded an army or if it had merely been an interest of mine to study. If I did lead an army, I would likely have woken up in the barracks of a grand city or a bed in a castle, serving a lord who could help me remember what happened. But Lyn found me in a field, which meant, if anything, I had to be a freelance tactician. Besides that mystery, there were the random significant headaches that lasted a few seconds, but only when I was trying to remember my past.

 They only started happening a few days ago, and they came coupled with a strange sensation compelling me to go somewhere… to answer a call of some sort. But it was a faint sensation, mostly consisting of the seconds-long headaches, and I was able to disregard the sensation after the pain subsided. After all, I had a job to finish and—

 "You picked a good place to look up at the stars." Lyn's voice interrupted my thoughts and caused me to nearly tumble off the debris.

 "O-oh! Lyn!"

 Lyn giggled apologetically. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to surprise you."

 "No, it's fine. I just thought you were asleep."

 "I was, but Florina's pegasus has smelly breath, so I needed to take a walk so I could breathe in some fresh air. And that's when I saw you in here. Can't get to sleep again?"

 "Nope. I guess I must suffer from insomnia," I gave her my usual excuse, trying to push the memory of the nightmare from my head. "It's been hard to get to sleep since you found me in the field. Then again, for all I know, I could have had insomnia all my life. That coma was the best rest I ever had, but now I just lie awake during the night while I doze away on my horse during the day. Probably not the best thing considering my position."

 "I think you been doing a fine job, Mark, in spite of your lack of sleep." Lyn climbed up the rubble and sat next to me. "How about some company?"

 Well, this was a surprise. Lyn hadn't been this cordial since before we arrived at the ruined village. With that rough exchange in mind, a part of me felt like she was here for more than just a midnight chat. And perhaps that was something that needed to happen. "Sure." I resituated myself so that Lyn could join me.

 Lyn gazed up into the starry sky. "I enjoy traveling like this. Camping out in the open air, being able to stare at the stars until you fall asleep. My father would often take me out into the fields to look at the stars when I was younger, and we did it one last time a couple of nights before the bandits attacked." Lyn fell silent for a moment. I knew where this was going. "They poisoned our drinking water… My people were in such pain; they could hardly stand… " She clenched her fists and bit her lip before continuing. "That's when the bandits attacked! They waited until we were defenseless!"

 "Lyn…"

 "My father put me on his horse, and I escaped…" Lyn continued. "Just me… My poor father…" Tears were beginning to appear, but Lyn swiped them away. "The pain must have been terrible. He lifted me up… his arms shaking… with his last breath…" Lyn took a deep breath to restrain a sob. "I was found unconscious by another tribe… and I awoke ten days later. When I awoke… What I felt… The bodies of my people had already been buried. I never even had a chance to say farewell. My last memory of my father… He was broken… dying. I can still see the axes rising and falling."

 I recognized the tactic she was using on me. It was a disarming account meant to guilt me into sympathizing with her to justify her anger and draw me to her side. And it worked to a point. I couldn't help but to reach out and put my arm around her. She did not resist or reject it. In fact, she leaned in closer and rested her head on my shoulder. And she finally cried. It wasn't a loud wailing or a smothered moaning. It was a simple cry, sniffling and all. I wanted to apologize; it sincerely felt like I owed her an apology. I had hurt her with the words I had spoken. That much was clear. Yet, I understood what giving in to Lyn would result in. Apologizing for what I said would just be hollow pandering. I did mean what I had said to her. Changing my opinion on the matter of her anger that I felt firm about would not only make me out to be a weak-willed individual, but it would also inhibit the growth of one of Lyn's most noble traits: her kind heart.

 Lyn regained her composure. "Since then, I have never trusted any bandits. I can't. These images in my head will never leave me alone. I will bring those murderers to justice. I don't want anyone else to go through what I did."

“What about Dorcas?” I asked.

Lyn’s eyes darted up to me with the remnant tears reflecting the stars above us.

“Dorcas was a bandit,” I said. “Why did you not strike him down?”

“Because he admitted he didn’t want to be a bandit but needed the money. And Natalie was with us. I couldn’t kill her husband after she had traveled so far. And he forsook the bandits to join us.”

“So you believe a bandit to be trustworthy because of his wife? What if they had been lying? What if Natalie was bait to trap us?”

            “They weren’t, though,” Lyn huffed. “So why does that matter?”

            “Because you trusted and showed kindness to a bandit.”

            “Huh?”

I released her. "Lyn, what happened to you was terrible. I am not arguing that at all. It is abhorrent in every sense. But here's what confuses me. Even now, you do your best not to cry when remembering your tribe. You are trying to let go of the sorrow, yet you hold on to the anger.”

Lyn's eyes conveyed her confusion.

"I don't doubt that the images of that terrible day haunt you ceaselessly. It's like my amnesia: it's a burden you are forced to carry. However, you are allowing it to burden you further by letting your anger consume you. And it’s dangerous. If Natalie hadn’t been here, would you have struck Dorcas down?”

“I wouldn’t have known who Dorcas was.”

“Exactly, and a worried wife would’ve come upon the corpse of her husband. Anger aside, have you given any thought to what a path of revenge will require of you and your friends?

"First of all, even if you become a master of the sword, taking on a horde of bandits would be suicidal. And even if you did have others helping you, would you wish to put their lives at risk for the sake of achieving your revenge? And what if you do succeed in wiping out the bandits? The Taliver bandits are a despicable group. But are they the only ones? By taking them out, will you be preventing another group of bandits from razing an innocent village somewhere else? And what happens to you if you do wipe them out? Do you think that's going to purge the memories? Will you be fulfilled? Will you be able to move on with your life?

Lyn was frowning at me, but not out of anger, and to my surprise, she did not respond to my questions. So I continued, "I'm not telling you to forgive what those bandits did to you, Lyn. But you only multiply the damage they caused by continuing to foster that pain to fuel your anger. By holding on to that thirst for vengeance, that tragedy never dies. Did your father put you on a horse to escape just for you to continue suffering from that horrible day? I don't think so. I think he put you on that horse so that you could continue to live and find happiness again. And there's no reason to continue living in that past because you have a grandfather now—a grandfather who sent two knights out to find you and bring you to him so that he could meet his granddaughter. That is something you have to look forward to, yet you continue to look behind you."

Lyn dropped her gaze to the rubble. "I… never thought about it like that."

"I'm not surprised. For all those months, you felt like you had nothing else in your life. That desire for revenge was the only thing sustaining you. And I am also at fault for fueling that anger by giving you the power you would need to achieve your revenge. That is why I am questioning you now. You're more than your anger, Lyn. Far more. You are a compassionate survivor with a drive to become stronger so you can protect those you love. You took a random stranger who you found injured in a field, who had no memory, and who had nothing to offer you at that time, into your hut and nursed him back to health. Why would you do that? I don't know. But I do know that that is noble, and I would love nothing more than to cultivate that person. That is why I am telling you these things, Lyn. The benevolent woman who offered me a bowl of soup when I woke up wasn't the same woman I saw striking fear into that group of brigands back at the village. I understand the necessity to become stronger, but I don't want to lose the Lyn I know in the process.”

The corners of Lyn's mouth jumped for a shy smile. "Are you that concerned about me?"

"Why wouldn't I be? You're the only person who was there for me when I woke up, and you have continued to stand by my side ever since. It's only natural that I should worry about you too, Lyn."

Lyn looked back up, and she was smiling again. "I'm sorry for worrying you. Mark. Your protection has always been at the forefront of my concerns that I never considered your perspective. I'm glad you were willing to be honest and talk to me about this. You're right. I let my anger blind me, and if I hold too tightly to this grudge, I could hurt possible allies like Dorcas. It was fortunate that we found Natalie in this fort before the bandits showed up or you’re right, I might have killed him. And even as a former bandit, I still trust him, and you do too, right?"

 Those last words were said knowingly. "You heard me talking to Dorcas when he first joined us."

 "I did," she replied with the same even tone she had been using. "And I also saw you pull Kent aside before he went out on watch."

 I let out a heavy sigh. "I have to be the one to distrust others, Lyn. It's part of my job. I can't just accept everyone into our group with open arms like you."

 "No, I understand. It is another reason I value your presence. You have the welfare of the group in mind. But if we're to look ahead to the future, shouldn't we be more open to strangers?"

I gave her a serious look. "There's a difference between a grudge and caution, Lyn. I was telling you not to focus on your hatred of the bandits, not to share a meal with them. That's ridiculous. You shouldn't just give everyone the benefit of the doubt and assume they will treat you fairly. If you do, then there will be someone who takes advantage of that."

 "True. But that's why you and I are sitting here now," she replied. Her words were warm and filled with joy. "I took a chance and trusted someone whom I didn't know anything about or where he came from, and neither did he. I was a novice swordfighter.” She put her hands out, palms up. “I barely had the confidence to hold my sword. That man could've easily overpowered me. But he didn't. And now he is my most trusted ally."

 I opened my mouth to respond, but she had made an excellent point. I had no rebuttal.

 Lyn turned her head back to the sky. " I'm not asking you to change yourself. Your caution is vital to our survival. I accept that. And I'm not suggesting that we just assume goodwill out of everyone, including bandits. I will take your concern about my anger to heart, Mark. But if I am to do that, I ask that you would be willing to trust me more. Speak to me of your concerns for anyone and anything." Her gaze came back to me with renewed determination. "The attitude you have seen out of me these past few days has been unbecoming of me. I understand why you might have felt the need to keep things from me, so I thank you for your honesty and will do my best to work on fixing that issue. But you are wrong to assume that because I am friendly to people that we meet, that means I'm not wary of them. You've seen it yourself. As soon as someone becomes a threat, my benevolence evaporates. I am trusting, Mark, not naïve. We are on this journey together. I want to be treated as your equal, not a princess to be constantly guarded and kept in the dark. I want you to trust me the same way I trust you."

"I suppose that's a fair request,” I said with a nod. “I don't have any argument. If you wish to know my concerns, then I shall relay them to you from now on. How about we start acting on these changes now? Here are my thoughts on Dorcas. The man seems ardent to his wife's welfare to the point that he is even willing to partake in banditry to help her. He's desperate, and that could prove dangerous, but I'm sure the fact that we protected his wife will solidify his loyalty to us. I will still be wary of him due to being a former bandit. But for the time being, I see no reason to reject him."

"I agree. His assistance should prove to be a boon for us. I have no worries about him. As for me, I promise to strive to let go of the past and focus on our journey.” She set a hand on her chest and straightened up to make her proclamation. “I want my grandfather to recognize my mother in me when we meet. He won't if he sees a girl consumed by her anger." Lyn grabbed my arm and squeezed it tight. "You have a great deal of wisdom for someone as young as me. I'm sorry for treating you harshly before. Thank you for bearing through the virulence of my past and speaking honestly. Every day you continue to reaffirm that asking for your guidance was the right decision." She used me to stand up, and her hand slid up to my shoulder for a comforting rub. "See you tomorrow, Mark."

"Good night," I said, watching her leave. Joy filled my heart. I was glad to know she trusted me so profoundly. She relied on me for support, which is why she wanted me to tell her everything. Somehow, I had already known of that trust, but this reconfirmation filled me with even more determination to get her to her grandfather. At the same time, guilt and shame blended in there too. A small voice reminded me how I had not told her of my distrust of the two Caelin cavaliers. Lyn could claim that she wasn't naïve, but she trusted those two just as much as she trusted me: random amnesiac…

Could I even trust myself?

Chapter Text

Chapter 4

We passed into Lycia after a few more days of travel. The group's spirits were high as we approached the border. Now that we were finally entering Lycia, we would have a smoother journey since we would not have to worry about pursuing bandits. Lyn and I had resumed training one-on-one together after our talk in the fort, and now that we would be passing through bandit free land, I felt it would be easier for Lyn to overcome her hatred. Kent was also enthusiastic because being in Lycia presented us with the opportunity to gain assistance from the local rulers. We were approaching a town known as Araphen: the second biggest city in Lycia and closest to the border. But first, we would have to deal with one last obstacle.

"We've almost reached the Lycian border," Kent announced to everyone before turning to me. "Mark, if I may, I'd like to ride ahead. The Marquess of Araphen is a strong ally of Caelin, and I'd like to request some supplies as well as our lodging for the night."

For a moment, my suspicions of betrayal reignited. Now that we were in Lycia, Kent and Sain would have a far better chance of catching us in a trap. But, after all this time, I had yet to see any sign of treachery from either of the cavaliers. My brain was also becoming tired due to the lack of sleep I was getting, so for once, I decided to set my suspicions aside. If the cavaliers did betray us, we had other allies with us, and if worse came to worse, Lyn could always escape with Florina on her pegasus.

"As you say, Kent. We will continue on this way and meet you in Araphen."

"Thank you." He crossed his hand over his chest and bowed his head to me. "Rest assured that from here on out, our journey will be much easier." He shouted his horse to gallop and was off.

"Lycia at last!" Sain stretched his arms up high. "It's been a long time. Tomorrow, we'll dine on a feast of Lycia's finest foods! And the mistress of the inn at Araphen is said to be a beauty. Ah, yes… Food and women. No better way to restore a man's soul! This is going to be a fine evening, eh, Mark?"

"If that's what you have in mind for our ‘fine evening,' I plan to claim not being associated with you so I don't get thrown out of the city for poor conduct. We might need to find some extra fighters if the marquess cannot spare some men to aid us. However, if you promise to control your interactions with the innocent women of this city, I wouldn't mind partaking in the food and drink. It would be a lie if I said I hadn't been interested in the local cuisine each time you and Kent told us of the variety Lycia has to offer. It will be a welcome change from having to hunt our meals every day."

"Ha!" Sain gave a hearty slap on my back in amusement. "It seems even you have caught the fever of Lycia's hospitality. I look forward to showing you all the beauty my great country has to offer."

Florina released a happy sigh. "We'll finally be able to get a good night's sleep. No more worrying about bandits."

"Speaking of bandits," Wil said. "Isn't that the same group from before?"

"What?" I followed his gaze to the forest in the distance. Sure enough, the bandits that attacked us at the fort were coming out of the trees.

"Unbelievable,” I breathed. “We just can't catch a break."

"Those bandits are persistent," Lyn said, drawing her sword. "I'll give them that much."

"Wait, they're not coming after us." Wil pointed across the field to a pair of travelers. "They're going after them."

"Come on. We have to help them," Lyn said, breaking into a sprint.

We followed after her just as the bandits were coming upon the travelers. One of the travelers began shrieking for her companion, apparently named Erk, to help her. I didn't understand why she was so loud, though. Her partner was right next to her and probably deaf now. Even a few of the bandits had covered their ears, but then they saw us coming toward them.

"Oh no! It's the she-devil!"

"They're with her! Run for it, lads!"

And as quickly as they had emerged, the bandits disappeared back into the trees. That set my mind at ease. If the bandits wouldn't even come near us at this point, I wouldn't have to worry about Lyn's anger.

"Are you all right?" Lyn asked the travelers.

            "What a surprise," said the modestly dressed woman with the staff who had been screeching incessantly. "You must be quite strong to have bandits fleeing in terror at the sight of you.”

"Why were they attacking you?" I asked.

The purple locks on the man's head fell over his face. "…It just happened."

"That's not true! They were complaining about a pack of monsters that had been humiliating their group for the past few days, and they needed to rebuild their reputation by harassing us. Honestly, the nerve of such ne'er-do-wells."

The man's eyes did a full circle. "Serra, if you'd not been so meddlesome, it could have been avoided. My apologies. Please trouble yourself with us no more."

"It's no trouble. My name is Lyn, and this is my tactician, Mark."

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Lyn," said the woman. "My name is Serra. This is my escort, Erk. And…" Serra had suddenly taken a strange interest in me. "Those bandages. Are you injured?"

"Huh? Oh, this. Yes, I suffered a nasty wound about a week ago. It's not as bad as it was."

Serra placed a finger next to her mouth and tilted her head. "Weeeeeeellll, I was thinking that since you all scared off those bandits, I would heal your wound free of charge." She threw up her hands in mock praise refusal. "I know, I know. I'm generous—hm? Erk? Do you have a headache?"

Erk was pinching the space between his eyebrows with acute intensity.

"You can do that?" Lyn asked in amazement.

"Of course." Serra flipped her pink hair over her shoulder and strod up to me, wagging her hand to beckon me over. "Come, come. Remove your cloak, and let's have a look here." Before I could even lift an arm, she had me by the shoulders, spun me around, and pulled my cloak off. "Oh, my. That is quite a lot of blood. I can only imagine what it must be like under the bandages. But nothing that I can't handle." Serra placed a hand on my injury. Though not nearly as bad, the wound was still tender, and Serra didn't know how to be gentle. But after a moment of soft chanting, which had been a stark difference from her screaming moments ago, the dull pain disappeared.

"Whoa," I said, trying to look at my back.

"All finished." Serra stood back triumphantly.

Lyn came up behind me and helped me pull off the bandages. "Wow! It's completely healed! That's amazing, Serra! Your staff is a wondrous thing."

"Only those in the service of good can wield them."

"Your kindness is greatly appreciated,” Lyn said with a bow. “Are you two traveling to Araphen? If so, why don't we go together? It will be much safer for all of us."

"What a splendid idea. We accept your offer."

"Then we should be off," I replied. "Kent will probably send a search party out for us if we take much longer."

We continued on our way, and as we went. I overheard Sain starting up a conversation with our new companions.

"What have we here? Another wildflower? Perhaps a butterfly? What an absolutely delectable creature!"

"Oh my! You're one of Lyn's companions. And you are?"

"Please, call me Sain."

"I'm Serra. I serve House Ostia."

"Serra…" Sain hummed in a singsong sort of way. "What a lyrical name. I am in service to Castle Caelin."

"Oh! So are Lyn and Mark members of the marquess' family?"

"Mark and Lyn are not related, from what I know. He is a tactician who was traveling with Lady Lyndis when we found her. However, she is the granddaughter of our lord, the Marquess."

"Hmmm… Such an important person."

"Serra…" Erk spoke up in concern. "What deviousness are you contemplating now?"

"Tee hee! Having a person of power in your debt is never a bad thing!" Serra had lowered her voice, but apparently, she didn't realize that her "quiet volume" was an average level for most people.

"You can't be serious…"

"Oh, Sain! Do you think we could join the lady Lyndis' company? She seems like such a nice person, and I would ever so much like to help her."

"Of course! We couldn't be happier! Why Mark was only just saying how we need some more fighting power!"

"Are you being hunted or something?" Serra asked.

"Yes, it's an inheritance dispute. Assassins everywhere."

"Oh, my! In that case, my healing staff and Erk's magic should come in handy."

"Well, I, er…" Erk struggled to come up with a counter-argument. "It sounds… dangerous…"

"Your staff and magic would be extremely helpful! Please wait here! I will go and speak with Lady Lyndis on your behalf."

Sain's horse trotted up behind us. "Lady Lyndis, Mark, it seems that our new companions-"

"WE KNOW!" Lyn and I shouted together.

The sun had passed its peak by the time we arrived at the front gates of Araphen, and it was a new experience for me. There was a single drawbridge over a river leading into the city, and the solid ramparts rose up so high that it was impossible to see anything behind them. Bulgar had walls as sturdy as these surrounding it as well, but it was based on an enormous hill that displayed the grandness of the city from a distance. The buildings in Bulgar were also far more spread out similar to the layout of nomadic villages, and the marquess' castle had its own fortifications. Araphen was far more compact in comparison like the whole city was one big castle. Most of the structures were built up right next to each other, with only a few alleyways opening up every third building or so. It wasn't until we turned a corner and found ourselves in a square that we finally saw the true castle's lofty spires.

"Sain, do you see Kent?" Lyn asked as we entered the square.

Sain glanced around at everyone who rode a horse. "It shouldn't have taken him long to meet with the Marquess. We met with him on our way to Sacae, but… Ah, here he comes now."

Kent rode into the plaza and spotted us immediately. He wore a broad smile as he approached us. "Milady Lyndis, Mark! Let us proceed to the castle. They've prepared supplies for us. The marquess has agreed to aid us on our journey to Caelin."

"He's going to help us?" Lyn asked surprised.

"It seems so," I replied, extending my hand to Kent. At this point, I felt there was no longer any need to suspect these cavaliers of treachery. If they did intend to betray us, it's likely we would've been detained by the royal guards the moment we crossed the drawbridge. And Kent had been nothing if not proactive throughout this journey. He deserved this praise. "Well done, Kent. This will be a major boon for us."

Kent took my hand with a gracious smile. "Of course. Araphen and Caelin have enjoyed a sturdy friendship for many years. Sain and I passed through here on our way to Sacae and mentioned our mission to Marquess Araphen. I just informed him we were successful, and he agreed to lend us his strength."

"Looks like we got a smooth road ahead," Sain said, bringing his horse up next to Kent and setting a hand on his shoulder.

"Yes," Kent agreed. "If we could pick up some soldiers, the road to Caelin would be that much safer." His driven expression suddenly dissolved into a more solemn mien, and he bowed his head to Lyn. "I'm truly sorry for the hardships you've suffered so far."

Lyn gave him a kind-hearted laugh to dismiss his apology. "Don't be silly. You are so capable, Kent."

"Kent!?" Sain whined.

"Oh, and so are you, Sain."

"Of course I am!" He smiled big and puffed out his chest as he always did.

I rolled my eyes and headed for the castle. "Come on. Let's not keep the marquess waiting."

We didn't make it far when a villager shouted and pointed at the castle. "This is terrible! The castle is burning!!"

We moved around a row of houses to find that his words were right. Smoke billowed out from the windows of the castles, and soldiers were rushing buckets of water inside. People dressed in extravagant clothing were exiting the castle escorted by other soldiers, but the three poorly dressed figures moving toward us caught my eye.

"Hey, what are those men doing?" another villager said, noticing the men.

The villagers backed off as the men drew closer. They split off, and the leader approached Lyn.

"Who are you?" she asked as he came up to her.

"You're Lyndis, aren't you?" the man asked forthrightly.

Something about him made me feel uneasy. But I didn't make a move or say anything. Lyn had her sword, and he was unarmed. Kent didn't seem worried either, so I felt more at ease. It was likely this was one of the marquess' men coming to inform us of the situation, and my lack of sleep was finally starting to get to me. Tonight, I would try to actually rest.

"What are—" Lyn began to ask.

"No questions!" the man interrupted. "Prepare yourself." A dagger suddenly appeared in his hands.

None of us had any time to react. The man had moved so quickly that not even Lyn could pull out her sword. The surprise weapon broke me out of my stupor, and I attempted to rush to Lyn's aid, but I was too far and could only helplessly watch the man lunge at her with his dagger. But just as fast, the man had fallen to the ground with an arrow protruding from his chest. A man on a horse carrying a bow rode up, and the thug's cohorts stepped away slowly before fleeing at a full sprint.

"What? An arrow?" Lyn said, looking around for the shooter. She spotted the man on horseback, who stared at her in silence.  "Who are…?"

"Milady Lyndis!" Kent cried, finally coming to his senses. "Are you all right?"

About time… Why had he taken so long to come to Lyn? Granted, we had all been caught off guard, but it seemed that Kent only just realized what was happening.

Lyn blinked as she came out of her own trance. "I'm fine. He… This man saved me."

Kent's gaze fell upon the man as if just now noticing him. The man held Kent's gaze, still not saying a word. I, too, couldn't help but stare. For someone on horseback, he appeared out of nowhere—completely unheard or seen. And just as quickly, he had launched an arrow straight into the assailant's heart. His outfit was not that of a guard or one of those mercenaries. He wore a simple tunic and pants and a bandana on his head. There was also a strange design running down the collar of his shirt that looked incredibly familiar. A realization shifted my eyes to Lyn's garb. It was an almost identical design to hers! Could this man have been a Sacaean as well?

"May I ask your name?" Kent requested from the man.

He still did not respond, and he turned his horse to leave.

"Wait!" Lyn called. She succeeded in holding the man a moment longer. "Why did you help me?"

The man finally spoke. "I thought a Sacaean plainswoman was being attacked. I was mistaken."

"No, you were right!" Lyn replied. "I am from Sacae. I'm Lyn, the daughter of the Lorca chieftain."

Her introduction sparked emotion in the man's stern expression. "The Lorca? There were survivors?"

Lyn shifted her gaze. "Yes…"

The emotion disappeared from the man's face again. "You should leave at once," he said. “A blaze started in the castle, and it's spreading. Don't be foolish and waste the life I just saved."

Lyn looked back to the man. "You're from the castle? What's happening? How severe is the fire? Is the marquess safe?"

"The castle is under attack, and the marquess has been accosted. The man who attacked you was probably one of the marauders. As captain of the castle guard, it's my duty to rescue the marquess."

"I see…" Lyn’s face lit up like it usually did whenever she made her mind up about something. "All right then, we'll help you."

"Milady?" Kent questioned her decision.

The man seemed to be equally confused. "Why?"

"These brigands are after me. If they're attacking the castle, it's because of me. So I must help if I can…"

A part of me wanted to argue against that notion, but I couldn't help but feel her statement was accurate. A group of men just called Lyn by her noble name and attacked her just like the bandits did when we first met Kent and Sain. It didn't occur to me until now: although we had rid ourselves of the bandits after crossing into Lycia, there was still the issue of Lundgren. The bandits we fought when Kent and Sain first joined had been paid by Lundgren to kill Lyn. Just because we were out of bandit territory didn't mean we were out of trouble. I had considered the possibility of more dangerous enemy encounters the closer we moved to Caelin. I just didn't assume it would happen so soon and to such a degree. And I also didn't stop to think what this might mean about our two supposedly loyal cavaliers… Suddenly, I wasn't so keen on giving Kent the benefit of the doubt.

"Sounds like you're involved somehow," the man replied. "Let's go…"

"You'll accept our aid?" Lyn asked with a smile.

The man nodded. "I am Rath of the Kutolah. Our tribes may be different, but I will not abandon a woman of Sacae."

Lyn's face glowed as bright as the sun. It was the same smile she had given me when I woke up in her Yurt. And for some reason, it made my heart twist. “Thank you, Rath! A thousand blessings upon you!"

Rath finally smiled. "And a thousand curses upon our enemy!"

"Tell us what we need to do, Rath," I said, glancing around the square.

"The marauders have the marquess locked in the throne room. Once the marquess is safe, my men can move in." He rested his chin against his hand. "Perhaps the secret passageway…"

"Secret passageway?" Lyn questioned.

"An underground tunnel leading to the throne room… There are triggers in the barracks here that will open the tunnel."

I followed Rath's gaze toward the large building nestled in the corner of the square near us. "So we activate the triggers, open a hidden tunnel, and we have a clear shot to the marquess. Once that's done, you and your men can deal with the remaining threat."

            "Mmm…" Rath nodded. "If we can release those triggers my men and I can handle the rest. There are three triggers, though. All three need to be released, or the entrance won't open."

"Then let's not waste any more time," I said, approaching the building. Two large metal walls acted as the entrance into the barracks, and when I had made it closer, I discovered that a chain was wrapped around the handles and secured with a lock. "Blast. The doors are locked. Do you have a key Rath?"

"I don't. The enemy must have locked themselves within to slow us down. If we don't get inside and finish them, we're stuck."

"Well the door is locked on the outside, and if the marauders are responsible. One of them out here has to have a key. There was more than one that approached us before the assault. Everyone pair up with a mounted unit, and let's find those marauders."

Everyone followed my orders, and headed down different streets. I decided to stay behind and hide in one of the nearby houses in case one of the marauders came back here to unlock the barracks. The house I chose provided a great view of the empty square, and it appeared abandoned for the moment. Free of the risk of being yelled at to leave, I crouched behind the couch next to the window.

"Hey, you! Can I talk to you?"

The surprise voice nearly sent me sprawling onto the couch. "Huh? Who are you?"

"I'm Matthew," the man replied, bowing low, "a specialist in acquisitions of all kinds. Would you like to buy my services?"

I knew exactly what he meant with that phrasing, and his ragged attire that resembled a vagabond reinforced the assumption. "I've no need for a thief."

"Really? And how do you plan on opening the barrack doors?"

My eyebrows rose to ask how he knew about the barracks, and that was my mistake.

"Bullseye!" He said, throwing a finger in my direction.

I groaned and returned to watching the square.

"Don't be mad. Hire me. For you, I'll even lower my normal rate."

We did need the doors open as soon as possible. The longer we spent trying to find the marauder with the key, the longer the marauders had to catch on to our plan and fortify themselves. And while Matthew probably didn't have the key, as a thief, he undoubtedly had some picks that could open that lock. Why else would he be offering his services?

            "Fine, you're hired. But answer me one question first. Why bother helping us? The marauders could probably pay you better than I could."

            "I was watching the battle upstairs. Your group looked like a lot more fun than the dead guy. Pretty simple, really."

            There was more to it than that, but I had a feeling he wasn't going to be wholly honest with me. "Fair enough. Let's go open the barracks." We exited the house, and I spotted Lyn riding with Rath toward another street. "Lyn!"

            Rath halted his horse, and their heads spun in my direction.

            "I've found the key. Gather everyone else and bring them back here."

            "Okay!"

            Rath urged his horse to continue, and I went over to join Matthew, who had already gone to work picking the lock on the doors.

            "There's probably going to be some marauders waiting inside for us,” I warned him.

There was a click in the lock, and Matthew pulled the chains off the door. "You've got a sword on you. We should be fine until your friends show up." He heaved open the double doors, standing right in the opening with that carefree expression. I half expected an arrow to pierce him the moment the doors swung open, but to my surprise, the barracks appeared empty. "And these marauders are spineless as well. They're going to be hiding in the rooms trying to ambush us."

"How do you know that?"

            "Well, it's what I would do."

            "Right… No honor among thieves."

            "Hey!" Matthew pointed toward some reflective metal that was barely illuminated by the light from outside. "Unless my eyes deceive me, that's a chest! Say! Since we got these barracks open, what do you say we help ourselves?"

            "No."

            "Huh? What do you mean, ‘No'?"

            "Are you really going to make me explain myself?"

            "Don't be such a bore. You're a tactician, right? You, of all people, should know that if you want to win, you've got to use every means at your disposal. That's an ironclad rule!"

            "Don't try to gray my occupation with your lack of morals."

            "Yeah, I know stealing's bad. I'm well aware of that. But we're saving the marquess, right? Let's just call this an advance on our reward. Ok?"

            "You can consider it an advance on the payment for your services." I drew my sword as I stepped into the growing darkness to look for the triggers. "You're not going to listen to what I say, so I'm not going to bother wasting the breath. As far as you’re concerned, I didn't see anything."

            "Battles aren't won by virtue and glory alone," Matthew chided, pushing the equipment off his prize. "No one's going to miss a couple of chests. Relax."

            I ignored his next actions as I had said I would. If Rath showed up and found him pilfering goods, I needed to plead ignorance. So before I could see him opening the chest, I opened the door to the first room. I prepared myself for a waiting marauder and let the door swing open on its own. No weapons swung down, so I carefully peeked my head into the room. With all the military gear hanging on the walls or scattered into a corner without care for aesthetic appearance, this looked to be another storage room. Otherwise, it was empty. I was about to close the door when something on the ground caught my eye. A strange indentation was on the floor, almost hidden beneath a tarp. I removed the tarp to find the indentation was an intricate design embossed on a tile bulging from the floor. I placed my hand on the tile and pressed down. The tile sunk into the floor, and a thick, mechanical groan shook the barracks. I had found one of the triggers.

            "Hey, tactician! Check this out."

            I exited the room and found Matthew holding up a robe so white that even the little light that came in allowed me to see its elegance. "This is an angelic robe. It's rumored to provide protection for those on the… less robust side."

            "Sounds perfect for you. Consider yourself paid."

            "What?" Matthew yelled over the loud machinery that was still running through its procedure.

            "I said it's yours!"

            "That's not all! " He flung the robe onto his shoulder and reached into the chest, pulling out a bulky sword unlike anything I had seen before. The blade was wider than a regular blade and completely flat straight up to the tip, where it elongated into a half circle.

            "An armorslayer. Here." He tossed the weapon to me.

            I caught the weapon only because its large size would have cut me if I tried to avoid it. "I told you I'm not going to be party to your-"

            "Behind you!"

            My body spun on instinct just in time to spot a lance being thrust at me by a giant shield with arms. I jumped to the side and brought the armorslayer down into the shield. Sparks flew from metal cutting metal, and as I pulled my weapon away, the curved tip cut through something flexible. The shield swung out into the lance like a door being thrown open. I could now see an armored Knight stumbling around, trying not to let its unhinged armor pull him to the ground. He managed to push the plate back and hold it in place with his free hand to try and attack me again. The armorslayer was faster. I landed a solid blow on the helmet. The curved tip acted like a hook and ripped the helmet off the Knight's head to reveal that my strike had caused more damage than I thought. The knight's teeth were gnashed in rage, and he tried to take advantage of his helmet being stuck to the armorslayer. It was a weak attempt, however. Only being able to use one hand caused his attack to slow, and it was easy to sidestep. And before he could try again, Matthew sprung up behind him and drove his dagger into the back of the Knight's neck.

            "Mark!" Lyn came running into the barracks with the rest of the company. "Is everything all right?"

            I placed my boot on the helmet to wrench the sword out and then raised my voice over the noise that had covered the knight's approach. "Fine. I found one of the triggers. Be careful searching for the rest of the triggers. You're not going to be able to hear well in here, and it's dark. Stay together."

            Rath went over to a pile of equipment and pulled out a long stick. Then, with a snap of two objects, fire surrounded the tip of the torch. "I know where the other triggers are. Follow me." He nodded to the armorslayer in my hands as he passed me. "That was resourceful of you to use the equipment in here. Hold on to it; we may need it later."

            He took the lead into the barracks, and as he walked by Matthew, the fire illuminated a smirk on the thief's face.

            I shoved a finger in his direction. "Not one word."

We were able to activate the rest of the triggers without too much resistance from the marauders. Most of them were likely still looting the castle in the chaos. When the tunnel finally opened, Rath rallied his men, and they were able to move in and drive the remaining marauders from the castle. Once the fire had been put out and things had calmed down, the marquess requested our presence. I called Kent and Sain to join us. I wanted to make sure they were somewhere I could see them away from their horses if the "deal" Kent struck happened to be a betrayal.

            We entered the throne room and the marquess came to meet us. "Ah, it's Rath," the marquess replied with a look of esteem for his captain of the guard. For someone whose castle had resembled an inferno moments ago, he seemed to be in good spirits. That did not ease my concerns. "You've done well. What a performance!"

            "Sir…" Rath replied with a bow. "If you have praise, it should be given to this group." He stepped aside to present Lyn and I to him.

            And that's when the esteem disappeared. "Hm?" He said, looking us over, eyeing Lyn especially. "Who are you?"

            "My name is Lyndis, and this is my tactician, Mark. We are pleased you're well."

            At the mention of her name, the marquess' eyes narrowed. "Oh… It's you. You're Marquess Caelin's…" He continued to stare at her with a frown. The look was not of a grateful man wishing to reward those who had saved his life and his home. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Rath had become tense as well. The marquess' eyes shifted toward him. "Leave us, Rath. I would speak with this girl and her associates."

            Rath didn't respond but obeyed and exited the throne room. His departure set my anxieties on high alert, and I rested a hand on my blade in preparation for a hostile encounter. Though at this point, if Kent and Sain had betrayed us, it would be three against two. Well, maybe two and a half. The Marquess didn't appear to have much experience in combat as reedy as he was.

            When Rath had left the throne room, the Marquess approached us. He seemed to completely disregard me and stared down at Lyn from above his large, aquiline nose. This would not be pleasant.

            "Now… Lady Lyndis. Do you know the identity of those responsible for this uproar?"

            Lyn showed no fear. "I believe it to be the work of my granduncle, Lundgren."

            "We've run into similar thugs on our way to Lycia," I added, stepping closer to Lyn, "though they've proven to be unable to hinder our journey." I wanted to make sure this noble understood we were a capable group in case he was considering repairing his estate by taking over the marauders' job.

            "That's exactly right," he said, barely looking at me. "Which means my castle has been damaged in your family's petty inheritance dispute."

            Lyn still didn't let herself appear fearful, but I could tell she agreed she was responsible. "My-my apologies…"

            The marquess finally turned from Lyn and paced back up toward his throne. "When I heard that Lady Madelyn's daughter was in trouble, I thought to lend my assistance…" The marquess stopped for a moment, then spun back around to us. "I find I've changed my mind. I withdraw my offer."

            To my surprise, Kent, who had been standing quietly by with Sain until now, was the first to protest. "Marquess Araphen! You gave me your word, my lord!"

            I couldn’t help but to be confused as well. Why withdraw his aid now? Was he really that upset over the destruction of his castle? He had been overjoyed once Rath brought us before him, and by Kent’s reaction, I had to guess that the marquess had indeed promised aid, only to go back on it now. Perhaps the marauders’ attack had frightened him into not wishing to become involved in the conflict.

            The marquess stared at Kent with unwavering contempt. "Kent, was it? You failed to inform me of one most vital detail!"

            The marquess' words disarmed Kent. His face went pale, and he stared at the marquess in utter confusion. "What… What do you mean?"

            "This girl does resemble Lady Madelyn, but…" His scornful expression became even colder. "I didn't expect to see her so tainted with the blood of Sacae."

            "What?!?" Lyn gasped as if he had spit venom at her.

            "Don't you feel the Marquess of Caelin would be troubled to meet this… nomadic mongrel?"

            What in the world? He was revoking his promised assistance because Lyn was a Sacaean nomad? What did Lyn’s heritage have to do with not wishing to aid our group? It made no tactical sense. And his expression was not one of fear, but sheer disgust and Sain lunged at the Marquess.

            "You--!" he shouted, attempting to throw a punch at the marquess.

            Kent caught him and pulled him away. "Sain! Hold!" He gave the marquess an unnecessary repentant bow of his head. "My apologies, my lord Marquess." I was impressed Kent was able to still show respect for this cretin.

            "Hm… Your man is poorly disciplined."

            "Marquess Araphen!" Kent pleaded. "Please… If you would grace us with your aid…"

            That was generous. As if this man's aid would be "gracing us" at this point. I honestly didn’t have words to express my confusion. Word would surely spread that he withheld aid for Marquess Caelin’s granddaughter for such a trivial and nonsensical reason, and his reputation would be sullied.

            And as if belittling Lyn wasn't enough…

            "I hear the Marquess Caelin is ill and abed. I question whether he will survive to meet this girl. In which case, his brother Lundgren will claim his title. And I certainly wish to avoid trouble with the coming marquess."

            If he had started with that excuse, I might have believed him. At least my fear of possible duplicity wasn't unfounded.

            "You scheming—" Sain made another move, but Kent held him fast.

"Sain!"

            Lyn finally stepped up. "I understand. Kent, Sain, Mark, we take our leave at once."

            Kent looked at her like she had told him she was giving up Caelin to Lundgren. "Milady Lyndis! We—"

Her smile silenced him. "We don't need his aid. Mark will see us through this without Araphen men. I trust him. I am proud of the Sacae blood that runs through my veins." She glared at the marquess so sharply it could've cut like my armorslayer. "I will NOT accept aid from one who disparages my heritage."

            The marquess did not respond, or smile cheekily, or match her look. He just stared at her the way he did when he first addressed us. But Lyn said nothing else either. We left the castle without saying another word until we were at least out of the city, and even that didn't feel far enough to feel better.

            "Well, that was an enlightening exchange," I finally said. "I don’t know why that man has such animosity toward you being Sacaean.”

Lyn frowned and didn’t look at me. “It’s actually more common than you might think, Mark.”

“But to reject his aid over something like that was utterly baffling. I’m glad you didn’t plead, though. It seemed like he only wanted to hurt you, Lyn. I applaud your restraint."

            "Yes," Sain agreed. "That was well done, milady! The marquess is a lout! Don't worry about anything. We're all here for you!" He turned to Kent. "Isn't that so?"

            Kent trudged along, fixated on the ground. "I beg your forgiveness."

            "Why are you apologizing, Kent?" Lyn asked.

            "I've been so concerned with seeing you to Caelin. I failed to take your feelings into account."

            "Is that it?" Lyn stepped to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Trouble yourself no more. You have put my safety above all else. I have seen that…"

            "She's right, Kent," I replied. "Hold your head up, my friend, and be proud, for you are a knight worthy of Lycia’s esteem."

            Kent managed a slight smile. "Milady, Mark…" The look on his face gave my mind pause. That was genuine regret I saw on his face. He had been hopeful for the Marquess' aid and disheartened by his failure. The look caused a slow burn to start in my heart. This man—both of these men—had every intention of seeing Lyn safely to Caelin. If they had intended to betray us, why did Kent plead with the Marquess for aid, and why had Sain nearly decked him? Perhaps… my reservations for them were wrongfully attributed.

            We arrived back at the camp where the rest of our group had been waiting for us. Kent explained the situation, and we packed our things to move out. As I was packing my things, I ventured over to Lyn. There was something else I needed to know.

            "Hey, Lyn…"

            "Yes, Mark?" She noticed my unrest. "What's wrong? Has something happened?"

            "No," I replied, not looking at her. "Back in the castle… Before you rebuked the marquess for insulting your heritage... You said we wouldn't need his men…"

            "That's right," she replied. "Was I wrong to say that? Will we need to find more men?"

            "No, we don't… Well maybe we do, but uh… I just…"

            Should I really tell her?

            "Uh, never mind. Forget I said anything."

            I began to walk away, but she grabbed my arm. "Mark, what's wrong?"

            "Nothing." I didn't want her to know my doubts about my abilities, so I lied. "I just wanted you to know that I will get us to Caelin. I promise."

            That smile reappeared, putting me more at ease. "I know, Mark. You've gotten us this far; I know you will see us through this. You have my utmost confidence. And I have learned so much from our time together that I feel that even if something terrible happens and it just becomes you and I, we will still make it to Caelin as long as I have your guidance."

            I had to admire Lyn's kind heart. She always knew the right things to say. Her tranquility was truly something to behold. And she was right. I could do this. I would see us through this and reunite her with her grandfather.

            "Hey, Mark…" Lyn said.

            "Yeah?" I turned around to find her smile had disappeared.

            "The Marquess of Araphen… He said my grandfather was ill."

            "I'm sure he was just using that as an excuse to demoralize us further. I wouldn't believe a word that man said."

            She smiled again. Not as big as before, but still a smile. "I'm sure you're right. Even so, we must hurry to Caelin…"

            It was time for me to bring up my other concern. "As we approach Caelin, I'm sure Lundgren's obstacles will become more numerous." This time I smiled at her. "However, I am not one to fail someone who has put so much faith in me. I will see us through this to the end, Lyn, even to my dying breath."

            "Mark…" Lyn looked toward the ground. Her smile didn't disappear, but there was something else that made my head feel abruptly light. She was blushing! "Thank you for continuing to always stand at my side. It's all because of you that I…"

            The sound of a horse approaching grabbed our attention. We turned to find Rath coming up to us. Had the marquess changed his mind?

            "Rath!" Lyn said, going to meet him, leaving me to ponder my strange lightheadedness and the words she had been about to say. "What is it? What are you—"

            "I overheard the marquess' conversation with you," Rath replied. "Lyn of the Lorca—proud daughter of the Sacae—I would join you. I would add my strength to yours."

            "Really?" Lyn asked. I couldn't see her face, but I could tell she was smiling.

            "And this…" He pulled a small pouch from the bag on his horse and handed it to Lyn. "I want you to have this."

            Lyn opened up the pouch and gasped. "Gold!? It's too much. I can't accept it!"

Rath pushed the gold back to her. "I have no need for it. And if it will help you…"

            "But…" Lyn's selflessness searched for an argument, but Rath would have none of it.

            "I cannot take back something once offered."

            Lyn looked back up at him. "Rath… I thank you. And I welcome the companionship of a fellow Sacaean."

            “I am glad your group arrived in this town. You exposed the man I respected for the horrible racist he was.” Rath smiled again. "If I can provide you with comfort for your loss, you need but ask."

            I saw Lyn's arms move inward toward her chest. "Thank you, Rath…"

            And at that moment, my heart, once again, twisted in pain.

Chapter Text

Chapter 5

I came to know our new member without ever speaking a word to him. Since Araphen, Lyn had spent most of her free time talking with Rath about their people and what had happened to them. And during the breaks we took in our training sessions, Lyn would only talk about Rath.

Apparently, like Lyn, Rath was the child of the chieftain of his tribe and had been banished at age four due to a prophecy saying that he must help stop the burning. 14 years later, Rath still didn’t know what the prophecy meant. He spent the first years of his exile wandering Sacae, barely clinging to life with every passing day. And because of his banishment, other tribes would rebuke and insult him to the point where Rath learned to no longer feel emotion. Eventually, he found his way to Araphen and worked for the marquess there.

In the week following our departure from Araphen, I found excuses not to speak with Lyn to avoid hearing any more about her new favorite party member. For some reason, the more she mentioned Rath, the more irritated I became. There was one training session we had that I considered cutting my ears off to avoid hearing anything more about the lonely nomad. And to make the matter even more frustrating, I had no idea why, but it was starting to affect my tactical reasoning.

There was one training session where Lyn didn’t talk about Rath, and marveled at my recovery in combat, claiming I could join Kent and Sain on the front lines. Although kind and sincere, her words were like the sun outside the window of the depraved house of darkness that I felt trapped in, with no clue as to how I first entered it. Her compassion no longer had the same effect on me as it once had, which was starting to terrify me. Why was I suddenly dreading every interaction with Lyn?

But while things were deteriorating between Lyn and me, I had found a new boon in Kent. Since his apparent sincerity in Araphen with the Marquess, I decided to push aside my suspicions of the cavaliers and treat Kent as he appeared to be. And with my fighting prowess rekindled, he and I started forming new battle strategies together whenever Lyn went off with tall, dark, and broody. After Araphen, we had only run into small groups of mercenaries and Lundgren loyalists seeking to collect on the bounty he posted on our group. Of course, these random groups of novices were little more than a nuisance to us at this point. But our journey took a strange turn when we arrived at a small village.

“Where are we?” Lyn inquired from Kent as we entered the village.

“This is Khathelet,” he replied. “If we head due south, we’ll pass into Caelin.”

“From here, I’d say it’s about a ten days ride to Castle Caelin,” Sain added, refusing to be left out. “Assuming we don’t run into any delays, of course.”

Sain’s words couldn’t have been more ironic. Not more than two minutes later, a young vagrant with messy blue hair burst out of an inn we were passing by and headed for the first group of people he saw.

“Pardon me, but…” he said, coming straight for Lyn and Kent.

“Yes,” Lyn replied in her usual compassionate tone. “Can we help you?”

The young boy’s gaze drifted toward their weapons. “You and your friends… Are you mercenaries?”

"And if we are?" Kent replied, stiffening in his saddle. Kent had advised all of us not to refer to ourselves as any sort of traveling group, royal or otherwise, since Lundgren's men hunted us. The less attention we drew, the better.

The boy didn’t seem to care who we were, though. “I need your help!” Tears pooled in the corner of his eyes.

Lyn began to move toward the boy, but Kent put a hand in front of her. “Milady Lyndis,” he replied, still eyeing the boy. “You mustn’t let your guard down. Not even for a child.”

“I know,” Lyn replied solemnly. She looked back to the boy. “Forgive me, but we’re in a hurry. Is there someone else you could ask?”

The tears made their escape from the boy’s eyes. “There’s no time! Ninian’s been…” He brushed off the tears that had fallen. “It’s my sister! Some men have taken her away!”

“Your sister?” Sain inquired, jumping off his horse on cue. “Did you say your sister’s been accosted?”

Kent placed his hand over his face. “Sain…”

“That’s right!” The boy latched on to Sain’s enthusiasm. “By some cruel, awful men. I don’t know what I’ll do without Ninian.”

Sain puffed up with that heroic attitude he unleashed whenever a woman was in trouble. “Milady Lyndis! We must help him!”

“Nonsense!” Kent replied in a tone as hard as his armor. “We haven’t the time! If the marquess is as ill as we’ve heard, we must proceed!”

“Kent, I…” Lyn’s voice was almost a whisper, yet it resounded with determination. “I want to help this child.”

“Milady?” Kent said, turning back to her. He was surprised, but he was not against her.

Lyn let her gaze fall to the ground. “I’m worried about my grandfather, of course. But this!” She fixed him with a stern look. “I cannot stand by and let someone be taken from her home!”

Kent was silent for a moment while he wrestled with a double-sided burden. On one side, his duty to his marquess, and on the other, his duty to the marquess' granddaughter, which were at odds most of the time. "I see…"

“I’m sorry, Kent.”

Kent smiled and shook his head. “I am your loyal retainer. You owe me no apologies. You must do as your heart dictates, milady. I will follow you, no matter where that may lead.”

Lyn’s stern expression softened, and she gave him a sweet smile. “Thank you.”

“Hah! Such a noble speech!” Sain puffed his chest in agreement. “Ever the true knight, that one!” He set a hand on the boy’s shoulder and smiled big. “Ah, well. You’re in luck, lad! Let’s go get your sister!”

Having not said anything during the exchange, I broke my silence by coming up to the boy and crouching to talk to him on his level. “What’s your name?”

The boy's eyes widened at the sight of me, and for a moment, his face contorted with disgust as if I were a diseased person. But he stood fast, took a deep breath, and answered me. "Nils."

"All right, Nils," I said, disregarding his strange reaction to me. "Will you lead us to the men who've done this?"

Nils nodded his head. “Uh-huh. They’re really tough, so be careful.”

I turned to Lyn and smirked.

She smiled as well. “Leave them to us. We’re pretty tough ourselves.” She leaned down to give me a playful nudge. “Right, Mark?”

Suddenly, her words filled me with warmth. Her camaraderie was providing me with a drive once again! There was no telling how long this would last, so I decided to take it a step further to make up for lost time. "I'm not so sure how effective you'll be. Your swings have become rather frail in our training sessions. I could've sworn you were attacking me with a feather."

“Oh?” Lyn scoffed, sensing the challenge. “A feather huh? Well, twenty strikes to your big head say I take down more men than you. Perhaps you’ll feel those.”

My smirk widened in satisfaction. “You’ll have to make those other men feel it first.” I turned back to the boy and winked. “Don’t worry. We’ll get your sister back.”

The boy’s eyes widened, and he retreated behind me.

I held my arms up to watch Nils, then followed his perturbed gaze to find a strange man in dark robes approaching us. Only a bearded chin and a wicked grin could be seen underneath his hood.

“Heh heh heh… Found you! C’mon, it’s back to Nergal with you. Quiet now.”

All of a sudden, an arrow pierced the back of my head, and I crumbled to the ground. My hands went to the shaft, trying to remove it. But I hadn't been struck. My hand rubbed my still intact head. The pain came from within my head; it was another one of those strange migraines. But it was even worse than before.

“Mark!” Lyn came down next to me, trying to find my face. “What’s wrong? What’s happening?”

“I… I don’t… know…”

“No!” Nils yelled somewhere further away. “Let Ninian go!"

“I’m not supposed to kill you,” the hooded man said. “But Lord Nergal will be forgiving if I have to harm you because you are resisting.”

Another pang surged through my head, but Lyn missed it because she stood back up to step between Nils and the man. “What have you done to him?” That anger from the destroyed village was back in her voice.

“Huh? Who do you think you are?”

Lyn pulled out the Mani Katti. “Leave us and let the boy’s sister go.”

The man hissed out his amusement. "So you want to help the boy, huh? What a shame. You're going to die for something that doesn't concern you." He lifted his hands, and the wind picked up as lighting started to spark between them, flashing a strange, dark rune. The rune turned into a purple orb that oozed to the ground like a viscous waterfall, and I saw the same substance bubbling up beneath Lyn. I was about to warn her when a flash of light forced me to throw my hands over my face. The robed man recoiled, and the oozing rune disappeared.

“What!?” the man growled, steadying himself.

Another man with long blonde hair and dressed in bright flowing robes stepped in, holding a glowing book. “Be gone, servant of darkness. You will not harm these innocents.”

"Stupid, priest. You will regret interfering." Strange runes appeared above and below the man, collapsed on him with a strange sound, and the man was gone.

There were a few moments of uneasiness as we waited for another dark orb to appear, but after things seemed to calm, the priest turned to us. "Please forgive me. I never meant to startle you."

“Your robes…” Lyn said. “They look like religious vestry. Are you an Elimine bishop?”

“Yes...” The priest nodded his face abashed by the association. “Well, no. I’m only an acolyte, an Elimine monk, to be specific. My name’s Lucius.”

“Do you have business with us?” Kent asked.

“I was at the inn when this child came seeking help. The innkeeper was afraid to get involved. He was…unpleasant.”

“I wasn’t afraid of him!” Nils said, setting his hands on his hips and giving a courageous smile. “I’m used to being treated that way.”

“That’s awful,” Lyn replied.

“May I please lend you my services? I truly wish to help the boy. If only a little. And I'm certain there are more shamans than that one. My light magic can help against them.”

“Of course,” Lyn said.

“Thank you,” the monk said with a bow. “The blessings of St. Elimine be upon you.”

“Do you know where that shaman went?” I asked, standing back up with my subsiding migraine.

Lucius nodded and pointed toward a small mountain in the distance. “Just around that mountain, there’s an abandoned fortress. I came here to Khathelet to investigate rumors of a cult of shamans in the area. The townsfolk say they’ve heard strange noises coming from that fortress.” He placed a hand on his chest and bowed to us. “I was about to go there alone until Nils found you. Elimine answered my prayers. If he says the shaman took his sister, I believe that fortress is where they are keeping her, and my investigation will be much safer with your aid.”

Her, and a potential answer to my past, I thought. In the midst of my migraine, images had flashed through my mind, and that name the shaman had said, Nergal, echoed with familiarity. “Then let’s go.”

Lucius led the way, and I came up beside him with a lowered voice. “Excuse me. May I ask you some questions?”

He turned to me with a smile that was both welcoming and heartwarming. “Of course.”

“My name is Mark. I am the tactician of this group. Could you tell me about these shamans we’re about to face?” I considered my next words. “I do not have much experience with them.”

“I see,” Lucius said with a nod. “Do you know much of magic?”

“Not much at all, I’m afraid.”

Lucius pulled up the sparkling golden book he was carrying and rested a hand on it as a mother would their infant child. “Magic is often housed in physical items like this tome, staves like your cleric uses, or other items, and magic users like me can call upon the magic within them.”

“And your tome there allows you to call upon light magic?” I guessed.

“That’s correct.” He nodded his head behind us. “Just as the purple haired man there can call upon Anima magic with his tome.”

“Anima magic?”

“There are three different types of magic.” Lucius held up three fingers. “Anima, Light, and Dark magic. Anima magic is sourced from nature, often in the form of fire, lightning, or wind. Any mage who studies anima magic can use any item that houses such magic.” He held up his golden book. “Light magic is reserved for those who devote themselves to good. Tomes such as mine are blessed by St. Elimine to protect our comrades and banish evil. Our magic is more defensive or supportive, whereas anima magic is more offensive and destructive.”

“And what about Dark magic?”

Lucius dropped his gaze and frowned. “Dark magic is born from unholy sources. Its only purpose is to corrupt and torment life itself. Though also housed in tomes, where the magic is sourced from is unknown. Those that devote themselves to Dark magic often do so in the pursuit of selfish ambitions.” His slender fingers tightened around his immaculate tome. “But it comes at a price. One must give up something to attain the power of the Dark. These shamans we’re about to face are part of a cult that follows a dark entity. But I cannot tell you who or what it is because the shamans have lost themselves completely. They do not remember how they got their magic, only that they have it and do the bidding of the one that gives them that magic. They have completely forgotten who they were or where they were from.”

They’ve forgotten who they were and where they were from? Could it be that I was a shaman as well? The thought unhinged a deep fear. A shiver ripped through me, but I hid it in a deep breath. “Well, that’s a comforting thought.”

Someone placed a gentle hand on my arm. A soothing warmth flowed into it and spread throughout my body, setting it and my mind at ease. When I opened my eyes, Lucius was smiling at me. “You needn’t fear the shamans. Their magic may be powerful, but it pales in the presence of the light. Have your soldiers protect me from our enemies with martial weapons, and I will ensure the darkness does not reach our forces.”

“Understood,” I replied. But it wasn’t the darkness that was trying to reach our forces that worried me. It was the potential darkness already among us.

I didn’t remember much of the battle. My mind had been racing with what Lucius told me about Dark magic, and that name the shaman had said. Nergal… For some reason, the name resonated within me, like I had heard it before, but I couldn't remember where. My mind searched itself while we searched for Nils’ sister, and yet nothing but the ominous familiarity lingered in my head. I knew this Nergal; I just didn't know how.

            It didn't take us long to drive out the shamans and their mercenaries from the fortress. There were just as many enemies with martial weapons as there were magic users, and Lucius’s light magic dispelled any of the shamans’s magic, allowing our forces to deal the final blows. Once the enemy was dealt with, I sent everyone out to different areas of the fortress to find Nil’s sister. 

            “Nils, where’s your sister?” Lyn asked the boy as we traveled down the last hallway.

            Nils head whipped back and forth as we passed by each column. "Ninian! Ninian…" When we reached the end of the hallway, he stopped. His arms slumped to his side, and he was turning pale. "She's not here. Why? Where could she be?"

            Kent bounded around the corner at the other end of the hallway. “My lady Lyndis! A villager spotted a group of men riding south.”

            “The boy’s dear sister…” Sain said, appearing next to Kent. “They must have her!”

            “Come! We must give chase!” Lyn replied, heading their way.

            I could see Kent become rigid at the end of the hallway. I knew what he was thinking; giving chase would cost us much more time, and each day that passed meant the marquess would be closer to death. A part of me sympathized with Kent, but another part wished to go after the men. Not just to save Nils’ sister but also to learn more about who this Nergal was.

            Lyn and I sprinted down the hall and followed Kent and Sain toward the fortress entrance. When we turned the corner into the next hall, a breath caught in my throat, marveling at how fast Lyn was. Her nomadic garb gave her slender yet powerful legs the freedom of movement. Lyn had taken the lead, sprinting past both Kent and Sain before they’d made it to the end of the hall. She glided like the wind, and in combat, she stung like a raging tornado, carving through her foes with-

            Movement caught my eyes as I passed a room with a cracked door. I skidded to a stop and barged into the room. The door slamming into the wall jolted a bearded mercenary up, whirling around from a chest he was digging through and drawing his sword. But I was already halfway to him, drawing the dagger Matthew had given me. With my free arm, I slammed his sword down and drove the dagger into his hip. The man grunted, eyes flashing with sting and rage. He grabbed me as we crashed into the wall and then the floor. His sword skidded away. He clawed at my cloak to haul me off him. I dropped a knee into his gut to pin him and hooked my other leg around one of his arms to pull him off me. He squirmed to free himself, but a swift jab from my elbow into his face sent him back to the floor. I spun back around, locking his arm with my leg, and punched his face again.

            “Who are you?” I demanded, grabbing his collar and hauling his sagging body up. “Why are you trying to kidnap two adolescents? And who is Nergal!?” I punched him again. “Answer me, damn it!”

            "Mark," Lyn pulled me off the man while Kent and Sain moved in to detain him. I couldn't see my face, but by the look on Lyn's, it must have been similar to what I’d seen from her at the village the bandits decimated.

            "Failure… means death…" the man muttered. He closed his mouth, and I heard a crack. Within seconds, his body fell still.

            “Poison,” Sain stated. “He took his own life.”

            “These are no common brigands we’re dealing with,” Kent replied. “The man was well trained.”

            “He wasn’t a shaman either,” I said, pointing at the sword on the floor. “He tried to draw that on me. Lucius said these were mercenaries working for the shaman. But what kind of mercenaries would be so loyal to their employer that they would end their own lives out of failure?”

            “The Black Fang.”

            We turned to find Nils standing in the doorway, his face awash in sorrow.

            I stood up and went to him. “Are they associated with this Nergal the shamans mentioned?”

            Nils nodded.

            “Why are they trying to capture you and your sister? Who are you?”

            “We…” Nils sniffed. “We just…”

            “Mark!” Lyn grabbed me by the shoulder and spun me around. “Mark you… Mark, are you okay?”
            When my vision became clear again, I saw the concern staining Lyn’s face. It must have been an unsettling expression based on how her eyes scanned me, so I took a deep breath and nodded. “I’m fine. Just…” I realized I’d been asking the wrong questions. “Frustrated because the scoundrel died before I could find out where they took Nils’ sister.”

            “Are you looking for this girl here?” A man about my age dressed in an elegant set of noblemen’s armor stepped down the hall carrying a girl in a white dress. If this was Nils’ sister, she seemed to be a slight bit older than her brother, close to Lyn and I's age.

            “Ninian!” Nils shouted, launching himself toward the man. “Ninian!”

            The girl did not respond.

            “She’ll be fine,” the man reassured him. “She’s just lost consciousness.”

            “Who are you?” Lyn asked as we arrived.

"I'm Eliwood, of Pherae." The man replied with an elegant bow perfected over many years. "My father is the marquess of Pherae."

            My mind surged once again, sending a familiar chill throughout my body. Eliwood had also been in my dream—the one brandishing a giant sword while riding a horse. I remembered his blazing red hair. And that face. His sharp blue eyes were that of a boy raised in battle since adolescence, but they also had a meekness to them. He knew when to draw his sword and when to keep it sheathed. They also revealed his humility. They were not like the eyes of Marquess Araphen, a haughty noble who looked down on others because of his status. To Eliwood, we were equals, even if he had done us a service. Both he and Lyn had looked different in the dream, but that did nothing to ease my concerns. Having now found the second of the three significant people in my dream worried me. Perhaps it had been more than a dream…

            “The marquess’ son…” Lyn said to herself.

            Eliwood glanced at the siblings. "She was with a band of ruffians. She seemed upset and looked in need of rescuing…" He looked back at Lyn and me. By both of our distracted looks, he must have assumed us concerned. "Was I wrong to involve myself?"

            Lyn blinked out of her daze. “No, you saved her life. Thank you. My name is Lyn. I’m from Sacae…” She thought about her next words carefully. “I’m Marquess Caelin’s granddaughter.”

            Eliwood raised his eyebrows. “Marquess Caelin?”

            Lyn gave Eliwood the shortened version of her story, introducing me and explaining when we met Kent and Sain and how we were on our way to Caelin to save her grandfather. I wouldn't have gone into as much detail, but Lyn seemed to trust Eliwood, and so did I. His presence in the dream was my reason. I had a feeling this wouldn't be the last time I saw him. 

            “And that’s my story,” Lyn finished. “It’s not an easy tale to believe, I know…”

            “No. I do believe you,” Eliwood replied.

            A shocked expression fell over Lyn. “What?”

            “At first glance, all I saw was a daughter of the plainsfolk. Now I can see it, though. You have your grandfather’s eyes.”

            Lyn vivified at his words. “Do you know my grandfather?”

            Eliwood nodded. “The marquess, Lord Hausen, is my father’s good friend.” He smirked. “I also know that the proud people of Sacae tell no lies. It’s true, isn’t it?”

            Lyn gave him a shy smile. “Yes… Thank you. I would not have expected any Lycian noble to be so courteous to a Sacaean nomad.”

            “You seemed to be in trouble. May I be of assistance?”

            “Thank you for your kind offer,” Lyn answered, giving him a grateful nod. “This is my problem, though, and I’ll deal with it.”

            “I see.” Her response troubled Eliwood. Was there something he knew that we didn’t? Surely he wouldn’t keep that from us. “I’ll be in the area for a few days longer. If you need anything, please let me know.” He stepped back to leave but paused and looked at Lyn. “Lyndis, I’m on your side.”

            Lyn stared at him for a moment, then smiled and bowed. “Eliwood… Thank you.”

            Eliwood turned to me and bowed his head as well. I returned the gesture, and then he took his leave. Not much later, Ninian finally awoke.

            “Nils?” Ninian said as her eyes fluttered open. “Is it really you? Oh, you’re safe!”

            “Uh huh.” He brushed his sister’s soft blue hair aside, then gestured toward Lyn and I. “These people helped me.”

            Ninian gave us a wary look, especially when her eyes found mine. She had that same banishing expression that Nils had. “Who are they?”

            "Uh…" It finally dawned on Nils he had asked random strangers to help him out.

            Lyn took the initiative, wearing her warm smile. “I’m Lyn. I’m glad you’re feeling better.”

            Her smile put Ninian at ease. “Milady Lyn. Thank you. I’m called Ninian. My brother, Nils, and I are traveling performers.”

            “Performers?” I questioned, surprised at their profession. “Both of you?”

            Lyn helped put the pieces together. “Your brother’s a musician. How about you, Ninian?”

            The girl had not stopped staring at me since I asked the question. It wasn’t until Nils tapped her shoulder that her face flushed a bright pink. “I… I dance.”

            Sain thrust his way between us. “What? Oh my… you’re a dancer!”

            For the first time since we had met Sain and Kent, Lyn pressed the heel of her hand to her forehead and glowered just like Kent. “Sain… Later, please.”

            Sain looked at both of them before slowly moving away, never expecting Lyn to turn into Kent. "Um, yeah. Of course."

            Once he was gone, Lyn reignited her smile for Ninian. “A dancer? Your clothes don’t look like those of a dancer.”

            Nils jumped in for his sister’s timidity. “Ninian dances to honor life. It’s special… Sacred.”

            "A sacred dance?" A part of me was interested in the dance, but I wasn’t finished trying to find that connection to Nergal and the Black Fang. "What does that mean?"

            "I…" Ninian seemed almost ashamed of her profession. "The dance I perform when we travel is just a normal dance." Her manner turned solemn. "My other dance, though… When they caught me, I twisted my ankle. I cannot dance to aid you… I'm sorry."

She was on the verge of tears, so Lyn consoled her. "Please don't worry. We're just happy to see that you're out of harm's way."

            “Thank you,” Ninian replied. Her smile did not return.

            Lyn bent down and examined her leg. “But I am concerned about your injury. You can’t walk far on it.”

            “I have an idea,” Nils said. “Would it be too much to ask that we travel with you?”

            Lyn’s smile drooped into a frown. “I can’t allow that! It’s far too dangerous. We’re being hunted too. We never know when we’re going to be attacked.”
            “We wouldn’t be a hindrance,” Nils’ pleaded with her. “We could even help you. Right, Ninian?”

            His sister nodded. “Yes. We might be able to repay our debt using our… special talents.”

            Lyn raised an inquiring brow to both of them. “Special talents?”

            "When something poses a threat to us," Ninian explained, "we can sense its approach."

            "So you have a heightened intuition?" I stated. These two weren't the first to be able to "sense" danger. Even I could feel uneasy when something or someone possibly dangerous approached. But no one could sense it.

            “No,” Nils stated. “We can actually sense danger before it’s upon us.”

            Lyn and I exchanged glances. I could see the distress on her face at the prospect of having these two join our group. She also didn’t seem to buy their claim either. She was more concerned with the well-being of these two than any aid they might provide for us. And who could blame her? We had spent valuable time rescuing Ninian from the Black Fang, and whether or not those men were through with them was impossible to predict. Their safety would not be guaranteed, whatever our choice was, so I decided to gather the opinions of others.

            “Kent, what do you think?”

            Kent found Lyn's eyes, and he took a few moments for thought before he gave a rather wise response. "I think leaving them here would cause Lady Lyndis more worry than having them travel with us."

            “Sain? Never mind. I know what your answer is.” I turned to the rest of our party. “How about you all?”

            “Bring them along,” Matthew answered for the group. “A few more members won’t hurt us, and it won’t be hard to protect them.” Everyone else nodded or voiced their agreement. Rath just gave a nod.

            With opinions gathered, I turned back to Lyn. I didn't say anything, though. She already knew I would be a fool to disagree with a unanimous decision. But this was her journey. I wanted her to make the final decision on this matter. 

            She turned back to the siblings with a worried look. “Do you really want to travel with us?”

            “Of course!” Nils cried.

            Ninian clasped her hands over her chest and bowed. "You have our gratitude, milady." Distress suddenly washed over Ninian's face, and she looked at her fingers. Then her frantic hands flew around her body, patting over every inch of herself. "Oh no!"

            “What’s wrong, Ninian?” Nils asked, grabbing his sister’s shoulders.

            Her face had lost all its color. “I’ve lost my ring!”

            Nils’ face went pale as well. “Not Ninis’ Grace?”

            Another chill shot down my spine, and I didn’t know why.

            “The very one,” Ninian replied.

            “They stole it?” Nils clenched his fists. “Those curs!”

            “Was it valuable?” Lyn asked.

            Ninian dumped her head. “It was a keepsake from our departed mother.”

            Nils also dropped his gaze. “It was blessed by the spirit of Ninis… There’s no other like it in the world. And now we have lost it to those villains. There’s nothing we can do.”

            “You’re right,” Ninian agreed.

            All of us fell silent for a moment. Another chill sped down my spine, and I could feel sweat breaking out on my forehead. I was unusually angry with this issue. I didn’t know why, but I did know something else. I returned to the room where I’d found the Black Fang member and went to the chest he’d been digging in. It was littered with random parchment and cloth-bound rations and other trinkets. But down at the bottom, a gold ring with onyx gemstones was tucked into a small piece of cloth. I picked it up and held it out to the twins. “Is this it?”

            Ninian gasped. “Yes!” She raced forward and snatched it from me before bowing her head. “Thank you.”

            “No thanks needed,” I said with a smile to try and alleviate the strange tension between us. “It was just lucky I spotted the Black Fang member in here before we chased after those others.”

            Ninian glanced at the dead man on the floor, then back to me, her mien still leery but now a bit astonished as well, as if I was the strangest person she’d ever met. I held my smile. “Kent, Sain. Please take the twins and the rest of our forces back to town. We’ll rest in Kathalet for the night.”

            “Yes, Mark,” Kent said and stepped forward before Sain could do anything enthusiastic with the twins. I followed them out of the room and Lyn and I watched them leave with our company.

"Who are these Black Fang,” she asked when they were gone, “and what do they want with Nils and Ninian?” She seemed to forget my outburst at Nils.

I decided it was best not to revisit it. “I don’t know, but Nils said they work for Nergal, and the shamans were also from him.”

“Do you think it’s their special powers?”

I tilted my head and blew air through my teeth. “I wouldn’t put much stock into what they said about that. More than likely, those two are orphans, and they stole from this Nergal fellow. That ring is probably his.”

Lyn tilted her head. “But why send a band of mercenaries and wielders of the  Dark to capture two kids and a ring?”

She made a good point. “Maybe that ring is worth a grand fortune. Either way, I agree with Kent. We shouldn’t let our guard down even for a couple of kids.”

Lyn didn’t seem convinced as she stared back down the hall. “That’s going to have to be your job, Mark. I… want to protect them. Even if they are lying to us.”

“Will you still protect them if more of those shamans come hunting them?” I asked without any sympathy. I wouldn’t be doing my job as her tactician if I wasn’t honest with her. “It will be more difficult for us to reach your grandfather if we have to contend with another band of them in addition to Lundgren’s forces.”

“Yes,” she said with unwavering resolve. But she didn’t look at me. She was doing her best to hide the apprehension her face betrayed, but she could only conceal it for so long before it broke her. She turned to me with pleading eyes. “Will you stay by my side even if this makes it harder for us?”

“You know, I will,” I said with the same resolution she had, and she gifted me with that heartwarming smile of hers. In truth, I wanted Nils and Ninian with us and for those shamans to come for us again. I didn’t get any answers to these strange sensations that assaulted me with the mention of Nergal. Memories stood on the edge of my mind, but I was still locked away from them.

For the time being, there was nothing more I could do. I would have to set the questions aside and refocus on leading our group to Caelin and reuniting Lyn with her grandfather. And hopefully, in time, the incomplete memories would be explained or fade away. I leaned back from Lyn, curling a smug smirk. “So how many foes did you defeat?”

She swung her head back with a similar smirk and knocked a fist on my head. “More than you, tough guy.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 6

We traveled south from the Black Fang fortress and crossed into Caelin after a few more days of travel. And with each step we took to reach our destination, Lundgren’s resistance had become more and more tenacious. To present us with another obstacle, Lundgren had spread a rumor that a malicious group was traveling through Lycia, claiming to be escorting the granddaughter of Marquess Caelin to seize power. And Lundgren, in his selfless ambition, wished to protect his brother's throne as well as all of Lycia from the imposters.

According to Kent, we would be approaching Caelin within the next day. And now, with the threat of the whole nation of Lycia coming out to hunt down an imposter heir, I decided it would be best to take Eliwood up on his offer for assistance. As the son of a marquess, he would have some pull with the other Lycian houses and might be able to convince them of Lundgren’s duplicity. That would take another few days, so I had our company camp out in a forest near the castle until we received word from Eliwood.

"Good! Now parry!" I shouted as I swung my sword in a full arc toward Lyn.

She placed her sword between us, taking the blow rather than jumping away. Her face dripped with her determination as I pressed against the Mani Katti with the armorslayer's hefty blade, and she pushed back enough that she was able to swing her elbow toward my face. I stepped back, letting up on the pressure to allow Lyn to push my sword away. But I came right back in for another attack.

Lyn was ready for it. Our swords collided with a boisterous ring, throwing me into recoil. But I transferred it into my momentum to come back around for an overhead chop. Lyn stepped back from this attack but not far, and her sword was ready to launch into an uppercut that flowed into a series of multiple strikes. Our swords clashed against each other again and again, singing their song of battle as Lyn and I stepped in tune. The days in which I was telling her exactly where to place her feet seemed farther than the open plains of her home in comparison to the woman I was training now. I did not speak when I attacked, not even a grunt of exertion. I hid my movements to the best of my ability by attacking unmethodically. Yet, no matter what kind of strike I threw at her, Lyn read every move in a split second and defended with sharp coordination. If this had been actual combat, my only option would've been to use my size to overwhelm her. But Lyn was beyond failing to such a maneuver, so I decided to teach her something new.

After backflipping away from one of my whirlwind attacks, I waited until Lyn charged back in. Then I threw my sword aside and brought up my fists.

“Mark! What are you-”

Lyn couldn’t stop her momentum, so she spun and threw herself to the side to avoid slicing me and tumbled to the ground.

“Mark!” she fumed as she returned to her feet. “What are you doing?! Why did you throw your sword away?”

"To present something new to you. You need to prepare for anything in battle."

“What am I supposed to learn by you disarming yourself?”

"You'll see." I rotated my arms inward. "Come at me."

Lyn complied, but she had no intention of fighting me in the same style as when I had a weapon. Her telegraphed strikes came at me with half her usual power. I barely needed to step back from her attacks to avoid them, and if I put up my hands to block her, she would stop herself.

"Lyn, I promise there's a point to all of this. Attack me as if I had a sword. You're not going to hurt me. Even if you do, Serra can heal me."

Lyn let her sword fall to the side, and she cocked her head unconvinced. "I'm not risking it, Mark. We're too close to Caelin for you to get injured now. You need to be more responsible as our tactician."

"I am. This special lesson will prepare you for Lundgren. Come on. Hit me like I'm your enemy. Or are you too delicate for more advanced lessons?"

The comment struck a nerve. Lyn's face contorted with irritation, and she tried to hit me with the pommel of her sword. Just as I intended. My hands were around the sword in an instant, twisting her arms sideways and sliding my fingers underneath her hand to pull the sword away from her. It was much easier to steal her sword due to her confusion and half-hearted attempt to attack me, but proving my ability to be adept in combat even without a sword wasn't my intention.

"Never underestimate your opponent," I said, pointing the Mani Katti at her. "That will be the death of you."

Lyn folded her arms. “I’m not delicate.”

"No, you're not. But your opponents will think so. And that's an advantage that you have. You're a young woman with a sword and absolutely no protective armor. Many fighters will decide whether or not they can defeat an opponent within seconds based solely on appearances. And an opponent with unchecked hubris will look at you and see an easy kill. But that will often be their downfall. For you, your appearance will be an even more deadly weapon than this." I handed the Mani Katti back to her. "You've become an incredible swordsman, Lyn. You've improved so much since the evening we first met. There is nothing more I can teach you in swordplay. Now, you must start implementing a personal technique in battle. But do not fool yourself into believing this is the end of your training. There are many more aspects of combat you must learn on your own. The journey never ends."

“Such wise words for a tactician so young, Mark.” Eliwood entered the clearing. “Even some of my father’s oldest military advisors fail to understand such important aspects. I can see why your company has come this far.”

“Ah! Good to see you again, Eliwood.” I went to him. “Tell me, were you successful?”

Eliwood nodded. “I’ve received word from Caelin’s neighbors, Laus, Tuscana, Kathelet, Tania, and Santaruz. They will not interfere in Caelin’s affairs. This they have promised.”

“Eliwood,” Lyn breathed a sigh of relief. “I don’t know how to thank you…”

His smile disappeared. “All I’ve done is convince them to remain neutral in this dispute. As such, this means I cannot aid you in any way, either. Will you be all right?”

“I will win.” Lyn's determination from our training was back. “I have to. It’s the only way that I can help my grandfather.”

“She is ready,” I agreed. “We all are. Failure has never been an option for us. Today, a family will be reunited.”

“I believe you.” Eliwood nodded. “Although I cannot help you directly, as a friend, I pray for your success.”

“Thank you.” Lyn bowed to him. “We won’t waste the opportunity you’ve given us.”

We parted with Eliwood and returned to the company. A valley was all that lay between Castle Caelin and us. But a thick fog had rolled in ahead, swallowing the path in its dense bulk. I had hoped the fog would clear by the time Eliwood arrived, but I was disappointed to find that it had only grown thicker."

Kent came up to us. “This is no good. If the fog thickens anymore, we’ll be blind in battle. It will be difficult to fight what we cannot see.”

“Unfortunately, we don't have any other choice but to push through it,” I said. “We are too deep within Caelin territory to wait another day. There’s a chance Lundgren sent spies to the other houses and may have followed Eliwood here. Our location is no longer safe. I would not put it past Lundgren to send forces to attack us in the night. Even with you and Sain keeping watch, we will be unprepared to face such forces. Have the company create a box formation. I want our strongest units surrounding our ranged forces. We will move through the fog as one.”

Kent nodded and was about to give my orders to the company when a sound coming from the fog stopped him. It was a cumbersome, steady thumping in the soft earth with unfettered steel colliding against solid plate metal. A tense silence fell over all of us, and I eyed the fog anticipating Lundgren to emerge with his army. But it wasn't an army. It was a single man who looked like he could take on an army encased in all that silver plate armor. The pauldrons on his shoulders stood high like the mountains around us with thick chains coiling down from underneath to a giant axe hanging at his waist. Kent was the first to make a move with Sain accompanying him, going to face the newcomer. Lyn and I weren't far behind.

The armored man stopped when the two cavaliers blocked his path, but he did not move to take his axe. Instead, he removed his helmet to reveal a face that spoke of this man's past without him needing to utter a word. The veins scars on his bald head told of the fights he had won. His strong jaw was fixed in place by the discipline he had acquired over years of service. And those brown eyes were as recalcitrant as his armor, daring the cavaliers to make the first, foolish move.

“So you’ve come…” he said.

“You!” Kent exclaimed. “You’re… Lord Wallace!”

“Is he friend or foe, Kent?” I asked, wondering how I should prepare our forces.

“I don’t know. He used to be the commander of the knights of Caelin—a general that stood as Caelin’s first line of defense since the days of my father.”

“Aren’t you supposed to be retired?” Sain asked him. “I heard you were sowing fields now.”

“I am, and I was. Then I received orders from Lord Lundgren. I was told to capture an imposter and a pair of rogue knights.”

Kent turned his horse to cover Lyn and me. “Lord Wallace! Surely you don’t believe us to be oathbreakers, do you?”

“Bring me the girl that claims to be Lady Madelyn’s child.”

Sain readied his lance. “What are your intentions?”

“If I don’t like what I see, I will take her to Lundgren.”

"We will prevent you." Kent adjusted himself on his horse to prepare for an attack. Were these two really about to take on this walking fortress?

The general seemed to be thinking the same thing. “You? Prevent me? You must be—”

“Enough!” Lyn pushed her way past the cavaliers before anyone could stop her. “I’m right here! I am Lyndis.”

Wallace’s gaze fell upon Lyn.

“I’ll understand if you don’t believe me. But I’ve had enough of you and your foolish posturing.”

“Hmm… Such beautiful eyes…”

Lyn started in surprise. “Pardon?”

A huge goofy grin etched itself across Wallace’s face. “I’ve been a knight for 30 years, and here is one thing I learned. A person with eyes as bright and true as yours is no deceiver.” Wallace threw his head back and unleashed a raucous laugh that shook his armor. “Ah, yes! I like you, girl! Why I believe I’ll even join your little band of mercenaries!”

“Are you… Are you serious?" Sain was as dumbfounded as I was.

“I am. Now I’ve heard a tactician leads your band. Show me to him. I wish to see the one that has led this motley group against Caelin’s finest.”

The cavaliers pulled their horses back, and Lyn motioned to me. "This is Mark. He is a traveling tactician."

Wallace stomped up and bent as low as his armor would allow him to get a good look at me. "You've got some pretty eyes yourself, lad. Never seen eyes the color of yours in all my years. Never thought I'd return to battle either. I'd planned to live out my days in peace on my farm… Ah, well… It looks as though it's time to take up arms once more. Do you intend to see Lady Lyndis to her grandfather?"

“I do.”

Wallace chuckled out a smirk. “Good! Just as true as her eyes. Then let me inform you of what you are about to face in that fog. I was not the only commander of Caelin to be brought out of retirement.” “General Wallace, have you apprehended the girl?”

Wallace’s bright countenance faded into a depressing scowl. "Speak of a devil, and it shall appear…" With a heavy sigh, he turned around to the man on a horse at the edge of the fog with two more cavaliers. The man had been aged by war as harshly as Wallace, but he appeared to be surprised by others in the company.

“Kent! Is that you?”

“General Eagler! Yes, it is. We found Lady Lyndis on the order of the marquess. We’ve worked to return her safely to Caelin.”

The man did not show him any warmth. “And yet you have no proof of the girl’s identity. Is that not true?”

“What!?” Kent exclaimed.

“This is the marquess’ granddaughter,” Sain spoke up. “We speak the truth.”

“Sain…” Eagler regarded him with the same antipathy. “I never imagined you could turn traitor…”

“Traitor?” Sain took his words like a lance had just pierced him. “I am following the orders of my sworn liege lord-” Sain cut himself off. “You… You believe Lundgren’s lie.”

“I serve Caelin. I will not allow an imposter to take my home. Bring forth the one who calls herself ‘Lyndis’!”

“There is no imposter here, Eagler,” Wallace said, stepping up. “Only the last remaining family of our lord the Marquess.”

“General Wallace…” Eagler’s eyes narrowed as he condemned the ones he believed to be loyal to his house. “So you’ve sided with the girl, too, have you?”

“I fight for Caelin’s honor, not for Lundgren’s lies!”

The authority in Wallace’s voice disturbed the horses and the riders that sat upon them. Even Eagler was taken aback by the general’s conviction. “Ah… Is that so? You are—” For a brief second, a wave of belief crossed Eagler’s face, but then another cavalier rode up beside him, pulling Eagler’s shoulder down to whisper in his ear. Eagler closed his eyes and nodded, then shook his head. “Enough! There’s nothing more to be said. I name you traitors all! This farce ends now!”

Before anyone knew what was happening, another cavalier appeared further down the fog. A lasso was thrown around Lyn, binding her arms to her side, and pulling her into the mist. Eagler and the rest of his men disappeared back into the fog.

“Lyndis!” Kent shouted, giving chase immediately.

I was already jumping up behind Sain when the lasso had detained Lyn. “Let’s go, Sain! Rath with us! Everyone else, wait here.”

I saw the nomad kicking his horse to follow as the fog engulfed us. I could barely see Kent ahead of us. Thankfully, we didn't have to ride far before we came upon Lyn. She had freed herself from the rope and stood ready in case other cavaliers appeared. Kent and Sain moved their horses to either side until Rath arrived and pulled Lyn up behind him. “Stay close,” I ordered. “Call out any enemies you find, and watch each other’s back. There are at least three riders out here, including Eagler. Do not let yourself be taken by surprise. We are too close to the end to be taken down now.”

"Right," Kent said with a nod.

“Okay.” Rath and Lyn said together.

Sain urged his horse a little behind Rath's, who had staggered his position behind Kent's. It didn't take long for the enemy to start attacking. Swordsmen and soldiers materialized out of the fog unheard since we were all riding on horses. We had to rely on our sight in this haze, which we could do with five of us in here. Our Sacaean allies proved to be our real advantage. Lyn called out incoming foes for us to dispatch. But it was Rath who proved the most effective. Sometimes, I wouldn't notice an enemy until Rath had pulled an arrow and taken them down.

By my count, he had shot down eight enemies and just fired on a bold myrmidon that tried to pounce on them from a small hill when a cavalier came at us from the front. Lyn and I had both seen the cavalier and shouted at Kent. Having been distracted by the myrmidon, Kent’s head snapped forward, and he turned and brought his sword down to redirect the lance. The cavalier still found its mark in Kent's breastplate pulling him off his horse. Rath and Lyn pulled off and pursued the cavalier before I could say anything. Likely, they assumed Sain and I would pick up Kent. However, Eagler appeared out of the fog just as they left, heading straight for Kent.

“Kent!” Sain pushed his horse to beat Eagler.

"No, Sain," I shouted, tapping his shoulder. "Left!"

“What?!”

“Move left! Do it!”

Sain obeyed, and his horse bypassed Kent, giving me the perfect opening to launch myself off his horse. Eagler focused on Kent so he hadn't seen me coming at him with the armorslayer. My sword heaved through his armor, but Eagler didn't falter. He could not use his lance with me in this close, so he tried to throw me off his mount by punching me. My head felt like a bell when his armored fist collided with my head. I managed a few more seconds before falling off the horse. The hooked tip of the blade refused to release its prey, though, and Eagler tumbled to the ground with me. Gravity did the rest of the work. We hit the ground, and the armorslayer slid further into Eagler with a sickening squelch. I let go at this point. There was no mistaking that gut-wrenching sound.

I pressed my head against the ground until the ringing stopped. Then I pushed myself back to my feet and went to end the man's misery. Eagler lay sprawled on the ground in a gradually growing red pool with one hand on the armorslayer, making no effort to pull it out. He had accepted his fate. Years of faithful service to his lord, only to die betrayed by a lie—a bitter victory for me. I stepped up and took hold of my weapon. As I did, Eagler grabbed my arm. At first, I thought he meant to make one last effort to take me down. But his grip was weak. I could have freed myself quickly, and no hidden weapon appeared in his other hand. He wasn't trying to kill me; he was trying to pull me close to say something. I submitted to his desperate labor, taking a knee next to him.

“Go… Go quickly.” He swallowed hard and took in a breath so ragged that I could hear the blood clogging his lungs. “The marquess… He knows nothing of this… His life is… there’s no illness. Only… poison… Please… for the marquess… for all of Caelin…”

“I will…” I twisted the sword. “…I promise.”

And in that depressing moment, I expelled every last bit of doubt I had held against our two cavaliers. Eagler had been fighting for Lundgren, that much was certain, and it was evident that Eagler was a superior officer to Kent and Sain. Yet he called both of them traitors to Caelin. And despite Eagler demanding that they turn Lyn over to him, they refused. Any man willing to defy their commanding officer—no, this man was their teacher—to uphold righteous honor was no deceiver.

And now another great leader lay slain, another unnecessary death wrought by Lundgren’s contemptible hunger. Eagler wasn’t lying to me in those final moments. We were running out of time. Every second that passed could mean that Lyn’s grandfather could be dead. If that were the case, not only would Lyn have lost her last remaining family, but her life, as well as all of Caelin, would be in jeopardy.

The severity of the situation had twisted my body like a wet towel rung after being left in the rain. I couldn't think straight. So when Wallace arrived with the rest of the company, I ordered him to lead us through the fog without another word. Rath and Lyn rejoined us with Kent and Sain after a little while. When Kent and Sain saw me, their expressions were dismal, and I must have had a similar mien because Lyn came up to me and tried to ask me something. I didn't hear a word she said; I just kept following Wallace until we were finally out of the fog.

A grand castle stood in the shadow of a mountain before us like a lavishly dressed giant sitting upon a rocky throne. I could see Eagler's remaining forces retreating into the courtyard beyond the ramparts. I heard Wallace talking to me because of what he was saying. There was something about Lundgren preparing for our arrival, and he wanted to retain his forces’ confidence, so he wasn't going to close the portcullis. Whatever the case, Lundgren was ahead. We were close, but my mind still churned in turmoil. I had to expel these heckling thoughts from my head. My brain needed to unlock for this final push. I ordered Lyn and Wallace to prepare the rest of our forces and I went to Sain and Kent—the wounded brothers in the same mindset as I.

“What kind of man was General Eagler?” I asked. No point for empty sympathy. Eagler had chosen to be our enemy.

Kent’s head did not rise. “When Sain and I first became knights, he was our captain. Our mentor…”

"The man taught us everything,” Sain said. “And he was always loyal to the marquess." His grip tightened around his reins. "His betrayal… It's unbelievable."

Eagler’s final words replayed in my head.

“Go… Go quickly. The marquess… He knows nothing of this… His life is… there’s no illness. Only… poison… Please… for the marquess… for all of Caelin…”

I remembered the shame I had seen from Eagler when Wallace challenged his resolve and the way the cavalier had whispered something to him. That wasn't the face of a power-hungry coward, and those weren't the words of a blind patriot; it was a desperate plea from a man freed from his shackles. "I don't think he wished to fight us."

Both of their heads shot up. Sorrow had been dripping from their faces but fell away to reveal hope attempting to emerge.

“Call it my tactician’s intuition, but I feel like he was forced to fight us.”

Sain was the first to regain his optimism. “I believe you are right. Lord Lundgren was exerting some hold on him… Eagler was trying to protect someone. A friend perhaps, or family.”

Kent retained his silence, so I continued with something that needed to be said.

“I owe you two an apology.”

Kent was taken aback. “What?”

“An apology?” Sain repeated. “What do you mean?”

“As a tactician, it is my job to be skeptical of just about anything that could pose a threat to my employer. For this company, that is Lyn. But even more than my duty as her tactician, I’ve felt an obligation to protect her ever since she found me unconscious in the plains since she has constantly protected me.”

“She is the last of her tribe,” Kent said. “Was she truly all alone out there?”

"Yes. It shocked me to find someone like her in such a tragic state. She could barely handle a sword at the time. We almost died fighting off two bandits that were harassing a nearby Ger. Other than providing combat advice and medical assistance after she was injured, I had been useless to her. But after we had dealt with the bandits, she implored me to let her travel with me and help train her in the ways of combat. That's when I found out that bandits slaughtered her entire tribe. She had lived alone on those plains for six months. And with my amnesia, we were both in the same boat: a pair of individuals with no companionship. In that short yet perilous time, I had become the first person she could consider a close companion, and she had become the same to me."

“And since you had no memory of who you were, you decided to devote yourself to dear Lady Lyndis,” Sain continued for me.

"That's right,” I nodded. “Though, we didn't have much of a direction in our travels until you two found us with the news that Lyn had a grandfather. I'll never forget that smile on her face when she heard that news."

“So you’ve been angry that we were bringing Lyn back to her grandfather,” Kent said.

“Huh?” I turned back to him.

Kent shrugged. “You have amnesia. And with the way you and Lady Lyndis spend so much time training together, she is the one person you count as very dear to you. So you fear that you will lose her once we reach her grandfather.”

“There’s no need to apologize, Mark,” Sain added. “Your anxiety is quite understandable. But I have great faith that Lady Lyndis will not forsake you. She holds you in the highest regard. As do we all.”

“Agreed,” Kent said with a nod.

The thought had never crossed my mind until he mentioned it, but I set it aside for now. “No, no. I’m afraid my transgression is far worse. You see, ever since you two found us and told us of Lundgren wishing to see Lyn killed so that he could take the throne, I had been suspicious of your loyalties for Lyn.”

“What?” They both said in unison.

"As I said, I've felt responsible for Lyn's well-being. And so I could never ignore the possibility of two clever knights bringing Caelin's long-lost granddaughter straight to Lundgren for a great reward. I've held on to that suspicion for a long time. It wasn't until I watched you two face your teacher and refuse to yield to his demands that you put my doubts to rest. I may have amnesia, but I know that no one can fake the sorrow I saw on both of your faces when we reconvened in the fog. You two have been loyal to Lyn from the beginning; you're truly honorable knights. I am deeply sorry for having doubted your resolve."

Neither Kent nor Sain said anything. With all they had sacrificed during this campaign, it must have been a surprise to hear that their tactician had distrusted them for so long. Even I was standing here questioning my sense of trust. These knights had done nothing to earn my distrust. Maybe Lyn had more of a point that night in the fort than I realized. She had brought a complete stranger into her Yurt, and now, here we were, about to reunite her with her grandfather.

“You have nothing to apologize for, Mark,” Sain finally replied.

“What?” I turned to him in shock. “But I-”

“You’re a tactician. Being skeptical of others is a requirement of your job.”

"He's right," Kent started in before I could respond. "That is why we have never had any issue with you leading this company. We could never doubt your loyalty to Lady Lyndis. And if you have been holding such skepticism even for us, it only further proves that you intend to see our mission through to the end. So I thank you for that, Mark."

I tried to say something in response, but they made a startlingly good point that I could not deny. From the beginning, I always intended to see Lyn safely to Caelin and her grandfather. “I… uh… I understand your point, but that doesn’t pardon my distrust for you two. Even Lyn was unhappy when she noticed my distrust for Dorcas. I should follow my employer’s wishes.”

Sain chuckled. "We can argue that after we complete our mission. For now, we must see dear Lady Lyndis past her granduncle."

“Yes, Lundgren is a monster,” I replied, ready to return to the matter at hand. “There is no doubting that. You two have lost more than most during this ordeal. And on my honor as this company’s tactician, we will stop that man. Not just for Lyn’s sake but for all of Caelin. For those still alive, and those that have fallen to Lundgren’s transgressions.”

Kent finally smiled. “Then ready yourself, my friend.” He raised a finger toward the castle. “I have a feeling Lundgren is waiting for us.”

“So that’s it?” Lyn asked, coming up next to me.

“Yes, milady,” Kent said.

Lyn closed her eyes and set her hand against her chest. “Grandfather… I’ll be with you soon.”

Kent finally recovered his confidence, and a new determination blazed on his keen face. "Everything rests on this next battle."

"What can we expect to face?" I asked, riding on his resolve to fill my determination.

“Lundgren’s most loyal men will be with him ready to defend their master to the bitter end.”

“Whatever is left of them,” Wallace added, joining us. “I dismissed my men the moment you all arrived, and the last of forces still loyal to Eagler have withdrawn. Loyalty is life here in Lycia, and our soldiers are more loyal to their commanding officers than to a man who isn’t the Marquess.”

“And how many men are still loyal to Lundgren?” I asked.

“By my last count, ten. But Lundgren himself is a formidable foe. A general with a knack for compelling leadership. There’s a reason he was able to bring most of Caelin’s military power under his control.”

“As long as we fight as one controlled unit, his men shouldn’t be an issue, and Lundgren cannot handle all of us on his own.” I looked back the way. We appeared to be alone for the moment, but I would have been a fool to overlook the possibility of another ambush. But I had faith that Eliwood was an honest man. Lundgren would not be receiving the reinforcements he was expecting. “Eliwood has given us the opportunity we need to take on Lundgren.”

"We must send him our thanks when this is over," Lyn replied, gaining her resolve as well. "Let's not waste this opportunity. We must reach my grandfather!"

"Then let's finish this," I announced, turning to the rest of the group. "Wallace will lead the group. Keep an eye out for any enemies that might try a sneaky maneuver. Stay together once we enter the courtyard. We finish this together! Together, we ride!"

“For Caelin!” Sain shouted his rallying cry.

“For the Marquess!” Kent joined.

And with that, we stormed toward the castle, the rally raising everyone's spirits. Everyone moved with purpose as we pushed toward our destination, weapons out and ready to face our final foe. As we closed in, I pulled back to speak to Matthew.

“Matthew, take Nils and Ninian somewhere safe. Then infiltrate the ramparts and stay out of sight. I don’t know what we’ll face in there, but we may need a strike from the shadows.”

“You got it, Mark.” He winked at me while grabbing Nils arm. “Stay safe in there.”

Wallace was right. As we crossed the drawbridge into the courtyard, there were only ten other forces here, and the self-proclaimed sentinel stood on the steps that led into the castle. He knew this battle would determine Caelin's future, and he had every intention of bringing his vision to fruition in front of his men.

“This is my realm,” he called to us, not seeing Lyn, “and you’ve entered without my permission, killing my men. I will have you brought before the entire Lycian League and executed for your crimes.”

"The Lycian League won't be answering your call, Lundgren," I shouted back. "Rumors spread that you were poisoning the Marquess Caelin, your own brother. And we have come to put an end to your hostile takeover."

A furious scowl crumpled the general's face. "You dare speak such insolence to me, peasant? You dare to spew baseless accusations at me? What pestilent hole did you crawl out of that you wag your tongue so boldly to the next marquess of Caelin?"

I chuckled a smirk while folding my arms. “Oh, me? I’m somebody you won’t have time to remember. I merely bring the true heir to Caelin’s throne.” I stepped aside to reveal Lyn flanked on either side by Kent and Sain.

Lundgren’s sneer melted at the sight of her. “So you’re the imposter girl claiming kinship with my brother!”

“You’ll play this farce to the end, won’t you, Lundgren?” Lyn responded.

“The royal house of Caelin has no need of a Sacaean mongrel! You would see this land fall into ruin. I will not allow that.”

“You have already done that through your own black ambitions. You’ve harmed my grandfather and the very land you ought to serve. I have neither pity nor mercy for you.”

“Whelp,” Lundgren spat through gnashed teeth. He turned his gaze upon Kent. “You must be Kent, yes? A loyal soldier to house Caelin. Why do you throw in with this tainted garbage?”

Kent didn’t miss a beat. “Lundgren, your treachery precedes you. I will not listen to any of your poisoned words!”

The sneer reappeared. “Maybe not you, but what about your comrade?” His gaze traveled to Sain. “Sain… You’re not like that stubborn fool, Kent. You’re reasonable. Leave this child, Lyndis, and stand at my side. You will go far in my service. I will make you a captain and your name shall be revered across all of Lycia.”

Sain's chest dropped as if he had considered the proposal. "That is a gracious offer, my lord…"

“Quite-”

“However,” Sain cut him off, “I am rather fond of my friend the stubborn fool. And if I am to pledge my service to any liege, I would choose lovely Lady Lyndis over foul Lundgren, regardless of the risk!”

Lundgren lost his sneer once again. “Fools! I will put an end to all of you!” He retrieved his lance and descended the steps toward us. The remainder of Lundgren’s forces moved on us.

“Kent, Sain,” I called. “Split our forces in half and keep our foes. busy.” The cavaliers obeyed as I turned to Wallace and Lyn. “General Wallace, keep Lundgren occupied. Make him think you are his only threat.”

The general nodded to me with eagerness building in his eyes, then shoved his helmet on. He hoisted his axe and went to meet Lundgren. I grabbed Lyn’s arm and pulled her toward the group Kent had brought his forces to face.

“What are we doing, Mark?” Lyn asked as we approached two soldiers. She drew her sword and parried the first soldier’s attack, cutting his legs out from under him while I deflected a blow from the second soldier and dropped my blade into his collarbone.

"Simple deception tactic," I replied, watching Wallace attempt to break through Lundgren's lance by putting his weight behind a brutal chop. "Remember what I said about appearances? I throw our strongest unit at Lundgren to hold his attention. As they are both generals, Lundgren will believe him to be the only real threat since he has all that armor. Yet he chooses to fight without a helmet, which will be his downfall."

“Is that so?” Lyn asked.

I came to a stop thirty yards away from Lundgren and Wallace. Lundgren's back was to us; he hadn't paid us any attention while we moved away from the battle. "His large pauldrons and constant movement make it impossible for one of our archers to take a shot at the head. But you are agile enough, and the Mani Katti is thin enough that you can get around and land the killing blow."

Lyn looked toward her heinous granduncle. The fire smoldering within her eyes had burst into an inferno. And now, there were no thoughts of bandits, only the determination to save her grandfather. "Tell me when."

The two generals clashed on equal terms, with Wallace's axe having a slight advantage over Lundgren's lance. The enormous weight of the axe made deflecting Lundgren's strikes simple for Wallace and hard for Lundgren to defend against his opponent's bulky weapon. If Lundgren hadn't had all that armor on, the battle would have already been over. And because he was on the defensive, Lundgren had all his attention on Wallace. Now was as good a time as any. "Go!"

Lyn took off into a full sprint toward Lundgren. Her sword was out and ready to put an end to the struggle that had brought her all the way from her home on the Sacae Plains. She would not be stopped; she would see her grandfather. And Caelin would be in the hands of a young yet compassionate new ruler. All I had to do was put my faith in Lyn and let her finish this.

The distance between them shrank; I could see Lyn prepare to leap for the strike, but a sudden erratic attack from Lundgren pushed Wallace away and turned him just in time to see Lyn coming toward him. Lyn didn't stop. She leaped into the air and brought her sword back to deal the final blow.

But I should have called her back.

Lundgren had enough time to react, but only to use his continued momentum to knock Lyn away with the shaft of his lance. She rolled across the ground, and did not stand up when she finally stopped. Lundgren didn't stop either. He moved straight toward her, bringing his lance up to finish her.

A flash of gold passed through my vison. The world slowed. Wallace was still recovering from his attack and would be too slow to intervene. Now that Lundgren had Lyn in his sights and with her dazed from the hit, she would not be able to retaliate. The rest of the company battled on with Lundgren’s men; I was the only person who had noticed Lyn being hit by the lance. And if I didn't do something now, Lyn would die! But what could I do? Examining Lundgren’s gauntlet, I noticed that there was only chainmail underneath. His strike could be redirected if something hit his weapon arm. But throwing the armorslayer was useless from this distance.

That's when I heard hoof beats. Hope welled up within me, and I turned, praying not to find either of the Caelin knights. Rath planted an arrow in a soldier attempting to pierce his horse with a lance.

“Rath!”

The nomad’s head snapped to me.

I pointed toward Lundgren. “His weapon arm!”

Rath didn't need any more explanation. He loaded his bow and fired. The arrow soared through the air faster than I could follow. My head swung back. Lundgren's arm twitch and his lance pierced the ground to the left of Lyn. Matthew appeared out from behind some barrels near Lyn to kick her sword back to her. She took only a moment to recover her sword and drove it through Lundgren's neck. For a moment, he stood still as if her strike had turned him into a statue, but after a few seconds, his lifeless body fell forward on top of Lyn. The mad general had been slain.

The remainder of Lundgren’s forces noticed their leader had fallen and threw down their weapons in surrender. I raced over to Lyn as Wallace pulled Lundgren's corpse off of her. "Lyn! Lyn!" Her hand slipped out of mine due to all the blood Lundgren had spilled on her, but I attempted to grab her again before she could hit the ground. My rash maneuver failed, and I cursed under my breath as I slipped on the blood and ended up tumbling to the ground with her.

Wallace let out a hearty chortle. “You remind me of myself during my younger years, Mark, except I rolled around with girls in the haystacks on my farm, not pools of the enemies’ blood. That is an audacious choice, but maybe not the most sanitary. Perhaps I could find you two a nice pile in a quiet barn.”

I threw a perplexed smile at Wallace, unsure of the point of his offer. “I’m just trying to help her up, general.”

He eyed me shrewdly as I succeeded in finally helping Lyn back to her feet. "Sure you are." He produced a couple of towels from his traveling bag and threw them to us.

Lyn giggled and then turned to me as she wiped the blood off of her. “Thank you, Mark. I’d have been dead without you.”

"Don't thank me," I replied, clearing my face and pointing to Rath. I would not accept an honor I did not deserve. "He's the one who shot Lundgren's arm. Thank the eight his aim is always true."

Rath crossed his arms and leaned against his horse's neck. "Only by your quick command, though. I would not have noticed otherwise."

“He’s right,” Lyn replied, cleaning her blade before sheathing it.

“Fair enough,” I shrugged. But there will be time for honors later. We need to go and find your grandfather, Lyn.”

Lyn nodded. “Of course.”

I left Kent in charge of clean up while Lyn and I entered the castle. The moment we stepped into the antechamber, a grayed noble with a mustache approached us.

“You are Lady Lyndis, are you not?”

Lyn and I exchanged glances. Neither of us had been expecting to be expected.

“I am,” she replied. “Who are you?”

“I am Reissmann, the chancellor of the Caelin royal family. I had received word from Kent and Sain when you first met, but then Lundgren discovered the message and ordered my silence lest all of Caelin discover the true heir. Out of fear for my family’s safety, I obeyed.” He bowed so low I thought he might fall over. “I am terribly sorry for the trouble my cowardice cost you.”

“Please,” Lyn said, going to the man and having him stand straight again. “Your apology is unnecessary. My granduncle was a ruthless man, and your reasons were justified.”

“Thank you, milady,” Reissmann said, smiling. “It is my great pleasure to welcome you to your true home.”

“Thank you. May I see my grandfather now?”

Reissmann’s smile disappeared. “Yes, of course. But you mustn’t be shocked by what you see. Lundgren has been poisoning the marquess’ meals for some time. His body has been ravaged… He’s been bedridden for months.”

“I’ll go get Serra,” I said, starting to leave. “Maybe she can help.”

“Mark wait…” Her expression had become as solemn as Reissmann’s if not more so. “I want you to come with me.” She seized my hand with a tight grasp.

“Al-all right,” I said, surprised by how firmly she held on to me. The grip would not allow me to break free, but not because of her strength. Her arm was as fallible as a dying tree’s branches. The grasp wasn’t a shackle; it was a quiet plea. She needed me to take her to her grandfather. So I submitted.

Reissmann led us through the castle to a long hallway with many doors. I had never been in a castle before… Then again maybe I had. For all I knew, I could've been a king myself. But there was no way I could determine that possibility with my amnesia, so I took in the sights while I could. Past every door was a painting of a noble I did not recognize. No surprise there, but one picture caught my eye. There were three people in the portrait, and the young girl in the middle looked precisely like Lyn if she let her hair out of its ponytail. Her spiraling hair was down around her shoulder, and there was no mistaking the eyes and that sweet smile. She must have been Madelyn, which made the firm gentleman on the right Lyn's grandfather.

We came to a stop at a door, and Reissmann turned to us. "He's just through here, milady." He bowed and left us.

I expected Lyn to walk straight through the door with the same drive that had carried her all the way from Sacae to be here. We had endured tireless pursuit, bigotry, betrayal, and animosity that would have convinced those with a weaker ambition to give up such a journey. And through all these hardships, Lyn had grown stronger in every aspect of her being. Her aptitude in swordplay had passed beyond anything else I could teach her, and she had moved on from the death of her tribe. All made possible by the fact that her grandfather waited for her behind this door.

So why did she stand there? Her gaze remained locked on the door handle, but she made no motion to grab it. Excitement, uncertainty, and… was that embarrassment I saw? It was… Her cheeks flushed a light pink. Perhaps she had made a mistake asking me to come along with her, and now she didn't want to ask me to leave.

“I’m scared, Mark,” she finally spoke.

I came back to the present. “What? Scared? Why are you scared?”

Her gaze left the handle but not the door. “For eighteen year, I grew up on the plains,s only knowing my parents and my tribe as my family. We all acted the same ,ay; talked the same way, and treated each other like we were all brothers and sisters. And then, a month ago, I found out that I have a grandfater, who is a marquess. What if…” Her voice died for a moment. “What if he’s disgusted by what he sees?”

“You mean like how poorly that marquess in Araphen received you?” I asked, catching on to the source of her anxiety.

Now her gaze fell to the floor.

I sighed, folding my arms. “That’s a ridiculous assumption, Lyn. Your grandfather wouldn’t have sent two knights all the way out to Sacae to find you if he didn’t want to see you in the first place. That marquess was a pompous snob, and you know that all nobles here in Lycia aren’t like that. Remember Eliwood?”

Her cheeks flushed a brighter red, and she turned her head away from me.

“There’s no one correct way to go about this,” I said, slowly approaching her. “But you did not come this far and fight constant opposition just to break down before the goal. Your heart is strong, Lyn, and no matter what we faced, you persevered.”

At this point, my body moved on its own. My hand gently clutched hers, and her muscles tensed, but she did not withdraw. I carried her hand over to the handle and rested it there. “So continue to trust your heart. It will give you the words that need to be said.”

For a moment, she did nothing. I feared I would have to be the one to open the door for her, but she finally clutched the handle and pushed the door open. A few rays of sunlight broke through the cracks in the heavy curtains that concealed the windows, barely illuminating what would have otherwise been a completely dark room. A stout, pungent stench plagued the room. I feared us to be too late, but there was still life in this room. A regally decorated bed was at the far end of the room with a man resting beneath the heavy covers. The sound of our entrance had stirred him.

"Who is there?" He looked our way, but either by sickness or age, he could not see us. "I said no visitors. I will see no one."

Lyn hugged herself, pulling every part of her body inward as if she were trying to shield her heart.

"What are you doing?" Her grandfather called even louder this time. The strain caused him to cough violently, and that pungent smell pierced my nostrils with more intensity. I feared he had just killed himself, but after catching his breath, he fell back against his pillows and let out a heavy sigh. "Leave me… to die…"

Though she stood frozen at the moment, I knew that Lyn’s next move would be for the door if I did not do something. I set my hand on her shoulder and urged her forward. She complied, sliding one foot after the other over to the bedside. When she was only a few feet away, she stopped, swaying ever so slightly like the branches of a willow tree in the wind. Unlike the determined warrior I had trained and fought alongside these past months, Lyn had become incredibly frail.

"Um… Pardon me…" she said, sounding as innocent as a child. "My name is Lyndis."

Her grandfather winced at her words. “Eh? Did you say Lyndis? Is that…” He reached a trembling hand out to her, and Lyn took it in her equally unsteady grasp.

“My father’s name was Hassar, chieftain of the Lorca. My mother was…Madelyn. I was raised on the plains.”

The other trembling hand came to rest upon Lyn’s. “Could it be? Come, come here. Let me see your face.” Lyn obliged, moving right against the bed. The man, whose face had paled and declined from poison, gave her a warm smile. “Oh… Yes… There is no doubt… You are Madelyn’s trueborn child…” He convulsed suddenly and fell back against the bed.

“Grandfather!” Lyn cried, clutching him.

I finally saw where Lyn had received her own strength. Although likely in a great deal of agony brought on by the poison, Lord Hausen pushed himself back up and brought his arms around to hug his granddaughter. Lyn squeaked in surprise and finally broke down. She rested her head against his chest while the tears slipped down her cheeks.

“Lundgren told me that my daughter had died. My heir... and you too. He told me you were dead. Thank you… Thank you for living.” He rested his chin gently on her head. “Ahhhhh… I am blessed.”

“Mother and Father were slain last year by brigands,” Lyn said through her weeping. “I… I was the only survivor. I lived on, but…”

My own heart ached at the tragedy, but I stifled my emotions to allow these two the peace they deserved. I considered leaving, but my heart told me to stay, and I wasn’t sure why.

“Lyndis, please forgive a prideful old man. If I had but accepted your parents’ love… There would have been no bandits. We would have lived here together in perfect peace.”

Lyn had regained some of her composure, and she retracted a bit to look her grandfather in the eyes. "Grandfather. My parents… My tribe… Our life was one of love and peace. The end was tragic, but, up until the attack, we were truly happy."

“Truly? Madelyn had a life of happiness?” His warmness returned. “Knowing that gives me so much joy. Thank you, Lyndis. I can die in peace now…”

Lyn’s heart must have dropped as suddenly as mine because she clutched his arms in fright. “No! Grandfather! You mustn’t say that!”

Her grandfather’s warmness had finally run out. “There’s no avoiding it, Lyndis. I’ve taken too much poison for far too long. It’s too late…”

It was harder to hold back the tears now. I had known this would be a likely outcome of the reunion. But in my resolve to bring Lyn to her grandfather, I had disregarded the notion until now. It seemed even Lord Hausen had been aware of his brother’s duplicity, and now he was ready to face death. At least he and Lyn were able to see each other. I took a deep breath to regain my own composure and prepared to comfort Lyn when she surprised me once again—she continued to heed my advice and followed her heart.

“No! Be brave, Grandfather! You will recover! Believe me! On the plains, we say that illness fails in the face of a stronger heart! And now I am with you! You mustn’t give up!”

"You're… with me…?" Lord Hausen asked as baffled as I was. It honestly did seem like a fantastical notion that a man who had taken poison for so long could overcome it through sheer willpower. Most of the strategies I had studied and retained after my amnesia taught me otherwise. And at the same time, experience had shown me that stranger things have happened. Lyn certainly believed so.

“Yes. We have so much to talk about. Walks to take, music to listen to.” Either completely sane or completely insane, Lyn was treating this illness as if it didn’t even exist. “There’s so much I want to do with you, so much lost time we can recover!” It was possible that she could be in hysterics because she was about to lose her only remaining family.

"That does sound… nice." The warmness rekindled again.

“Doesn’t it?” It appeared that Lyn’s own warm personality was feeding Lord Hausen. Even I could feel the enthusiasm radiating from Lyn. Maybe this notion wasn’t so fantastical at all. She might have actually been curing her grandfather! “And once you’re well, I’ll take you to the plains. I’ll show you the endless sky, the oceans of grass… I want you to know the lands my mother loved so much!”

“The lands Madelyn loved…” I could now see the color returning to Lord Hausen’s face. By that growing smile, I thought he might begin to fly. “You’re right. I still have… quite a bit of living to do.”

Lyn's smile became just as healthy. "You can do it, Grandfather!"

“Lyndis…” Her grandfather hugged her again.

The two of them remained in each other's embrace crying and smiling and talking about what else they would be doing. Although it went against logic, I concluded that Lyn's optimism would heal Lord Hausen. Given enough time, I felt certain that he would make a full recovery. My job was complete. So I quietly left the two of them to heal the wounds both had suffered and carried for so long.

* * * * *

The following week was one of great joy. Lord Hausen’s health improved significantly, even baffling a physician who said the marquess looked like a new man. It was as if he had never taken ill. And it was all because of Lyn’s confidence. Now Lyn would have someone to call her family, and she would finally be able to move on from her past. But of course, with our journey at an end, it was time for everyone to go their separate ways.

For his bravery in fulfilling his command, Kent was named Knight Commander of Caelin—a high honor for one as young as him, but no one denied his worth. Sain earned the honor of being named sub-commander of the Caelin knights. Although in spite of his promotion, he still scoffed at authority and wooed the village girls, which is likely why Kent was named Commander. Sain was much loved by the citizenry, though.

Lyn’s close friend Florina arranged to stay in Caelin to fly as a Pegasus Knight in service to the House. She spent every waking hour in rigorous training, hoping to become invaluable to Lyn. Her fear of men lessened, but only slightly. Wil became quite dear to the people of Marquess Caelin’s household with his cheery outlook and happy-go-lucky demeanor. Kent took it upon himself to teach him manners befitting a sworn man of Castle Caelin.

Despite my concerns when we first met, Dorcas earned my trust by the end of our campaign. He was a man I could always trust to get a job done in the middle of an ardent battle, and never once did he give me cause to doubt his loyalty after our first meeting. He returned to his home in Bern where he cares for his wife and makes a good living as a mercenary, fighting the local bandits.

As for Erk and Serra, ultimately, Erk succeeded in seeing Serra safely to Ostia. In a letter he wrote to me, while her behavior was irritating at best, he actually missed her. I also received word that her acerbic tongue had become infamous in House Ostia. Erk himself set off for Etruria. His time in our mercenary band was just another part of his training, and he was glad to see it end so that he could return to his mentor.

I could not say what happened to Matthew. Once I returned to the group after Lyn reunited with her grandfather, Kent reported that he had vanished without a word, and his whereabouts remained unknown.

Nils and his sister, Ninian, took their leave of Castle Caelin after a few days. I never did discover the source of my strange feelings after meeting them and hearing about the mysterious Nergal and the Black Fang group. But I figured with enough time they would fade. Lucius studied in Caelin for a time, but he departed after receiving a summons to another land. Reports said that he had been seen traveling with a hard-eyed mercenary.

I expected Wallace to return to service for House Caelin after Kent asked for his reinstatement. However, Lyn’s struggle had only whetted his appetite for adventure. So instead, he set off in search of a cause worthy of his prowess. Though his wife told me he lacked any sense of direction, so it may have been years before he would be seen in Caelin again. His wife seemed surprisingly serene about that.

In the celebration following Lyn’s return to Caelin, Rath slipped out unseen. Whether he returned to Sacae or continued to work as a mercenary is unbeknownst to anyone. That odd feeling I’d had when he first joined faded after he left, and Lyn seemed to remain unchanged by the loss of a fellow Sacaean nomad.

My journey was at an end as well, and with a royal family indebted to me, I should have had every reason to remain in Caelin. Yet here I was, standing on the hill that overlooked the castle. My bags were packed and straddled on the back of my horse, Ajax: a Sacaean stallion Lyn had gifted me for my work after we made a journey back to the Sacae plains for her grandfather to see the land his daughter loved. I was leaving Lyn. I did not wish to, but I had to.

I had another strange dream the previous night. I was in a room in Castle Caelin with Lord Hausen and a hooded man similar to the one that had tried to abduct Nils back in Kathelet. I could not see his face but there was a wicked grin beneath the man's hood, and I drove my sword through Lord Hausen. My conscious mind knew that I would never hurt Lyn's grandfather, especially after our trials getting here.

But I also believed I would never dream of carrying out such a heinous crime. After discovering two people from my first dream, I had disturbing thoughts creeping through my mind on a daily basis. And none had felt as real as the one that spawned from this dream. That fear of potentially harming Lyn's grandfather after he had started to recover from the poison was now driving me to leave this land before this possible premonition could come true. I knew Lyn would be all right. She was now living with her grandfather as Lady Lyndis, and under her loving care, Lord Hausen would continue to recover. The two of them could keep going on walks through the castle gardens and listen to lovely music and—

“Mark!”

My limbs suddenly became brittle, and I found it challenging to turn around to see Lyn riding up the hill to me. I had wanted to leave without her knowing like Rath had. I couldn't bear saying goodbye to her. Not after all we had been through these past months. I feared she would ask me to remain in Caelin, and considering what I had done to get her here, I would feel obliged to accept. But I couldn't stay. I wouldn't risk my second nightmare becoming a reality. But now it looked like I would have to face her.

Lyn dismounted her horse and approached me. “Are you enjoying the sunset? I’ve come up here a few times as well. It reminds me of the plains.” The peacefulness on her face showed she still didn’t know why I was here until she glanced over at Ajax and noticed the bags behind the saddle. Then her expression wilted. “Mark…”

I dumped my head in shame, letting a sigh fall out.

“You’re leaving, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” I replied. “I can’t tell you why, but I have to leave.”

“I see.” She crossed her arms and stared at the ground. “And you were going to leave without saying goodbye?”

"…I didn't want you asking me to stay." I couldn't think of a better explanation and I didn't want to tell her the truth.

"Don't lie to me, Mark…" She knew me too well. "You don't have to give me your reasons, but don't stand there and lie to me. You know I would never force you to stay here just like I didn't force Rath to stay."

I remained silent. I still couldn’t tell her the truth.

"I can see it on your face," she continued. "Something is weighing heavily on you, and if you don't feel like you can talk to me about it, I understand. There were multiple times during our journey that something seemed wrong, and I respect your decision to keep the issues to yourself. But…how dare you try to leave without saying goodbye."

“It’s complicated, Lyn…”

“How is saying goodbye complicated?”

I didn't have a response to that.

Lyn took in a deep breath. "When I found you unconscious on the plains… I had no idea we would be together for so long. You've helped me, led me, trained me, and stood beside me through so much, Mark. It was because of you that I persevered for so long; it was through you that my spirit never broke!" Her voice quivered. "And in that time, I watched you grow as well, Mark. Your progression from an injured individual with amnesia, your healing and coping ran almost parallel to my growth. Whenever I felt like giving up, I could always look to you, and my strength would be restored. I knew that if you, who had to overcome more demanding trials, could squeeze every drop of strength within you to carry on, then I could pick up my sword and continue to fight as well."

Every word pierced me, filling my body with guilt. “I…had no idea…you held me in such high regard.”

"Of course I do, Mark. I know you have no memory of where you came from, but surely you must know that not only I but everyone in our group saw you as our leader."

I scoffed. “That can’t be true.”

“It is!” she exclaimed doggedly. “You might not see it, but you have an aura about you that draws people to you. They put their trust in you; no one would make a move unless you gave an order. It was by your leadership that my grandfather is still alive.”

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “You can’t pin that on me. It was your determination and care that saved Lord Hausen.”

"I wouldn't have been here to help him if not for you." She held my gaze. I wanted to look away because I knew she was telling the truth. And each word pushed me to reveal my reason for leaving. But I couldn't, I wouldn't, and she seemed to understand that as well. "I have the utmost faith that you will succeed in whatever you're going to do next. And if it must happen away from here, fine. I…I just can't believe you would leave like this!"

Tears filled my eyes, and I shut them to hide my shame. My mouth had become dry, unable to speak any words. How could I have been so stupid!? Had I really been trying to be as dispassionate as Rath and leave like some mysterious stranger? Even after I had hurt her, Lyn had continued to shower me with accolades. I didn’t deserve such kindness. She and I had grown so close during this campaign. And I planned to leave like an inconsiderate lout. Who knew if I would ever see her again? “I’m sorry…” Speaking the words felt like chewing on coarse dirt. “Lyn… I…”

A hand rested gently against my cheek, and I opened my eyes to find Lyn standing in front of me. She was crying as well, but she smiled. That same, warm, benevolent smile that gave strength to anyone who beheld it. She…wasn't mad. Not anymore at least. She couldn't be. Not at me of all people.

"I forgive you, Mark." She wiped away a tear. "I know you never meant to hurt me. And whatever made you decide to leave so suddenly must trouble you greatly. But…" More tears streamed from her eyes, and she hid her face behind the locks of her hair. "I'm not going to say goodbye… I will see you again. I'm sure that I will someday… So until then…" A sob interrupted her. "Until then…"

I pulled Lyn in close to me, and she wrapped her arms around me as well. "I won't say goodbye either, Lyn. Because I promise that we will see each other again."

“I know,” she whispered.

The crisp autumn wind whisked by, drying the tears we had shed while the sun bathed us in its warm glow. We stood there in each other’s embrace on that clear dry evening atop that hill overlooking the castle, so far away from the fields where we began our journey together. Both of us had refused to say goodbye, believing in both of our hearts that we would see each other again. And we remained with each other, just standing there, holding one another, neither of us wanting to be the first to let the other go, for a long time.

Chapter Text

Chapter 7

Life became rather dull for me after the Caelin campaign. Not in work. My part in reuniting the marquess with his granddaughter had reached many prominent employers in Lycia and a few in the western nation of Etruria in the following year. I had received plenty of work, and yet none of the jobs were ever as exciting as the time spent fighting the constant opposition Lyn and I faced traveling to Lycia. Almost every single one of my jobs were either advising military groups with battalions of soldiers that had no trouble protecting whatever they escorted or defended, day long mercenary jobs that definitely needed my help, or sitting in on war councils to give my input on their defenses.

In my free time, I had used the favors I had earned from those jobs to visit the royal archives of the cities to see if I might be able to uncover more of my past. I never found mention of my name, but I did learn how this continent of Elibe came to be.

A long time ago, dragons fought man in a war called the Scouring. Mankind vanquished the dragons thanks to the efforts of eight heroes. Those heroes then divided into the nations that existed today. The great hero Hartmut settled in the east and founded Bern, famed for its military might. Saint Elimine moved west, and her sacred name flourished among the artisans of Etruria. The horseman Hanon's legacy lived on with the nomads of her beloved plains of Sacae. The birthplace of the knight Barigan is now home to the renowned Pegasus Knights of Ilia, which was Florina's home. The berserker Durban's final glory was to create a warriors’ clan in the Western Isles, and the archsage Athos is said to have retired to the barren wasteland of Nabata.

As for Lycia, the descendants of the champion Roland became the lords of the Lycian League, arguably the strongest nation next to Bern. House Ostia stood as the head of the Lycian League led by Lord Uther. And though most of my research happened within Etruria and Lycia, none of the historical documents described the actual details of the Scouring. The absence of such details I found peculiar.

Why would those details be hidden from public, even nobleman, knowledge? Why could I, with access to royal archives in two different nations, not find information on arguably the event that made Elibe into what it was today? There were other nations I hadn’t been to, though. Nabata and the Western Isles would be the most difficult to travel to, so I placed them at the bottom of my list. I tried to sell my services to Ilia, but their military was exclusively female, and thus denied my offers. Which left me with Bern.

Fortunately for me, after escorting a noble from Lycia to Etruria, he told me how thankful he’d been to enlist my services because the Bern royal family had apparently been seeking my services as well. Why it had taken the royal family a year to seek me out was a mystery, and they would have to wait a while longer.

As much as I wanted to head to Bern and potentially find actual details of the Scouring, the yearning for the adventures of my days with Lyn overrode my hunt for knowledge. I’d heard rumors within the Lycian League that the territory of Pherae, which had known no conflict for many generations, was now starting to show signs of a rising struggle. The beloved and benevolent ruler, Lord Elbert, mysteriously vanished one day along with a number of his sworn guardsmen. A month passed without word from the marquess, and whispers of his death sprung up like sickening weeds that choked the land with fear. This was also the territory from which the marquess' son, Eliwood, who had aided Lyn and me during the Caelin conflict, hailed from. He believed his father to still live, and vowed to find him.

Setting aside the fact that I owed him for his help during our journey to Caelin, Eliwood’s plight was exactly the kind of adventure I hungered for. So here I was drinking ale at a tavern on the border of Pherae. All that was left was to finish my drink, and I would set off for Lord Eliwood.

The young barmaid came up to me with a pitcher, and her braided green hair fell off her shoulder as she leaned down and gave me an inquiring smile. "May I refill your drink, sir?"

I smiled and dropped a few gold coins on the table. "You may."

She refilled my glass and took the payment. Pherae wasn't much further from here, and Ajax could still ride even if I were inebriated. Then again, it wouldn't have been such a good idea to address a marquess' son in such a disgraceful state. I was getting ready to call the barmaid to bring me some warm bread when a youthful, shaggy-haired knight caught my eye. He had the same type of armor as Kent and Sain's so he must’ve been a Cavalier, though yellow instead of red or green. He went straight to the bar and started chatting with the innkeeper. I couldn't overhear their discussion, but the barmaid joined the conversation, and the innkeeper shook his head.

The knight nodded to him and then turned to the rest of the room.

"I am a knight from Pherae, and I am searching for men skilled at arms and looking for good work."

"What kind of work?" asked a sizeable, grizzled man, sitting with similar-looking companions.

"We are searching for the Marquess Pherae and his men, who disappeared a month ago," the knight replied.

The man raised his eyebrows and shared glances with his cohorts before leaning forward in more raptured interest. "Oh, has he now?"

Uh oh. That knight should have been more discrete. Those men weren't mercenaries.

"That's right," the knight replied, still not realizing he needed to stop talking. "The marquess' son, Lord Eliwood, is heading up a search party to locate his father."

I gulped down the last of my drink and grabbed my pack as I stood up. I could see the man I was almost sure to be a bandit smiling an uneven yellow grin.

"So am I to understand that the knights of Pherae are leaving to find the lord of this land?"

"That is correct," the knight replied, "we are few in-"

"Are all the knights of Pherae as dense as you?" I interrupted the man before he could reveal that the marquess' wife might have been left unguarded. "Do you not recognize a brigand when you see one,” I swiped his hair out of his eyes., “or is your brush-top impeding your vision?"

The knight's eyes widened, stealing a look over my shoulder at the men who I could hear getting up from the table. "Brigands? In this village?"

"You heard ‘im boys," the man said, resting his axe on his shoulder. "The Knights of Pherae have vanished. Looks like their misfortune is our good luck!" He strode to the center of the bar and looked at all the patrons still wearing that sickening grin. "I have an announcement to make! As of now, this village is mine! Groznyi is your new liege!" His henchmen joined him brandishing their weapons with threatening stares. "Now, bring every last piece of gold, down to the smallest fleck!"

The low rumble of murmurs rippled through the tavern, and I turned back to the knight, who had a desperate look on his face. "Now you've done it. Looks like your lord and fellow knights will have to deal with these men before you leave."

"Someone bring me that barmaid," the leader called. "I could use a little company."

Two of the men turned in the direction of the barmaid. The innkeeper, no doubt also her father, grabbed her and pulled her behind him, but there would be nothing he could do to protect his daughter against these men. I turned back to the knight and galvanized my next words.

"You're a knight of Pherae. Are you with Lord Eliwood? Is he nearby?"

"Y-y-yes…" He stuttered. "He is just on the other side of the hills east of here."

"Good." I walked over behind the bar, grabbed the barmaid out from behind her father, and placed her in the knight's grasp. Her father grunted in confusion, and the bandits stared at me like I had just slapped them with a fresh trout. "Take her and ride for Eliwood. I will buy you time and meet up with you soon."

The knight stared at me with the dumbest look I had ever seen.

"Go! Now!" I shouted, struggling against slapping him to knock some sense into his hollow head.

His brain finally turned on, and he raced out of the bar leading the barmaid behind him. Once they were out of the inn, I turned back to the two bandits now slowly stepping toward me, rubbing their respective weapons as if they carried rolls of soft silk.

"Bad move, friend," the first bandit chuckled. "Groznyi doesn't like people interfering with his pleasurable company."

"I'm sure he doesn't," I replied, stepping back. "With those rotten teeth, I'm sure he enjoys it rather infrequently."

"You have a sharp tongue, boy," the second bandit replied bringing up his sword. "Let's see if it's any match for my blade."

"Oh, come on, my good fellows. Let me buy you a drink." I turned toward the innkeeper. "Sir, a bottle for these two, if you will."

The innkeeper gave me a look aggravatingly similar to the one the knight had given me.

"Now, please!"

The bartender pulled a bottle off the shelf and looked at it for a second before handing it to me.

"Ah, Pheraen chardonnay," I said, snatching up the bottle before he could waste more time by thinking while I watched the bandits out of the corner of my sight. "Made with the finest grapes and aged in barrels made from-"

The bandit with the axe stepped forward raising his weapon over his head. I swung the bottle around, smashing it against his skull. The bandit staggered and I took the opportunity to kick him into his partner before bolting for the door. As soon as I was outside, I drew my sword and pointed it forward as I pressed myself against the wall. The bandit with the axe was the first to come out of the inn, and his momentum impaled him right through my sword. The second bandit had no time to react as I pushed his partner off my blade with my boot, and they tumbled to the ground together. With the second bandit pinned, I slashed my sword across his neck and then made for my horse before any more could give chase.

Ajax galloped down the path in a flash. I heard yelling behind me. Pain erupted in my shoulder, and I slipped to the side. I reached behind me and grabbed the shaft of the arrow, but I’d lost my grip on the reins. Feeling my slipping, Ajax pulled off and around a house where I tumbled into the dirt. Ajax stamped and whinnied at me, but I could hear the bandits coming. The only path forward was a narrow alleyway. We’d be an easy target for the archer that shot me. But the house next to me had an open window.

“Go!” I yelled, slapping Ajax hide. “I’ll catch up!” I didn’t wait to make sure Ajax obeyed. I picked myself up and threw my body through the open window. A woman screamed while I floundered along the floor. A man had his family in a corner of the house with a small knife pointed at me. Shit, I thought to myself. I can’t let the bandits find them.

My eyes locked on the back door. I charged right through it and stumbled over squealing pigs that tried to make way for me.

“There he is,” I heard someone yell. “He’s cutting through the houses.”

“Head around those houses,” another man yelled. “Cut him off!”

I sprinted down another alley, weaving along the path in case any more arrows were shot at me. I slid low at an intersection and pulled myself down another path just as an arrow whizzed over my head. I built up speed again. Ahead of me were some boxes stacked high against a house. It wouldn’t take long to climb them, and on top of the house, I could get a better view of the bandits’ positions. I only needed a second.

I leapt up onto the first box and began to climb, but someone unleashed a war cry behind me. I threw myself to the left rather than up. A large axe cleaved through the box I’d just been on. The bandit whirled on me bringing his axe around with the broken box still clinging on the end. The extra weight made the axe unwieldy. I had enough time to roll away, but the box shattered against the ground, freeing the axe. Now there was nothing impeding the bandit. He raised his axe again.

Then another, smaller axe whistled over my head and crashed right into his chest—a hand axe. The bandit stared at the axe in his chest, gurgled, then crumbled to the ground.

“Mark!”

I looked behind me to see a strong hand reaching for me. I grabbed it and was pulled up to meet the wavy hair and strong jawline of an old friend.

“Dorcas!” I exclaimed, grasping him with both hands. “Glad to see a friendly face right now.”

“I’m sure you are,” he said. “Hold still.” He pulled me toward him and further behind us was a man in a sleevless blue tunic was fighting off two bandits. He swung his axe by the end of the handle, catching his target in the upswing and slicing through his chest. Then he brought the axe down in a heavy chop that slammed the other bandit’s sword away. With a follow-up punch, he sent the bandit reeling to the ground. Another swing of his axe, and the first bandit suffered a killing blow. The second bandit scrambled to his feet, but the blue fighter threw a hand axe, putting him back on the ground.

There was a snap behind me. “There,” Dorcas said. “We’ll have to get the arrowhead out, but at least you won’t have a shaft throwing off your balance.”

“Thanks, Dorcas,” I said, then motioned behind him. “Is he with you?”

“’Course I am,” he shouted, coming up to us. "Bartre the Brave." He slapped a hand on Dorcas' shoulder. "This one's personal babysitter. As you saw, the man doesn't have situational awareness. I act as his second pair of eyes in battle."

Dorcas rolled his eyes. "I met Bartre during my third contract. He and I have been fighting bandits together ever since."

“And who are you?” Bartre asked. “Got a bounty on your head of something with all these brigands after you?”

“They’ll be time for introductions later,” I said. “For now, we need-”

“Knights coming from the south!” someone yelled from the main road.

“Form up, boys!” Groznyi gave the order. “They’re just the ancillary forces. Nothing but pups. We’ll tear them from their horses and chop them up.”

“Hurry!” I said to the fighters. “We can flank them while they’re distracted!”

We ran back to the main road. Groznyi and the bandits were lined up facing a pair of charging cavaliers. One of them was the shaggy haired knight, and the other had more armor along with his horse being armored as well. Behind them Eliwood was running in with his blade.

Perfect.

I headed the charge with the fighters driving my sword into the first bandit. His scream alerted his cohorts who all turned toward us. The cavaliers tore through the distracted group cutting down three of the bandits. Dorcas and Bartre engaged two other bandits while I joined up with Eliwood in a clash with Groznyi.

The bandit leader didn’t falter in his form while he deflected our attacks. Even though Eliwood and I had speed and maneuverability with our swords, the double headed axe Groznyi wielded kept us at a distance. He swung his axe in a wide arc, forcing Eliwood to jump back. The axe came around at me too. I stepped back allowing the blade to pass, and then stepped in for the opening. But I misjudged Groznyi intention. He continued his momentum, bringing the axe around again. I would get my strike in, but Groznyi would likely endure it, and hit me full on. I pulled my body down to duck under the strike, and Groznyi kept going, bringing his axe over his head.

An arrow imbedded itself in Groznyi’s bicep. The force of the shot combined with his axe in the air threw him off balance. Eliwood seized the opening, leaping over me. Groznyi swung his axe in a diagonal arc. Eliwood leaned to the side, tossed his sword to his other hand, and slipped under Groznyi’s arm to drive the blade through his neck. The bandit leader’s eyes rolled upward.

"Good strike, Eliwood!" I called as he pulled his blade from the bandit leader.

“Mark, good to see you again!” Eliwood took my arm and helped me back up. “When Lowen told me a man in a green cloak was fighting bandits in the town, I dared to hope it was you. I could think of no one else brave enough to do something so rash.” Lowen must have been the cavalier I sent the barmaid with. I decided against mentioning that he was the cause of my rash actions as he approached us with the more armored horseman. He was much older than Lowen and the crest on the saddle of his horse denoted him as a Paladin of a royal house. Likely the only one that remained in Pherae after the marquess’ disappearance.

“The remaining bandits are fleeing, my lord,” said the Paladin. “I will send word to have some knights brought here to patrol the village in case of another incursion.”

“Thank you, Marcus,” Eliwood said.

“This is the man from the tavern, Lord Eliwood,” Lowen said. “Is he the one you thought of?"

"Yes," Eliwood replied. "Mark is the tactician responsible for bringing an end to the trouble in Caelin last year. A fantastic military advisor as well as a first-class swordsman."

I blushed at the praise. "Ah heh, you do me too much honor, my lord. I'm little more than competent with a blade, and my military experience is better than most at best."

Eliwood chuckled in good humor. "You do yourself too little honor, Mark. If not for you, the Lord Hausen and his granddaughter might not have survived Lundgren's uprising. And Lyn herself always speaks highly of your abilities whenever we have met. She credits you for her expertise with a sword. Says you and she would spend hours each day you weren't in battle, training her in combat."

My heart bounced in my chest. "You've spoken to her… How…how is she?"

"She's doing quite well," Eliwood replied, giving me a confused smile. "You haven't kept in contact?"

"Uh no," I said, shaking my head. "I've uh… I've been rather busy, you see." I was happy to hear that she was still thinking of me at least.

"I see… So what brings you to Pherae, my friend?"

I shook off my daze. "Right, yes. Uh, I have recently finished a job, and I have been looking for my next contract. Your knight here happened to come into the tavern where I was staying, and I heard you were looking for your father." I took a deep breath to straighten myself up. I needed to look presentable. "I would like to extend my abilities to aid you on your journey if you would have me."

Eliwood smiled wide. "Of course! I would be honored to have the tactician of the Caelin Conflict advising my company. Let's give thanks to providence for our chance reunion."

"You honor me, Eliwood," I replied with a bow while examining the Paladin. That stoic mien considering me with caution reminded me of Wallace, and his armor was decorated with rich cloth and heraldry. Multiple weapons hung on hooks around the saddle. He would prove to be a valuable asset on our journey.

"And you are Marcus, correct?" I asked the man.

He nodded. “I am Lord Eliwood's advisor and retainer."

"And this is Lowen?" I turned to the other cavalier.

“Yes, sir,” he replied with a smile.

I wanted to reprimand him for his brainless divulgence at the tavern. But considering his prince and commanding officer were here, and he would probably be one of our few men at arms on this journey, I decided to stay silent about his novice slip up. “The barmaid I sent with you. Is she okay?”

“I am! Thank you very much for helping me back there.”

I turned around to find the barmaid, who appeared eager to go hunting. A bow was slung over her shoulder, her bar dress had been swapped for a shorter skirt, and her hair was tied into two ponytails underneath a green bandana. "An archer?" I questioned, eyeing the bow. “You were the one who shot the bandit leader.”

"Yes," she beamed. "I hunt almost every day for the village, so hitting his arm was simple." She rubbed her chin. “I was aiming for his head, but he was moving too fast. If I was only going to get one shot, I decided it would be best to give you and Lord Eliwood an opening.”

"I appreciate the support… Uh…"

"Rebecca."

"Rebecca," I repeated. "Thank you. You very well might have saved my life.”

“You’re welcome,” she said with a proud smile. “And I promise my skills will be of great help to you on this journey.”

“You…” I trailed off, staring at Lowen, then Eliwood, and back to her. “You’re coming with us?”

Her smile wilted. “That was what was discussed, yes.” Her eyes darted to Eliwood. “My lord welcomed my aid.”

I looked at Eliwood and he nodded. “She offered to help when Lowen brought her to us, and with how few we are, I accepted.”

“I see.” I wasn’t against having Rebecca along, but she wasn’t a soldier. “So I'm sure you've killed your fair share of wild beasts. But have you ever killed a person?"

Rebecca's smile disappeared, and she stared past me at Groznyi’s corpse. "I… haven't. No. But he…those brigands… They weren’t people. They were monsters, preying upon the innocents like wolves preying upon deer. They are no different than the beasts I have hunted before."

I kept my mouth shut because I certainly was not expecting that answer. She seemed like a sweet, sheltered young woman who had worked in her father's inn most of her life, safe from the ugly outside world, and yet she spoke those words like a hardened veteran of war. To say the least, I was disturbed, yet also intrigued. "Uh… well, if Lord Eliwood agreed to your company and your father is okay with it, then I shall not refuse you.”

Rebecca smiled again. “I will go and inform my father at once.”

“Allow me to join you,” Eliwood said. “I wish to discuss a matter with him.

The two of them headed for the inn, but Rebecca was not the only ally we’d picked up, and I turned to the two fighters. “Dorcas,” I called, spinning on my foot. “How is Natalie?"

"We moved to Tuscana after we finished in Caelin,” he said with a heartfelt smile. “We were able to afford treatment with the money I earned from our Caelin campaign. However, moving her and her family to Tuscana cost a bit more than I had, so I've been taking mercenary jobs to help pay off what we still owe.” He gave me a knowing smile. “And I’m certain this job will pay off the last of our debt while giving us extra in the end."

"Really?" I raised a brow. "Will Natalie be all right?"

"She's being looked after by her family. And when I tell her that I will be working for you again, I'm sure any worries she might have will be put to rest."

"Well, it's good to see you again." I glanced at Bartre. "And you are helping him earn that money?"

“That’s right,” he said with a big smile. “Where he goes, I go.”

I tilted my head back to Marcus. "These two aided us during the skirmish. I can vouch for both of them. They would be invaluable assets on our journey."

Marcus gave a single nod. "Lord Eliwood has appointed you our tactician for this campaign, which makes you second in command to him. He has passed all military rulings to your discretion. I argued the choice, but Lord Eliwood seems to have great faith in you."

"Then I will endeavor not to disappoint." I turned back to the two fighters. "Welcome aboard."

"I look forward to working with you again, Mark," Dorcas replied.

I bowed to them and then Marcus and I headed for the inn to find Eliwood.

As we approached, Eliwood, Rebecca and her father all wore severe miens. "…the good folk of Laus know no such protection.” The innkeeper said as we joined them. “Their marquess, Lord Darin, is too busy preparing for war. He ignores all complaints of bandits and thieves."

Laus… The name struck a familiar chord in my head.

Eliwood became dire serious. "Prepare for war? Are you sure?"

The innkeeper nodded. "I would not lie, milord. My brother lived in Laus until a few days ago. His home was torched, and he had no choice but to flee here. According to him, Laus could go to war any day now. It's all the people of Laus are talking about."

"Lord Eliwood," Marcus said, "if this is true, the situation is a grave one. If Marquess Laus is readying for war, his target is most likely another Lycian territory."

The memory bloomed in my mind. "Now that he mentions it, I overheard talk at one of the inns in Laus on my last job. Apparently, Marquess Pherae had arrived, and it was quite a surprise for the people there."

Eliwood turned to me with a desperate bearing. "My father met with Marquess Laus?"

"That seems the most likely reason,” I gestured at the innkeeper, “if what he says is true. I apologize for not mentioning it sooner. I often have trouble recalling things due to the memory loss I suffer from my amnesia."

"Amnesia?" Marcus repeated. The cold chill of his gaze pierced straight through me. "Forgive my dispute, Lord Eliwood. But are you sure we can trust this man?"

"I understand your concern, Marcus. But Mark's amnesia has merely left him uncertain of where he has come from. There is no reason to distrust this man. He still retains his knowledge of military strategy and combat tactics. I have seen the results of his work first-hand. We would be hard-pressed to find a better strategist."

"As you say, my lord." Marcus gave me one last look as a warning.

"As for Marquess Laus," Eliwood continued. "It seems a tenuous connection, but it's as good a start as any. Let us travel to Laus. We must learn more."

"Then let us make haste," I said. "We can make it close to Santaruz before nightfall if we leave now."

* * * * *

A storm rolled in after we left the village, slowing our journey. We made camp in the cover of a forest just outside of Santaruz, and the company was moving again at dawn. Since the road to Laus passed through Santaruz, Eliwood suspected his father might have visited with the marquess en route to Laus before heading to Ostia, which had been his father's original destination before his disappearance. Eliwood arranged a meeting with Lord Helman, the marquess of Santaruz, to see if we could learn anything more.

"There it is," Marcus announced as we rounded the hill. "Castle Santaruz."

"Good," I said. "Marcus, Eliwood, and I will meet with Lord Helman while the rest of the company will gather the supplies we need in town. Let's stop here before we enter the town to make a note of supplies we lack." I pulled Ajax to a stop and dismounted. Rebecca, who had been riding with me since Ajax was the largest horse, hopped off and grabbed me before I went too far. "Mark, may I speak to you for a moment?"

"Of course," I said lowering my voice. The look on her face revealed that what she wanted to say was for my ears only. "What's on your mind?"

Her eyes darted past me. “Not here.”

I nodded. “Marcus, take the company into to town once you’ve accounted our supplies. I will join you shortly.”

“As you say,” Marcus replied still giving me a distrustful glare.

Rebecca pulled me away from the company and kept her voice low as we walked. “How’s your shoulder?”

I rolled my arm. “Healing thanks to your steady hands getting that arrowhead out.” I eyed her. “But you could’ve asked me that in front of the company.”

She blushed and looked away. "I wanted to thank you for…protecting me… Back at the inn…when those bandits tried to take me."

"There is no need to thank me for that. I wouldn't have forgiven myself if I stood idly by while bandits had their way with an innocent young woman."

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about." Rebecca's face became hard. "I’m not defenseless and I don't want to be the innocent little damsel everyone must protect. I want to be able to defend myself."

"Forgive my wording then. I did not mean to say you were helpless, only that you had done nothing to deserve being taken by bandits. As for your combat ability, you handle your bow quite adequately."

Rebecca set her hands on her hips and huffed. "A lot of good it did me at the inn. I would have been powerless if you hadn't stepped in."

"There were five of them, Rebecca. Even if you were an outstanding Sniper, there would've been nothing you could have done against all of them."

"You fought them off, though. We wouldn't be having this conversation if you hadn't."

I scoffed at her invention of my imaginary heroics. "I fought off the two that had come for you by pulling a dirty move on one of the bandits, then ran out the door and hid before I resorted to another sneaky move to dispatch them. And if not for Dorcas and Bartre, I probably would’ve died before the rest of you showed up."

"So? That wasn't cowardice; it was smart. Tactical. You used the bandits' numbers to make them think they had the advantage and reacted accordingly. Bandits don't fight fair. You did what you had to."

She brought up a good point. "Yes, Rebecca, but you see—"

"Will you teach me to become stronger?"

"What?"

Rebecca clasped her hands together and regarded me with pleading eyes. "You know combat tactics. I want to learn how to fight smart. Can you teach me what you know?"

An interesting proposition. I hadn't had a pupil since Lyn, and teaching her had been a joy during our journey. Of course, that could be attributed to us being friends as far as my memories could reach. Rebecca seemed to be similar to Lyn with a fresh mind and a burning desire to grow stronger. If she absorbed my teachings like Lyn did, then I would produce another capable individual who could defend against bandits. Personally, I had no objections, but there was the other thing that worried me.

"All right, Rebecca. I'll teach you what I know. But there's something I want to ask you as well."

"What's that?" she asked, raising a curious brow.

"Back at your village, when I asked you about if you had ever killed a man. You compared the bandits to the wild beasts that you've hunted. That’s not a comparison most people make even for bandits, and there was deep hatred in your voice. If I am going to teach you, I wish to know why you want to know how to kill another person.”

Rebecca let her gaze fall to the ground. "Bandits killed my mother when I was very young. They came into our inn demanding payment for ‘protection,' and my mother denied them. My father was the magistrate and was out at the time, and my brother had disappeared a couple of weeks before that. The bandits cut my mother down in cold blood that day, and they had the patrons tell my father they would be back for the payment. Lord Elbert sent knights to bring the bandits to justice when he heard what happened. But he couldn't bring my mother back. And so, I vowed to make bandits pay for terrorizing innocents."

Where had I heard that before? "I'm sorry that happened to you, Lyn."

"Who's Lyn?" Rebecca asked.

Blast!

"Uh…no one… just a previous employer. I'm sorry, Rebecca. What happened to your mother was a tragedy. But you shouldn't have that outlook on our enemies."

“I shouldn’t?” Rebecca furrowed her brows. "Why not? Back at the village, they were ready to cut down you and Lord Eliwood without a second thought. They look at us as lambs and slaughter us in the same manner. Why should we treat them any different?"

"It's just…" My mind raced for an answer, but I couldn't find one. She wasn’t wrong. All the bandits I had encountered always seemed to be out for blood. There was no point in diplomacy with them. You had to respond with violence against them, or else you would die. But I remembered what I had told Lyn when she viewed the bandits in the same way back at the ruined village. "I understand your reasons for your anger. But it’s not healthy for you. You continue to live in the horror by holding on to that anger."

“I know,” she said with an obvious tone. “And that’s why the bandits must pay for what they did.” She spoke with a refusal to accept any alternative.

“But will that change anything? Will killing bandits bring you peace?”

“No.” Her tone remained unyielding. “I don’t expect it to. However, if I am left to suffer, then they should share in my pain.”

I struggled to build my argument. Convincing Lyn to let go of her anger had been much easier, but likely because she had held me in such high regard. Rebecca only just met me. “They are bad people, Rebecca. I’m not arguing that. But they are still people. You’re not better than them by falling to their level.”

Rebecca didn't look convinced. "You'll have to forgive me if I don't accept your outlook on our foes."

A soldier with a lance burst from the tree line next to us. In that brief moment, I managed to see he wore Santaruz colors before he jabbed his lance at me! I barely had time to pull out my sword to deflect the strike, allowing him to disarm me and knock me to the ground. He stepped in for another thrust, but Rebecca grabbed his arm, attempting to get at his spear. The man shoved her away and came back at me with the spear. I grabbed his spear out of the way of my shoulder. I struggled with the soldier for only seconds before an axe chopped through the man's left shoulder, and he went to the ground, pulling his assailant with him. My heart skipped a beat when I saw the individual who wielded the axe: a large man in navy armor. Shoulders as broad as a mountain range lay under an equally daunting face. His eyes were fierce orbs of blue, and his hair was the blue-black of a moonlit sky—the last person from my dream.

Another man wearing orange plate armor appeared next to him. "My lord, I cannot condone resorting to force so quickly…"

"Chastise me later, Oswin," said the man. His voice was like the rugged steel of his weapon. It knew little of submission or passivity. "First, we deal with these turncoats." He looked back at me. "You two! Whom do you fight for?"

Any other time I would have kept my employer's identity confidential, but this man had been alongside Eliwood in my dream. "Lord Eliwood," I said, picking up my sword.

"Good. I hope you prove more proficient than what I just witnessed. Come! We must help Eliwood!" He took off into the open field toward Santaruz Castle, armor clanging with every step.

Oswin groaned. "Sounds like a convenient excuse for more violence…"

"Oswin!" the man shouted back at his companion.

"Yes, yes, I'm coming!"

Rebecca and I followed after Oswin and the blue-haired man. A group of bandits had engaged the rest of the company down the road. The axe wielder and Oswin had a good lead on us and engaged the bandits with Eliwood. I told Rebecca to provide support from a hill we were on while I kept watch to make sure no bandits or other traitorous soldiers tried to attack us from behind. With the two newcomers as reinforcements, the company finished off the remaining bandits. When I was sure that we were in the clear, I went to speak with Eliwood.

"Hector! Where did you come from?" Eliwood asked, taking the man's arm.

"Well met, Eliwood," Hector replied, glancing around as if his appearance was commonplace.

"Yes," Eliwood replied, "but what are you doing here?"

Hector slapped his hand on his breastplate. "You wound me!"

"How do you mean?" Eliwood asked, playing along.

"You're looking for your father, right? Why didn't you send word?"

"Your brother was just named Marquess Ostia. He's going to be very busy setting up his court council. Lord Uther must need your support. You are his brother, after all."

"My brother is not so weak," Hector said, folding his arms. "Oh, he has mentioned some things in public, but… He knew exactly what I was planning, and he let me go."

"Is that so?" Eliwood didn't seem to believe him. "Well then, it would be unwise to refuse his kindness. It does me good to see you, Hector. Thank you."

"Think nothing of it." He motioned to his comrade. "You know Oswin, don't you?"

Oswin bowed to Eliwood. "Well met, Lord Eliwood."

"It is good to see you again, Oswin. So you came as well?"

"Yes. Lord Uther was worried about Lord Hector traveling alone. I've been ordered to keep a close eye on him."

Eliwood chuckled. "Of course! Good to have you with us!" Eliwood looked around for a moment. He spotted me and beckoned me over to them. "Allow me to introduce Mark. He is our company's tactician."

Hector raised a brow at me. "Tactician, huh? I guess that explains his lousy combat skills. Did you know your tactician was fraternizing with your archer while you all were fighting those bandits?"

My cheeks heated. While I did need to shoulder some of the blame, I had not meant to be absent from the fight. "Yes, well…I didn't realize we were under attack until you came along…"

Hector looked over at Rebecca, who was helping Lowen bandage a wound. "She's cute, but a word of tactical advice, flirting on the battlefield is a surefire way to die."

Eliwood gave me a curious look.

I was just as confused as he was. What was flirting? Did he mean training her? Had he overheard our conversation? "I'm not sure what you mean by that."

"Don't worry about it, Mark," Eliwood said. "Hector is notorious for giving people a hard time. He's really not as bad as he seems."

"Yes I am," Hector retorted.

"And he's my most trusted friend. He always comes through in a fight."

"I can attest to that myself," I replied. "He saved my life before we came over and joined you all. A soldier ambushed us and—" A force slammed into my back and trapped me in its grasp causing me to stumble forward.

"EEEEEEEE!" An all too familiar voice shrieked. "Mark! Is it really you? It's been far, far too long!"

I managed to steady myself and tilted my head back to speak to the eccentric Ostian priestess. "Oh, hi, Serra… Fancy running into you."

"You missed me, didn't you? Of course you did. I knew it."

Serra wasn't the only familiar face to join us. Matthew came running up to us as well. "I apologize for the interruption. I couldn't restrain her any longer!" Matthew noticed me underneath Serra's grasp and bent down low to smile at me. "Hey, Mark! How have you been?"

"Oh, just dandy!" I replied, hinting at my current impairment.

"Serra! Come on! Get off Mark. You know he's fragile."

Serra grumbled and complied. "Oh all right."

"Are these your companions, Hector?" Eliwood asked.

"Oh… Yes, I suppose they are. One might have hoped for better but…"

"Hey! That was uncalled for!" Serra remarked. "I can't believe you said that! Matthew, did you hear what he said about you?"

"Me? He was talking about you!"

"Hector, why don't you introduce us?" Eliwood said.

"The noisy one is Serra," Hector replied. "Believe it or not, she's a cleric of Ostia."

Serra daintily grabbed her robe and curtsied for Eliwood. "Yes, I am Serra, my lord. Pleased to meet you."

"And that's Matthew. He does a lot of…sneaking around."

Matthew bowed. "My lord."

"Sneaking…around," Eliwood repeated.

"Well… I, er…gather information, open doors, chests, and such. I've got…nimble fingers."

"That sounds like thief's work…" Eliwood replied.

"I'm sure he would prefer you call him a specialist in acquisitions of all kinds," I said as our eyes met and we had a silent conference on his hidden identity during the Caelin campaign.

"Don't let it worry you," Hector said, patting his friend’s back. "This journey… I suspect it will be harder than you imagine." He pushed my shoulder with his fist. "Wouldn't you agree, Mark?"

I nodded in agreement. "Yes… I would say so. There's no telling what we might face in this campaign. In my experience, we usually have to accept things we don't necessarily approve of to survive." Then I remembered the Santaruz soldier that attacked me earlier. Did he believe me to be in league with the bandits? But soldiers wouldn't attack strangers outright, especially a man and a woman talking. He must have at least heard Rebecca and I talking about killing bandits. Or else he…

"What's wrong, Mark?" Eliwood asked, noticing my concern.

"He's probably trying to piece together why a Santaruz soldier attacked him," Hector answered for me.

"A soldier?" Eliwood became concerned. "Do you know something, Hector?"

"Nothing specific. Rumors abound, though. A league of assassins from Bern has been moving around in Lycia. Experienced bounty hunters and mercenaries are vanishing…"

"Lord Eliwood." Marcus came riding up to us with a young, black haired swordsman in shackles next to him. "I have a Myrmidon with me that might be able to explain what is going on."

"Marcus! Good to see you!" Hector replied.

"Lord Hector, it's been too long," he replied. "Your assistance is greatly appreciated."

"Come now, Marcus. No need for such formalities."

I cut the greetings short. "Marcus, what can this man tell us?"

"Of course," he stared at the man. "Tell them what you told me."

The man fiddled with the ropes around his wrists while he stared at the ground and talked. "I've been working with that group of thugs for a while. Recently, they had been talking about how someone was watching the son of Marquess Pherae, and someone needed him dead. That's why we attacked you all. Our goal was to kill your lord."

"Guy!" Matthew said, walking up to the man. "What a pleasant surprise! How's your sword work coming?"

The swordsman’s head shot up, gazing at Matthew from underneath his crooked headband. He was dumbstruck at the sight of Matthew at first, then smirked at him. "Had you been around instead of you Paladin, you might have found out. You are aware that I am currently a captive of your company, right? And as I intended to kill your lord here, I am also your enemy."

"Maybe," Matthew shrugged the comment off as if the man had made a jest in a tavern. "But the way I see it is your cohorts are dead, and you have a choice. You can rot in prison the rest of your life. Or you can repay the debt you owe me and fight for us instead."

Bafflement spread across Guy’s face. "Huh?"

Matthew’s smirk curled into a wily smile. "Last time I saw you, I gave you food. If I remember correctly, you said you owed me your life."

"I only said that ‘cause you said you'd feed me if I did!"

"And now you have a chance to repay me. So what do you say?"

Guy glanced at Marcus for a moment, considering the choice, though he didn't think for long. "Fine," he said simply. "I'll fight for you."

"Uh, Matthew," I said coming up to them. "You seem awful sure about him. But as the company's tactician, I have to be cautious. Are you sure we can trust him? He was our enemy moments earlier."

"He's Sacaean. He never lies."

I looked back at the swordsman. Now that I was looking for it, he did indeed wear the garb of the Sacaean nomads. The distinctive triangle design Sacaean dress was known for ran down the edge of his sky-blue tunic. Although, it was shocking to see him as a swordsman since most Sacaeans rode horses and wielded bows (except for Lyn, but she was a unique case). I could also see the same honest air I had seen in both Lyn and Rath on his face as averse as it might have been. "Okay, I trust him. Release him from his bindings, Marcus."

Marcus frowned. "I'm sorry, Mark. But I must protest. This man was against us in that skirmish."

I nodded in agreement. "And he surrendered when he saw his cohorts were dead. If he is a mercenary, he has no one else who will pay him, so he has no other loyalties. If you are still worried, then keep an eye on him, but I agree with Matthew. The Sacaean never lie nor are they cloak and dagger type people. And that also means that this plot to kill Eliwood is real."

Hector rested his axe on his shoulder. "Hmmm. That's troubling… Actually, a captain of the guard was watching the fight when we arrived, and I watched as he sent one of his men to attack Mark and your archer. He was a knight of Santaruz, and yet he just stood there and let a lord’s company be attacked. I think he was planning on seeing you all die."

Eliwood looked back at me. "What do you think, Mark?"

"I think we need to find Lord Helman. I fear something has happened to him."

We entered the castle to find it completely abandoned by all its guards. It was rather strange that the royal guardsmen would completely abandon their marquess. Did the marquess want Eliwood dead, or had this group of assassins Hector mentioned paid off the soldiers? Either way, it would be reasonable to assume that the marquess would explain why his soldiers were carrying out disturbing actions like attacking innocents and the son of a fellow marquess.

To locate the marquess faster, we split up. I decided to take Guy with me to give Marcus some peace of mind. I also wished to know more about his history if he did plan to join our company.

"So you're Sacaean?" I asked as we traveled down a hall on the third floor of the castle.

"That's right," Guy replied.

"What tribe are you from?"

"Kutolah."

"Not much for small talk, are you?"

"I am your prisoner, am I not?"

"You're not bound in ropes anymore, so, no, you are not."

"Then why did you take my weapon?"

"It's just a precaution. Once I know you better, I will give you your weapon back. So how about it?"

Silence.

"Ha! You really must be Kutolah if you're this stubbornly quiet. Just like Rath."

"You knew Rath?" Curiosity peaked in Guy’s voice.

"I did. He aided my company in a previous campaign about a year ago. And he was as silent and stubborn as you are when we first met him. Did you know him?"

"No, he left the tribe while I was still very young. I was told he had to fulfill some prophecy that stated he would help ‘stop the burning,' whatever that means."

A sharp pain shot through the back of my head. I threw my hand on the site of the sting, thinking an arrow had pierced me, but I was still alive, and there was neither blood nor any wound at all. Even the pain itself had stopped as quickly as it had started.

"Are you all right," Guy asked, finally showing some Sacaean hospitality.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just have a headache. That's all." I had a strange feeling like I had experienced this pain before, though. I just couldn’t remember where. "So why did you leave your tribe?"

Guy let out a sigh. "I had no skill with a bow, and I wasn't any good at hunting. But the chieftain told me I had a good sword arm. Yet I knew that I was useless to my tribe. I left to hone my skill as a swordsman. But after two years, I found myself without any money or food. That's when your thief found me and gave me some food."

"I know of one Sacaean who would disagree with your view on your skills," I said with a chuckle, "and now Matthew is collecting on the debt you owed him."

"Yes…I suppose he is… May I ask you something, Mark?"

"By all means."

"Besides Matthew, the rest of your company has distrusted me. I do not blame them, as I was your enemy a few hours ago. But you do not seem to hold that same view of me even though you claimed you had to be cautious as the tactician. Why?"

I held up a warning finger. "Don't misinterpret my affability for trust, Guy. I am still wary of you. But we already established that you are Sacaean, and the Sacae never lie."

"That's doesn't mean we are all honest. I could be lying to you about my past right now to gain your trust."

"And that would be a detrimental lie to tell.” I said rolling my fingers out toward him. “An exiled Sacaean would not be a good front to gain people's trust. And what good would deceiving me do you? For all you know, I could be a member of the assassins, posing as this company's tactician to get close and kill Eliwood. It wouldn't do me any good to make you suspicious right from the start. My point is that you have nothing to gain whether by telling me the truth or lying. Either way, you are going to be observed by the others until you have gained their trust. So why shouldn't you at least have someone who will consider you a part of our company right from the start? The way I see it, your only transgression against us is that you fought for the wrong side. You have not killed or injured anyone yet, and make no mistake; I will be the first to retaliate should you betray my trust. But until you do, I have no reason to distrust a Sacaean, exiled or not."

Guy fell silent again. I was about to say something when the pain in my head made a comeback. I grabbed my head again, but this time I fell to my knees.

"Mark, what's wrong?"

"I'm not sure," I said through gritted teeth. "Do me a favor. Go and find our healer, Serra, and bring her to me."

Guy's baffled stare made the pain in my head even worse. "By the eight, Guy, do we have to go over this Sacaean trust thing again? If anyone stops you, tell him or her I sent you to get help, and they can bring their grumblings to me. Now go!"

Thankfully, he didn't need more convincing. Guy took off down the hall while I endured this strange headache through deep breaths and cringing. What in the blasted world was happening to me? Had my mind finally found my memories and was now trying to insert them back into my conscious mind? No… Wait, I did remember this pain! This was the same pain that assailed me when we first met the twins and that hooded man that belonged to a strange group. Someone led them… What was his name? The pain subsided again after enduring several more seconds of it, and then I heard voices coming from a door down the hall.

"Master Ephi…! What…meaning of this?"

Even shouting, the voice was hoarse and withered, so I moved closer to make out what they said.

"Peace, Lord Helman. Whatever is wrong?" This voice was smooth, but carried a sinister undertone mixed underneath. And he mentioned the marquess by name. I tried to turn and leave to find the others, but my body suddenly did not respond. I had become immobilized just outside the door.

"You said you were just going to frighten Eliwood! Your men almost killed him! My patience is at an end! I've decided I must tell Eliwood everything and apologize."

"…You would betray us?"

"I am tired of you and the Black Fang! Now remove yourself from my castle! Your presence pains me!"

The Black Fang! That was the mysterious group that had kidnapped Ninian a year ago. That must have been why my mind started hurting. This Ephi…whoever, must have been a member, but that wasn't the name I remembered. I tried to push myself through the doorway so I could confront the men for more answers, but my body still would not obey me. I was petrified, and now the pain in my head was slowly reemerging again.

"Lord Helman… Is there nothing I can do to change your mind?"

"Nothing!"

"In that case… you're no longer of any use." The sound of a blade puncturing flesh and a withered, painful grunt echoed out into the hall. A few seconds of silence passed, and then a sound like glass breaking in a weird way came from the room. My body relaxed; I was in control again. I busted through the door to find Lord Helman in a bloody heap.

Guy had been faster than I thought because Eliwood came in right behind me. "Mark, are you okay? Guy said you needed…" He saw the marquess bleeding out and dropped to the floor to pick him up. "Lord Helman!"

The life in the marquess' eyes was slowly draining away. "Is that you…Eliwood?"

"Hold on, my lord!"

"I… I must apologize… Your father… He…"

Eliwood propped Lord Helman against his knee so he could hear him better. "Do you know something, sir?"

"I… If I hadn't told Elbert…about…Darin's plans…this would…never…have…" Helman coughed. "Go to Laus… Darin…the marquess of Laus…knows all."

So we were on the right path. Could the Black Fang and the man that had left Helman in this state have been working with Laus? Rebecca's father had mentioned that Laus had been readying itself for war. Helman could have been involved, regretted his decision, and wanted out. That's why the assassin attempted to kill him, or rather, succeeded. Helman would not last for much longer with that wound.

Helman understood his fate as well. "I'm sorry Eliwood… I…I can't…" Another violent cough interrupted him, and he clutched Eliwood's cloak. "Beware… the Black…Fang…."

A surge of pain traveled through my head again. That man, Ephi… and whatever else; he was a member of the Black Fang. They must have been the puppeteers behind these strange events. And if they had control in Laus like here in Santaruz, perhaps their goal was to start a war within the Lycian League. But why?

I would have to process the situation later. Helman's body finally went limp.

"Lord Helman!" Eliwood shook the body, hoping to revive the marquess.

"He's gone," Hector replied. For a man his size, I hadn't noticed him enter.

"It can't be…" Eliwood gently set the body on the floor and then stood up continuing to stare at him. "Lord Helman… Why… Why did this happen?"

Hector set his hands on his hips while he paced about the room. "Blast! What is going on?!"

"There's only one way to get answers to those questions." Both of them stared at me. "We go to Laus."

The night didn't take long to find us after we left Santaruz. We had to stop and make camp less than a day out from Laus on the outskirts of Caelin. Before we left, the stewards of Lord Helman's house asked us what would happen next. Hector graciously offered them jobs working for House Ostia once they had given the marquess a proper burial. Though I had only met him earlier that day, Hector continued to surprise me. He seemed like a rebellious spirit searching for every opportunity to shirk his responsibility as a noble. Yet, when the situation required an earnest approach, he became a completely different person.

Even now at the campfire, he struggled to keep Eliwood's and mine's spirits high despite our predicament. "Such beautiful fields here. I wish Ostia held as much beauty. There are too many manmade constructions hiding its former beauty. A downside to being the head of the Lycian League, I guess." Eliwood didn't seem to be in the talking mood, so he turned to me for a response. "You've been to the fields of Sacae, right? Eliwood told me he met you when you were aiding Lord Hausen's granddaughter a year ago."

"I have," I replied. I hadn't considered how close we were to Lyn right now. We were camping near a village in Caelin that wasn't far from the castle. My mind had been focused on Laus and the Black Fang this entire time. "Lord Hausen's granddaughter found me in those fields over a year ago. That's how I eventually met Eliwood. We were rescuing a young woman from Black Fang members on our way to Caelin. After Caelin, I traveled Elibe, offering my services as a freelance until I heard about Lord Elbert's disappearance."

Hector's gaze became stern. "So you've run into this Black Fang before. Were they involved with Lundgren's hostile takeover?"

I grabbed my chin while I stared into the fire. "I don't believe so. I never got any direct answers, but we also did not encounter any more of them after that single incident.” I twirled my hand in the smokey air. “They have a certain aura of mystery about them, and Lundgren didn't have that." I didn't mention the "aura" was the headaches I got whenever Black Fang members seemed to be around. "Although, had he succeeded in his plans, it's more than likely he would've joined Laus in this strange scandal. Lundgren was a warmonger." A disturbing thought suddenly passed through my mind.

"What's wrong?" Hector asked, noticing my change in expression.

"Nothing," I replied shaking the ridiculous notion from my head.

"He thinks House Caelin is involved with the Black Fang and Laus," Eliwood said, reading my mind.

"Yes," I admitted. "But Lyn would never allow Lord Hausen to become involved with the Black Fang. Not after what we experienced with them."

"Lyn?" Hector asked.

"It's short for Lyndis," Eliwood explained. "It is the name she went by when she and Mark were traveling together. I believe she still prefers it." He turned back to me. "You're worried about her?"

I nodded. "I have kept in contact with her over the past year, but during this last month, I stopped sending letters after I heard about your father's disappearance. I have no doubt she and her grandfather are fine but… I am curious how she has been getting along."

Hector gave me a sly grin. "And? This Lyndis? Is she a beauty?"

An image of Lyn appeared in my mind. She was standing amongst the tall grass of Sacae. A cool breeze rolled across the field, delicately pushing the grass and lifting Lyn's green hair up to match the rhythm of the grass' swaying. And her kind smile emitted her sheer radiance to match that of the sun bathing her in its warm rays. The image warmed my heart, compelling me to smile as well.

"She's… Well…I guess she's," I struggled to find the words to describe her. "She's bewildering… Immaculate as the fields of her homeland. Gorgeous both on the inside and outside with a compassionate heart, and a smile as bright as the morning sun that can light up any darkness, and gives strength to all who can consider her a friend." I looked up to find that both Eliwood and Hector wore goofy smiles. "What? Did I say something odd?"

"You speak so boldly of Lyn, Mark," Hector said. "Clearly, you must have strong feelings for her."

"Strong feelings? Of course I do. Why wouldn't I? We traveled with each other for a long time, and she was the one who first found me when I woke up with amnesia."

Hector leaned in closer, becoming wilier for some reason. "So you love her?"

"Well, yeah. I care deeply about her. Just like you and Eliwood love each other."

Both Eliwood and Hector's eyes widened, and those goofy smiles disappeared.

"What?!" Hector exclaimed. "Eliwood and I don't love each other!"

"You don't?" I raised a brow and swung my finger at them. "But I thought you two were close friends."

Hector slid down the log away from Eliwood. "Yeah, we're close friends, but we're not lovers! Those relationships are completely different!"

"Lovers? What's that?"

Hector was still holding himself in the air when his mouth dropped open, and he looked at Eliwood.

"He does have amnesia," Eliwood shrugged.

"No. No way! Not happening. I'll handle this." Hector pushed himself off the log with such force that he sent it rolling back a few feet before he marched up to me. "I refuse to be led by someone who doesn't understand what that thing between his legs is for." He sat down next to me and began whispering something to me—that something caused my heart to pop in astonishment. And it only continued to grow in intensity with each word he spoke. And those crude gestures he started making with his hands… What in blazes did lovers actually do!? I would stare at him with a slack jaw, and his smile would tighten in delight at my horror as he conveyed every detail of what two people considered to be lovers did. Now I understood why he had been cantankerous about the idea that he and Eliwood were lovers. Was this the kind of stuff Sain was pursuing with his unabashed, flattering language?!

"What? No! We're not like that at all! We are… I mean—what?! Why would we do that?!"

That goofy smile was back on Hector. "I think we already went over why." He cleared his throat and held up his hands in mock worship. "A smile as bright as the morning sun that can light up the darkness!"

"But that's not… I wouldn't…" I slapped my chest to try and right my irregularly beating heart to collect myself and gave a coy chuckle. "I mean… how pointless. She's a noble, and I'm just a traveling tactician. We wouldn't be good for each other."

"A noble, huh?" Hector's smile became even bigger. "Well, if you're not interested, then I guess I will have to court this beauty with the shining smile."

"No!" I blurted out while I fought to rid myself of such vulgar images.

"So you do love her!" Hector retorted.

"No, I don't. I just… I…"

Eliwood burst out laughing. "You cannot hide it, Mark. In the brief time I had known you two, I had taken you two to either be brother and sister or lovers by the way you acted around each other. And since you didn't look alike, I had to assume the latter!"

"It wasn't like that," I tried to explain, desperate to sort out this madness. "We were just good friends. She saved my life. I owed her."

Hector laughed even harder now. "Look, Eliwood! His cheeks are becoming even redder than your hair." Tears started to appear because he was laughing so hard. "Hey… Hey, Mark. Since were, so close to Caelin... If you want to take tonight to make a secret rendezvous with her, we'll wait here for you. Just promise us that you will keep that radiant smile of hers concealed so we can get some sleep!"

Both of them doubled over with laughter, and now the rest of our company turned around from their spots to see what all the commotion was. But I was done.

"Alright, enough!" I hissed through gritted teeth. The last thing I wanted was for Serra to overhear the subject of our conversation. She would keep us up all night with loud questions. "Whatever my feelings may be in your views, they are inconsequential at this moment. We have bigger things to worry about, and you two are acting like children!"

"Have peace, Mark," Eliwood said, calming down. "Hector just likes to tease people. We are well aware of what we are facing. The ambiguity of this situation has us all on edge. That is why we must find enjoyment where we can."

Hector calmed down as well wiping the excess tears from his eyes. "Oh, Eliwood… At first, I was worried about this one. But I can already tell he's going to be a great deal of fun on this trip."

I sighed as I stood up. "I'm glad I can entertain you. If you don't mind, I think I'm going to turn in for the night."

"Very well," Eliwood replied. "Good night."

I started to head for my tent.

"And Mark!" Eliwood called back.

I turned back to find that he was still smiling, but this smile was partnered with gratitude. "I am truly thankful for your assistance in searching for my father. My anxieties are put to rest knowing that we have your expertise."

I allowed myself to smile back at him. "It is my pleasure, Eliwood."

Hector had finally caught his breath as well. "And don't sell yourself so short, Mark. Your role in reuniting the Marquess Caelin with his granddaughter is well known throughout the Lycian League. Considering yourself merely to be a traveling tactician does your reputation a disservice. Any military advisor is considered high class even by the most pompous of nobles."

"You also do Lyn a disservice by considering yourself unworthy of her affection," Eliwood added. "I'm sure you would agree that she would never consider anyone inferior to her, especially you of all people. You should hear the things she says about you."

"Maybe another time," I said, noticing Marcus and Oswin bringing Serra over probably concerned that their lords' cries of laughter were actually howls of pain. "But I appreciate the faith in my abilities."

I found my tent and crawled across my bedroll. Exhaustion hadn't set in until now, and I realized just how involved the day had been. Even if I had wanted to go off and see Lyn, which would have been entirely pointless, I doubt my legs would have allowed me two feet out of the camp. Yet as exhausted as I was, my mind would not stop thinking about what Hector had told me about Lyn and I potentially being lovers. My feelings for her had been zealous for sure. But so had it been for Kent, and Dorcas and the others in the group during the Caelin campaign. Now that I thought about it, my decisions were often based on placing Lyn's safety as the highest priority. But that's because she was my employer. Ugh. Why was that not convincing me?

We couldn't be that way! How could we? The way Hector had mercilessly described it; something would have happened if we were. The closest we came to what Hector talked about was that evening we held each other before I left. But that was because we were sad to part from each other. Wait… Was that why I was depressed when Rath first joined the group? What was that strange sensation that I felt that day? None of this made any sense! And even if I did feel this way about Lyn, there was no way she did! If Lyn did have those kinds of feelings for me, wouldn't she have said something…or done something? She didn't, though, and that's why I was confident we weren't lovers. Why did that make my heart hurt?

My head was a whirlpool of inexplainable thoughts at the moment, so I did my best to replace them by considering our current situation. Laus, the Black Fang, Eliwood's father—so many questions without answers, but with any luck we would get them tomorrow. Laus was located in the heart of Lycia. In the year following my leave of Caelin, I had heard plenty of rumors whenever I traveled through the area on a job. Darin was a power-hungry marquess who always claimed that Laus should have been the strongest of the Lycian territories. Though, up until now, he had never given any hint of open rebellion. Perhaps he had kidnapped, or worse, killed, Lord Elbert to reduce the number of opponents. Then again, there might have been a darker plot at work as well with this Black Fang. The way Lord Helman had talked to that assassin made it seem like he, or at least he thought he was, in control of the man. But that was not the case. And I still couldn't remember the leader's name.

More than anything, not remembering the name left me with a chill. So, despite my agitation, I decided to think of Lyn and let sleep finally take over.

Chapter Text

Chapter 8

The company was packed and ready to go by the time the sun appeared on the horizon. We were still more than a half day's ride from Laus and Marcus wanted us to arrive when we had the best possible sun. A storm would be rolling in over Laus. I supported the counsel. Without knowing Laus' intentions other than preparing for war, Darin and his men could have proven unpredictable. That's why I had Marcus take Lowen and some scouts to inspect the area ahead of the rest of the company. I needed to know numbers and have the company ready for a battle should we be faced with it. And by the looks of things when we arrived, the rumors were true.

"Look around…" I replied, staring at a convoy with carts full of weapons heading down the road across some farmland not far from us. "They truly are preparing for battle."

Hector's hands tightened around the reins of his horse. "Marquess Laus! What is he scheming?"

Eliwood's solemn mien from the previous night had returned.

"You don't look like you want to go to the castle," I replied.

Eliwood shook his head. "If we go and learn the truth, we may have to go to war."

"That's fine with me," Hector stated.

"I've no love for war," Eliwood said, ignoring his friend. "If I concentrate on the foe before me, I'm fine. If I picture families, innocents caught up in our foolish politics? If I imagine them… All I can do is pray for a way to solve things peacefully."

We both fell silent at our friend's words. I had never known this side of Eliwood. Sure, he appeared to be a kind-hearted and brave noble who cared for his land and his people. But I had no idea he truly despised war. From what I had studied, almost all Lycian men were brought up in the ways of war from a young age. That's how Eliwood and Hector became friends. They had known each other as kids, and trained together as teenagers. But, whereas Hector became a hard-boiled warrior who was always looking for his next fight, Eliwood wished for an end to the fighting even if he knew it could not happen.

"My lords," Rebecca called from her horse as she approached us. "A rider approaches from the castle!"

"A rider?" I asked. It was strange that a territory preparing for war would send a single man to meet a military company.

"Yes," Rebecca replied. “Marcus says it's Marquess Laus' son, Erik."

"Erik?" Eliwood said under his breath with a twinge of familiarity. If it was the marquess' son, it was plausible that Eliwood and Hector knew him. But whether that would prove good or ill remained to be seen.

"Gah!" Hector scowled, crossing his arms. "Why did it have to be that buffoon?"

"You know him?" I questioned for more information.

"A weak-willed, arrogant lout we've had the misfortune of knowing," Hector growled. "We trained and studied together during our early years. He always considered us friends, but he would hide his jealousy poorly. He would constantly praise his father for being such a fantastic military leader even when he carried out less-than-ethical actions defending them as necessary for the good of Lycia."

I addressed Eliwood. "Do you trust him?"

"Considering our intentions for being here, I would not. But the fact that he is riding out to meet us alone may mean he wants to talk with us. Though I wouldn't expect him to be sympathetic to our mission."

"I'm leaving," Hector said, turning his horse. "I never could abide him. I'll go for a ride and survey our surroundings."

"Good idea," I replied, turning to the rest of the remaining company. Everyone spread out around the area. Check for ambushes and find defensible positions should Erik turn hostile. Rebecca, find a spot where you can watch Eliwood and me and stay out of sight. Have Matthew cover your back. Eliwood and I can handle Erik, but if others attack, we may need help."

Everyone acknowledged my orders and split up. Oswin accompanied Hector as they headed north. Rebecca and Matthew headed up a hill with dense foliage that would provide them with ample cover. They disappeared for a moment before Rebecca reappeared, giving me an all-clear signal.

I nodded and turned back to Eliwood. "Since he's asking for you, it would be best if you do the talking. I'll keep my sword concealed. If he asks, I'm your advisor. If he's as arrogant as Hector makes him out to be and this is a trap, he might become overconfident and show his hand if he thinks it's only the two of us."

"All right," Eliwood replied.

We waited in silence for another few minutes until Erik finally appeared around a hill and approached us. When he brought his horse to a stop, he ran his fingers through his voluminous brown hair with vanity in the movement, and his smile was that of a serpent's—charming and glistening as his polished maroon armor. I was almost positive that it hid a sinister poison within and hoped Marcus was nearby with his half of the company.

"Eliwood! It's been a long time!" Erik exclaimed. He glanced at me. "Who is this?"

"One of my advisors," Eliwood said. "What is your business, Erik?"

Erik raised his eyebrows in confusion, but his smile did not falter. "My business? What do you mean? I heard my old friend was here in Laus. I merely thought I'd ride out to greet you!"

Eliwood did not respond, so Erik continued.

"So, tell me, friend, what brings you to Laus?"

Everything about Erik communicated deceit. His tone of voice, his expression, and his body language—he was so obvious that a new recruit could tell his intentions weren't benign. I knew that at any moment, knights would be jumping out to drive their lances through us. But I had put my trust in our company. If we were about to be waylaid, they would alert us.

"Are you…on your way to Ostia?" Erik asked suddenly.

Eliwood caught the obvious prod. "Hm? Why would you think that?"

"Well, you were always such good friends with Hector. He and I never…got along very well. For a noble, his behavior was crude, and his manner of speech… You would have thought him a peasant on first impression."

And I'll bet you've never once struck one of your servants.

He leaned forward on his horse widening his sly smile. "You're still friends with Hector, aren't you? When did you see him last? How do you communicate?"

He had blown his cover. "Erik…" Eliwood moved his horse away. "You're after something. What is it?"

"Pardon?" Erik composed himself trying to feign innocence.

"Everywhere I look, Laus prepares for battle," Eliwood replied, not buying the ruse. "What are you and your father planning? I will know the truth!"

Erik leaned back in his saddle, looking smugger than ever before. "Hm… I'd hoped to wait until you'd told me of Ostia. Of whether you've spoken with the marquess or not."

"What are you talking about?" Eliwood demanded.

The armor Erik wore must have been too loose because it bounced and clattered against itself as he chuckled. "Eliwood, I have always despised you. How I've longed to smash you and your pathetic morality into pieces! I've dreamed of this day, and here it is at last!"

"Too bad you'll not live to see the end of it." Hector and Oswin joined us.

"Y-You! Hector!" A shocked expression blew out his sneer. "You couldn't… Have you spoken with Ostia already?"

"Maybe we have, maybe we haven't," I replied.

The grin on Erik's face grew like a weed. "Heh heh… It doesn’t matter. You're trapped! My forces are waiting for my command. We will overwhelm you, an unending torrent of soldiers! Laus' elite knights are at the ready. How long do you think you can survive?"

"I should ask you the same question," I replied.

With the grin still hanging on his face, it was clear he hadn't taken the hint. "What are you talking about?"

"Marcus," I called, looking past him at our Paladin, who was accompanied by Lowen and a red-haired girl with tiny wings above her ears riding a horse of her own. "How many men are there?" My heartbeat became heavier as I waited for his report of the enemy force.

"None, sir.”

“None?” I was not expecting that answer. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, sir. This man can confirm the details."

A young man with purple hair leaped to the ground and smiled at me. "It is good to see you again, Mark."

"Erk!" I exclaimed with joy. "What are you doing out here?"

“Another escort job.” He turned to the redheaded girl. "This is Priscilla. I was escorting her to her noble home when Lord Darin spotted her as we passed through here and wished to marry her."

Marriage had been among the many descriptions Hector had shared with me last night, and the thought of this lovely young lady marrying some old lord caused me to shiver. "Marry her, huh?"

Erk nodded in agreement with my disgust. "When she rejected him, Lord Darin didn't take it very well. He had posted guards in the nearby village to quite literally imprison us until she agreed to the marriage. It wasn't until recently that the guards left. That's when I saw your man here fighting the remaining guards. I figured if this company fought against Laus, then, for the time being, we would be safe with them." He turned back to the girl on horseback. "Is that alright with you, my lady? I worked under Mark during the Caelin conflict and can assure you this company will provide far better protection than I can alone."

"Yes," she replied with a serene smile. "You have always proven your trustworthiness to me, Erk, and this company freed us from Laus imprisonment. I would be honored to aid them in whatever way-"

"EEEEEEEEE!" A familiar shrill pierced all our ears. "Omigosh! Erk!" Serra shoved her way past the horses, smashing her staff against my leg, (clearly by accident but nonetheless irritatingly oblivious), to get to her former escort. "It's been SO long! What are you doing here?"

All color in the mage's bright demeanor drained away. "Oh… Serra. You were the last person I wanted to see…"

My leg still burned in pain.

"Oh, that's sweet! You wanted to see me again!"

There might have been a small fracture.

"This is so perfect! You and I are going to be working with each other again. I know just the way-"

"Serra!" Hector interrupted. "Another time, please."

She nodded, gave Erk a ditsy smile, and stepped back. I acted like I was pulling something out of one of the saddle packs to cover my leg as she passed.

"As you were saying Erk," Eliwood bade him continue.

Erk cleared his throat. "Yes, well, I overheard the orders being given to our guards to return to the castle. Besides those few guards at the village, the entire Laus army has abandoned the castle. I can only guess your arrival caused the sudden departure."

Erik's face became pale. "Wh-what?"

Eliwood gave me a surprised look. "How did you know Darin had left with all of his men?"

"I didn't. In fact, I was using us as bait for Erik to reveal what kind of force Lord Darin had." I sighed, relieved that my gamble had paid off better than I hoped. "I assumed that Darin knew we were coming. I was thrown off for a moment when I heard Erik was coming alone. But after what Hector told me about him, my suspicions of Marquess Laus setting a trap was almost certain. That's why I sent our company out to prepare for battle. I was waiting for Marcus to bring me back what kind of force we would be facing, but I hadn't expected Darin to abandon Laus completely."

"You heard him, Erik," Hector said, coming up next to him. "You've lost." He pulled out his axe and brought it dangerously close to Erik. "Now we've got some questions, and you are going to answer them."

Erik's weed of a smile wilted into a frown. "You… You peasants… You can't treat a proper noble like this!"

"It's too late for niceties!" Hector replied. His patience was reaching a boiling point. "Be thankful you're still breathing!"

"Erik," Eliwood started, acting as the more pleasant of the two. "You must tell me. Where is your father?"

The realization that the man he had idolized his entire life had abandoned him must have finally hit Erik. His lips trembled, and his eyes darted back and forth. Evidently, he hadn't expected to be left behind. "No! He'd never…" His eyes stopped moving and widened. "Ephidel…"

"Ephidel?!" I blurted, recognizing the name before Lord Helman's assassination. "He is here?"

"Who's that?" asked Eliwood.

"I can't be certain, but I think I remember overhearing Lord Helman talking to a man he called Ephidel before he died."

"You mean you heard Lord Helman talking with someone before he died?" Eliwood questioned me with sudden interest. "Why didn't you save him?"

The sudden shift in interrogation caught me off guard. "I…"

Come on, give a believable explanation. They'll never believe you lost control of your body.

"…couldn't. They were talking about you and your father, so I wanted to eavesdrop on as much of the conversation before I interrupted them. I had no idea Ephidel intended to kill him until it was too late."

Eliwood took a moment to process my answer, so Hector continued the interrogation with the proper person. "Speak, cur!" He shoved his axe closer to Erik's face. "Do you want to die here?"

Erik recoiled in fright and backed his horse away from him.

"Hector!" Eliwood shouted, pulling his horse forward. Hector growled but conceded and sheathed his weapon. Eliwood turned back to the frightened prince. "Erik…please. You must tell us everything you know. I just want to know where my father is."

"Who is this Ephidel?" I asked to give a direction for the explanation.

Every muscle in Erik's face drooped toward the ground. "He appeared at the castle one year ago. He came… and my father changed. Ostia's position had always bothered my father… He felt Laus deserved to rule all of Lycia. But he'd never gone so far as to speak of rebellion."

"Why did he change his mind then?" I asked.

"Ephidel had something," Erik replied.

"What," I quickly asked. "What did he have?" I wondered if whatever the item was had been the cause of my inability to move back at Castle Santaruz.

"I don't know. But with it, he convinced my father to set the plan for rebellion in motion. My father then sent envoys to several other marquesses. Marquess Pherae; he had approved of the idea."

"What?" Hector exhaled the word in disbelief. Others in the company began to murmur as well. Even I felt the blow of his words. From what I had learned of Lord Elbert, he and his son shared a similar view on war.

"Never!" Eliwood silenced the voices. "My father would never agree to such a thing!"

"Believe or disbelieve," Erik replied. "That is your choice. First was Marquess Santaruz. Then Marquess Pherae's reply arrived. Marquess Pherae visited here six months ago to seal his approval."

Eliwood became pale. "That's not… possible…"

"My father and yours argued vehemently that day," Erik continued. "Marquess Pherae always distrusted Ephidel. He tried to convince my father to send Ephidel and the Black Fang assassins out of Lycia. My father would not be persuaded, and Marquess Pherae left the castle. As you know, he then disappeared. I doubt he's still alive."

"No!" Eliwood shouted.

Hector's axe was back at Erik's throat. "Shut your mouth!"

Erik did not flinch so much this time. "Eliwood said he wanted to hear everything. My father… He is but Ephidel's puppet. He listens to anything that villain says. Even watch his own son… die… Those are the sort of people you are dealing with. Marquess Pherae betrayed them. They would not let him live."

Eliwood had heard enough. He turned his horse and rode away before Erik could say any more.

"Eliwood! Wait!" Hector urged his horse after him.

I would have guessed his story false, but I could only assume he told the truth since his serpent grin did not reappear. His own father, who he had looked up to all his life, had betrayed him. The sorrow on his face showed that he had no intention of deceiving us any further. Everything he told us had been the truth. That didn't mean Lord Elbert was dead, though. We needed proof not only of his death but that he supported rebellion. And if we wanted to find that proof, we needed to find Darin.

"Erik." I moved Ajax close and waved a hand until he looked at me. "I need you to tell me where your father has gone. Where is Ephidel leading him?"

Erik looked away, thinking of the answer.

"Other than Santaruz and Pherae, were there any other houses that joined?” I questioned. “Could your father be going to gather the forces from other houses?"

"Plenty of others," Erik replied. "Only three houses refused. House Thria, House Worde, and House Caelin." Realization swept over Erik's face.

"What? What is it, Erik?"

"Before I left, Ephidel and my father were talking about needing to dispose of the houses that refused to join us so that they did not join Ostia, and my father mentioned that Caelin would be the hardest for Ostia to reinforce."

Hot fear burst within my chest.

Lyn…

* * * * *

"Mark, are you sure?" Eliwood shouted over the wind as his horse tried to keep pace with Ajax.

"Not entirely," I shouted back, slowing Ajax down so Eliwood could hear me over the rushing wind. "Erik only mentioned that Ephidel and Darin had talked about getting rid of them. It's possible that they discussed it before we showed up, and our appearance forced them to change their plans. But if Darin does seek a rebellion, then he will need to dispose of those who would support Ostia against him. Either way, we need to warn House Caelin."

"Makes sense to me," Hector replied, coming up on my right. "And who knows, maybe they might know where Darin has gone. Marcus did say he saw Laus forces moving east." Hector narrowed his eyes. "And it looks like you were right. Laus forces are up ahead. They know we're coming. Their… archers… are advancing?"

Archers? That didn't make any sense. They weren't front line units. "How many?"

"Looks like only a handful," Marcus replied, joining his lord's side. "And they're aiming upwards."

Could they have been trying to release a barrage of arrows to come down on top of us? A handful of archers wouldn't be very effective at accomplishing that. We would easily be able to-

"Up there," Eliwood shouted, pointing toward the sky. "A Pegasus Knight! It's… It's Florina!"

"Florina?!" My gaze shot skyward. Sure enough, the lilac hair of Lyn's timid friend peeked out from behind the spotless wings of her pegasus that soared toward us at incredible speed. Lyn must have sent her out for aid, but now she had become a prime target for the Laus archers!

"Lord Eliwood!" Florina called when she spotted us.

"Florina!" Eliwood shouted at the top of his lungs. "Fly lower!"

"Wha-" An arrow barely missed her. "Oh!" Florina started evading the arrows, but there were too many for her to stay in the sky. She directed her pegasus downward, but as they descended, an arrow whisked by her pegasus' head causing it to thrash and send Florina tumbling off. "Aaaaaaah!"

"Florina!" I drove my heels into Ajax's side to push him faster, but not even a Sacaean black stallion would reach her in time. All I could do was helplessly watch as Florina and her pegasus plummeted to the ground, slamming against the hard…horse? Two furious whinnies rang out. Both Florina and her pegasus had fallen into the same spot, and a brown horse clopped back to its feet along with the pegasus.

I jumped off Ajax when I arrived at Florina to find her dazed by the impact. "Florina! Can you hear me?"

"Ah…" Her eyes fluttered under her hair that had become a tangled mess in the fall. A gentle shake tossed the strands aside, and she opened her eyes fully. "Ma… Mark?"

Eliwood came up next to us. "Florina! Thank goodness you're all right."

"Mark? Eliwood? I…" She might have suffered a minor concussion in the fall.

"You were lucky, Florina," I explained. "Those archers almost hit you. You avoided the arrows, but one flew too close and spooked your pegasus, and you lost your balance."

"And yet I'm not hurt. I fell from such a height. What…"

A muffled groan came from beneath her. "You got lucky," Hector mumbled since his cape covered his head and Florina was sitting on top of it. "I didn't. I was trying to beat the archers before they could hit you. I wasn't expecting you to land right on top of me."

Her eyes widened, and she jumped up, covering her mouth with her hands. "I'm sorry! I'm such trouble!"

"Nice work, Hector," I said, patting his back. "You saved Florina!"

"I saved no one!" he exclaimed, preferring to stay covered under his cape. "I simply gave her someplace soft to land! A bale of hay could have done more than I did."

"Yeah, but it wouldn't have been quite as entertaining."

An irritated grunt was the only response.

"Are you going to be okay?"

Another unhappy grunt.

"I guess I better go get Serra then."

Hector leapt to his feet. "Nope! I'm good now!"

"I'm so sorry," Florina apologized again

Eliwood chuckled. "You were lucky Florina. If you had fallen on me, I couldn't have caught you." He threw a cheeky smile at Hector. "Or your pegasus either!"

"They fell one after the other!" Hector exclaimed. "I couldn't get out of the way!"

"M-M-My pegasus, too?" Florina panicked and threw her head around looking for her companion.

I gently put my hand on her head and pointed out the pegasus that had found a healthy patch of grass to graze on. "He's fine, Florina."

She breathed a sigh of relief then turned back to Hector. "I am so… I'm truly… I don't know what to say! I… I um…"

Hector threw off the attempted apology with a nonchalant shrug. "No apology needed."

"We're just glad you're not hurt," Eliwood replied. "Tell me, Florina, weren't you with Lyndis?"

"Yes!" Newfound determination set her speech on high speed. "She is beyond that forest and she's waiting for a chance to assault the castle and we heard you were in Laus so she sent me to find you and ask for your assistance so we can drive-"

"Florina! Florina…" I interrupted. "Calm down. Is Lyn okay?"

Florina nodded. "Yes. Kent, Sain, and Wil are with her."

"It's good to hear she's safe," Eliwood replied.

Florina nodded again. "She's fine. However, Lord Hausen's still in the castle. We were trying to make our way there when Lyn sent me to scout for help."

I climbed back onto Ajax and pulled out my sword. "Then let's go rescue him. Marcus, spread our forces out, but keep them in one group. Make your way toward the castle together. Draw the Laus forces in and take them on in small groups."

"Where are you going?" asked Marcus.

"I'm going to get Lady Lyndis and her knights and bring them to us. We will rendezvous at the bottom of the path leading up toward the castle. Florina, grab your pegasus and come with me."

She complied, rushing over to retrieve her companion. While I waited, I caught the gaze of Eliwood and Hector. They both wore huge goofy smiles.

"What?" I asked.

Neither of them said a word.

"What?!?" I asked again, catching on to their idiotic silence.

"I'm ready," Florina said, riding up beside me.

"Go get her, loverboy," Hector taunted in an unnecessarily flamboyant tone.

I shot them a look before we took off.

"Mark?" Florina called as we rode toward the forest. "That man… Hector… what did he mean by loverboy?"

My heart bounced in my chest at her obliviousness. Did she not know what lovers were either? "I uh… Well… er… mm… You see that's just a jest that uh… that we… um…"

"Mark… Are you in love with Lyn?"

Okay, maybe she wasn't so oblivious. "I… Maybe… I don't know. Please don't say anything to her."

Florina giggled in that sweet way that only she could. "I won't. But you should know she-"

"Ah da buh budu bum ba." I interrupted. "Keep it to yourself. I'm sure whatever you're about to say I will find out soon enough."

I urged Ajax to go faster so that the wind would make it impossible for me to hear in case Florina tried to say whatever she wished again. Thankfully, it seemed that the Laus soldiers had considered the company to be more of a threat than the two people riding south of the castle. Most of the soldiers ignored us, and we easily avoided any others as we made it to the tree line. I spotted the familiar red and green armor of my two favorite cavaliers fighting off three soldiers while Wil was backpedaling to take down two more.

I steered Ajax toward him, cutting through one of the soldiers as I passed, allowing Wil to dispatch the last one. I only caught a glimpse of his astonished look because I saw Lyn further ahead. She had her sword drawn against two Mercenaries. I had faith she could handle them both, but there would be no way for her to see the Myrmidon slowly moving in behind her. All at once, the two Mercenaries attacked, and the Myrmidon lunged in for the kill. As I suspected, Lyn easily cut down both of her assailants. As for the Myrmidon, he hadn't made it three feet before I had leaped from Ajax and dropped my sword through his collarbone as I tackled him to the ground.

"Mark?"

My head sprang up to meet her gaze, and then my heart melted spreading a painful and invigorating surge of adrenaline throughout my body. I had been gone for too long. Even she didn't seem to think this moment was happening. She stood on the other side of the mercenaries, sword raised. By her stance, she’d known the myrmidon was behind and had moved out of range expecting the ambush, only to find me. I smiled at her to communicate the reality, and then time slowed as the Mani Katti tumbled through her fingers and clattered to the ground behind her. That pleasant smile curled up her cheek, sending my heart into a frenzied beat like it was trying to break out of my chest. She dashed forward and I opened my arms to catch her, the momentum of her joy sending us spinning into a long-awaited embrace.

But dread shot through me as that…grotesque…thing…between my legs (I dared not remember what Hector called it) started to grow.

"Mark!" Her voice peaked with sheer joy. "It's you! I can't believe it. How are you here? What are you doing here?"

Her grip held me tight against her. It took all my effort to keep that horrible appendage from touching her. "I'm traveling with Eliwood.” I said with forced joy. “We heard there might be trouble coming to Caelin, so we came to help."

Lyn hopped up and down excitedly making the thing wag about underneath my trousers. "Hehehe! I should've guessed you would be working with him." She sighed, tightening her grip on me. "Oh, Mark. I'm so glad to see you again!"

I prayed that Lyn couldn't feel how hard my heart was beating either while I stuck my butt backwards and hoped she didn’t look down. Any other words I tried to speak in response might betray my apprehension, so I just kept my mouth shut until Ajax came trotting up to us and nuzzled Lyn's neck.

"Ajax!" Lyn exclaimed, releasing me to rub the horse's head.

Thank you, my beautiful black buddy!

"Have you been well?” she asked the stallion “Have you been taking care of Mark like I asked?"

Ajax nickered and bounced his head while two more horses and a pegusus rode up behind me.

"Well met, Mark!" Kent said reaching out a hand of greeting. "Good to see you again."

Just like always, Kent arrived to provide me with relief. "And you as well, old friend."

"Well!" said Sain. "This really is a pleasant surprise! We hoped for Lycian reinforcements from Lord Eliwood, and not only did we get them, but we also received a man worth ten men as well. Welcome back, Mark!"

"Good to see you, Sain. I'm glad I could be of assistance—hey Wil."

"Has it really been a year?" Wil asked. "Still seems just like yesterday you were covering my back in Kathelet."

"Thank Florina," I said, motioning toward her. "I might not have made it in time had she not flown out to us. We assumed you all to still be in the castle."

Florina blushed. "I… I almost didn't… make it… Archers… shot me out of the sky."

Lyn's protective nature brought her to her friend. "What!? Are you all right, Florina?"

She nodded, blushing even more. "Mm hm! A large man caught me when I fell."

Lyn's smile reappeared. "I'm glad you are safe, Florina. Thank you for finding Eliwood and Mark. And thank you for coming, Mark." She turned back to me, and my blood froze again. "Everyone who remained in Caelin has spoken of you fondly. We've always been saying, ‘I wonder where Mark is…'"

I rubbed the back of my neck where the adrenaline found a cozy spot to simmer. Thankfully, the dreadful thing below settled down for now. "I am glad to see you all didn't forget about me." I gulped down the rest of my restlessness so that I could regain my serious tone. "And there will be plenty of time to catch up later. For now, we need to get to the castle. Eliwood and the rest of our company are making their way up there. Come. We will join them and retake the castle."

We faced more Laus forces in the forest, and while they stood no chance against the reunited Lyndis’ Legion, they did slow us down. By the time we were out, Eliwood, Hector and the rest of the company had dealt with all of the Laus soldiers on the path up to the castle, and they were waiting for us outside. Eliwood rode out to meet us when he spotted us coming up the trail.

"Mark! Lyn! You made it!"

Lyn looked over my shoulder to address Eliwood. "Eliwood, thank you for coming."

"Of course, Lyndis," Eliwood said, placing a hand on his chest coupled with a nod of respect. "Anything for an old friend." Another goofy grin appeared. "And Mark insisted that we come to your aid."

I could feel Lyn's curious gaze upon me, so I cleared my throat before Eliwood could say any more. "What is the status of our offensive?"

"They had a lieutenant leading the forces out here,” Hector answered, coming up as well. “He was a fierce opponent. But nothing we couldn't handle. The rest of the Laus troops have retreated inside the castle."

"Any sign of Darin?"

"Not yet," Eliwood said. "It’s likely he's in the castle as well." He looked at Lyn. "Once we've defeated the remaining foe, the castle is yours."

"Thank you, Eliwood," she replied. "If not for all of your help, I don't know where I'd be right now."

"All of this happened because we routed Lord Darin at Laus," I answered as an apology. "We forced him to accelerate whatever plans he has, and it forced him to attack you. It's only right that we help."

"Indeed," Eliwood agreed.

"I know this is about your father, Eliwood," Lyn replied. "I would do the same thing in your position. What happened here is not your fault."

Classic Lyn, always refusing to allow someone to take blame for any misfortune she might encounter. How I had missed her benevolence.

"You're too kind, Lyndis," Eliwood responded. "However, until your castle is yours again, we take responsibility."

"I understand," Lyn conceded. "Thank you."

"Well, it's about time we moved into the castle," Hector stated. "Don't want to give Darin another chance to escape."

"Who is that?" Lyn asked as I urged Ajax to follow.

"Oh, yes," Eliwood replied. "Let me introduce you. Hector!"

Hector pulled his horse back over to us. "What?

"This is Lyndis. She's Lord Hausen's granddaughter."

"Yeah, I know. Mark told us all about her last night. About how he aided her a year ago and how along the way he fell head over heels for-"

"And Lyndis!" I shouted to drown out his words. "This is Hector, Eliwood's loud-mouthed best friend and Marquess Ostia's brother."

"His brother? Really?"

"Yes," Hector replied with a goofy grin directed at me. My eyes shot daggers at him, but they wouldn't do much against his armor, so I came up with another idea.

"By the way, Lyn, I should tell you about how Florina found us. You see she-"

"Maybe we can share that after we liberate Caelin," Hector said changing his tone. He smirked while I gave him a goofy stare of my own.

"Thank you, Hector," Lyn replied. "I'm thankful for your assistance."

"I'm glad I can lend a hand."

"Let's go inside, shall we?" Eliwood dismounted his horse near the entrance, as did the rest of us except Marcus, Florina, and the other cavaliers. Having their horses inside the castle would be vital to our success. We could create a bottleneck and handle the enemy forces in fewer numbers.

"Where are you off to, Mark?" Eliwood asked as he saw me leading Ajax away from the other horses.

"Oh, Ajax is particularly picky about the grass he grazes on," Lyn explained for me. "He'll join us soon."

While that was true, and I did leave Ajax in his favored location around the side of the castle, I did not go to join the rest of the company inside after I left Ajax. A force eerily similar to the one in castle Santaruz had been growing in the back of my head since we moved to enter the castle. Except this time, I wasn't frozen. My body had gained a mind of its own, and something was beckoning me to the back of the castle. Everyone else had gone inside, so no one had noticed me taking a different path. My rational thought knew I needed to rejoin the others, but my body would not cooperate. I had become a prisoner within my own body only able to watch as I was forced to walk in a direction with no apparent purpose. What was happening to me, and what would happen to me?

My body came to a stop somewhere at the north end of the castle. For a moment, I stood there, waiting to suddenly burst into flames or draw my sword and impale myself upon it. Surely this had to be the work of our enemy that considered me to be the chief threat to them. I laughed within since I couldn't physically produce a laugh. I still couldn't determine how the enemy controlled me, but unless they could possess the rest of my company, my death would only serve as more fuel on the wildfire that was my group's tenacity.

The sound of a thousand windows shattering all at once and rushing past me split my eardrums. Out of instinct, I would have covered my ears and screamed in pain. But my inability to control myself left my ears ringing while a flash of light took me from outside the castle to a room with two men arguing with each other. One of the men was Lord Hausen, and the other was a stout man with purple hair and golden armor looking out the window.

"Ri… Ridiculous…” said the husky man, wringing his hands in terror. “Even Bauker?"

"Lord Darin," said Hausen, "it's time to give up this madness. Further resistance is meaningless. For what you've done, you may never be forgiven, but it's not too late to try. Tell Eliwood everything. He'll intervene with Marquess Ostia on your behalf…"

This was Lord Darin?! The power-hungry warmonger that had made threats of rebellion in Lycia, been the supposed cause of Lord Elbert's disappearance, and even left his own son to die in their home was this man? I was taken aback, for this was not how I had pictured Darin. He had the mien of one of those adolescent bullies after the other kids finally stood up to him rather than a dogged warlord intent on seizing what he wanted by force. How could this fidgeting man-child be the General we had been pursuing?

"I… I've… lost…" He was on the verge of tears.

Hausen stepped in front of Darin to gain his attention. "Hurry! Eliwood will be here in no time. Let me speak for you."

The two men hadn't noticed me standing in the shadows. Not even I had been aware of my own presence in the room. I had been so dumbstruck by Lord Darin's pitifulness that when I finally did come back to myself, the sight mortified me. I stood behind Hausen; my sword had punctured his hip.

Darin gaped at me with the same look I wanted to have. "Wh-who… Who are you?"

"None of that now,” said a voice behind me as I pulled my blade from Lord Hausen and let him slump to the floor. “Marquess Laus needs no troublesome advice,"

"L-Lord Ephidel." Darin scooted away.

A man in a purple cloak stepped up next to me. A twisted smile stretched up underneath his cloak as he approached Darin. "There is no turning back for you now. You should know that. First, Marquess Santaruz… and now Marquess Caelin. Both deaths are on your head."

Darin finally grabbed hold of what little backbone he had and straightened, jabbing a finger at Ephidel. "It was by your hand that Marquess Santaruz died, and now this man is the one who has murdered Lord Hausen." He realized that he still didn't know me. "Who is this man, Ephidel? Another of your kind?"

Ephidel turned to face me. His hood fell low over his face, but one glowing, golden eye peered out at me. And just by looking at it, I could tell that he was the cause for my inability to control myself.

"In a manner of speaking," he replied. "We share a connection, and he is a crucial part of our plan. And it seems that our master has finally taken control. Soon, he will accept his purpose. Slowly, yet surely." He kept his golden eye locked on me but addressed Darin again. "And though he is the one who struck Marquess Caelin down, he will not be blamed for his death."

"Why not?" Darin asked with a hint of anger. He craved a sacrificial lamb.

"Because this is the man that has been leading that young prince's group that is currently fighting your men."

"What?" Lord Darin’s fist clutched in rage. "He's the one who killed my son?"

"That is correct," Ephidel lied. His golden eye flashed with delight. "But now he is on our side, against his will, but ours nonetheless. We will use him to our advantage as we work to fulfill your dream. The crown of a united Lycia… And once that is done, dominion over the entire continent."

So Lord Darin wasn't the tyrant we believed him to be. He was merely a cowardly ruler with a dream to rule the world. And this Ephidel fed on that desire to take control of an army. Yet his goal did not seem to be to deliver the continent to Lord Darin. His manipulation had to be for a more significant purpose. But what? And how did I fit into all this? Ephidel confirmed it. I belonged to his master. But how? And why, out of all the times for me to lose myself, had it been now when Lord Hausen had become the target? Despite what Ephidel claimed, his blood was literally on my hands. If this inability to control myself was permanent, whose blood would be next?

"That dream is still worth a few sacrifices, isn't it?" Darin said, trying to convince himself of the madness.

"You're exactly right." Ephidel supported. "Our plans may have gone drastically awry, but as long as we have the master's power behind us…" His eye flashed again. "We cannot be defeated." He finally turned back to Darin. "We'd do well to leave now before those meddlesome worms arrive. You will leave everyone from Laus behind. We will use them to delay our foe."

Darin became timid again. "Everyone… My soldiers?" For him, it was like telling a child to leave his toys behind. "But… who will protect me?"

"The Black Fang and I will more than suffice for that task. There is nothing else you need, I assure you."

"Yes… I… I see that now. Where do we go from here?"

"To the Dragon's Gate… Our master awaits us there. The master has informed me the marquess may be all we need. And now that we found this one, we can finally perform the ceremony."

Marquess? Could he mean Lord Elbert?

Darin's face brightened. "Oh! Is that so? I suppose we've nothing to worry about."

"That is correct. Now, please begin your retreat. I have two or three orders to give, and then I will be right behind you."

Darin left the room, and Ephidel turned back to me. His eye glowed even brighter than before. My "possession" must have been the highlight of his day.

"Leila!" he called.

A red-haired woman dressed in tattered rags walked into the room. "I'm here."

"Our friend here is going to finish off Marquess Caelin. Once he finishes, hide the body. The enemy will waste precious time searching for him. After that, bring our friend to Valor. Our master has limited control over him right now, but he will follow you."

"As you command…" the woman responded.

Ephidel began to leave but stopped as he arrived at the door and looked back at the woman. "You know, you've only been with the Black Fang a short while. However, you are quite skilled… I look forward to watching you."

"Yes, sir," Leila replied on beat.

Ephidel smiled and left, leaving Leila and me with the injured marquess. As if on cue, my body took action, grabbing Lord Hausen and rolling him over to face me. He groaned in pain, and I pulled my sword up, ready to end him. His brow furrowed when he discovered the identity of his assailant.

"M-Mark… Mark, is that you?"

I had lost control of more than my motor functions. "You have caused enough pain for us in the past. I will see you all wiped out to protect my people. Call for help if you wish. It will not save you."

My voice was commanding; almost dominating in its delivery. I spoke with the same power I did whenever I gave orders in battle, and yet my words presented some agenda—one I still did not know.

"I'm afraid I do not have the strength. I'm unsure to your intentions, Mark. But I did hear what that despicable man said—that you are not yourself. I know that the Mark who stood by my granddaughter's side and brought her here so that we could be reunited would not willingly do this. And if you are still in there, Mark, do an old man one last favor."

I stared at him—my other self apparently waiting patiently to allow him the request.

"Look after my granddaughter for me… I can die in peace knowing… that she… is with the man she loves."

My blood ran cold for a moment as the me not in control processed the revelation.

"That look… You were… unaware…? Ah… I can assure you… I speak the truth…" Out of nowhere, Lord Hausen found the strength to push himself up and grip my shoulder to talk to me with confidence. "In the time we spent together after your departure, you were the one person she would never stop talking about with me. Even when we would talk about a subject completely unrelated, she would always find some way to include something about you. If we talked about horseback riding, she would mention the way you rode and how similar it was to her own people even though you were not part of her tribe."

It was unclear whether or not the other me caught on to Hausen's ingenious plan to waste time by rambling until Eliwood and the others showed up to stop me. But my mind wasn't focused on that. She… She did love me. What Hector had said about us had been correct. Since that night, I dared only to dream of the possibility out of professional courtesy, but now I knew she felt the same way! Now, I was no longer afraid or embarrassed by such a notion. My heart found its rhythm again and beat so fast I actually feared it would break. I couldn't believe this was actually… Wait... My heart—my physical, beating heart within my chest—was beating in reaction to Lord Hausen’s words? That meant a part of me still had power!

In an act of sheer hope and desperation, I focused everything on taking control of my sword arm. My eyes, whether by my will or other me realizing it was losing power, shifted toward my sword arm. It shook ever so slightly, but the intensity built up as the seconds ticked away. If only I could-

I was on the ground with a form on top of me.

"Focus, Mark! Fight the possession!" My eyes fixated on Leila, who had pinned my arms to the side and planted both her knees against my chest while her legs parted in a V-shape so her feet could provide resistance. "You are still in there. I can see it in your eyes. You are not a murderer yet. Don't let the Black Fang control you!"

I didn't need any more urging. I didn't feel any different, but if I were somehow fighting off the possession, I would do so with all my strength. I focused on my sword arm again. My grip remained tight. If I could loosen it just enough, Leila could take it away and make me incapable of hurting anyone else. My arm shook again, and I could feel that piercing pain in my head returning. The seconds ticked by; my arm shook even more violently, and it felt like someone was pouring scalding water through a hole in the back of my head. I reached a threshold that I could take with the pain when every muscle in my body went limp, and the world went black.

I awoke to find myself lying in a bed in a different room than the one I had assaulted Lord Hausen in. No restraints either, so whoever put me here didn't consider me a threat. Speaking of which, that Leila character had been the last person I saw. As far as I could remember, she worked with the Black Fang. So why had she jumped on top of me… and told me to fight my possession?

The weight of my actions fell upon me. The image of me driving my sword through Lord Hausen pinged a new, chilling spot underneath my skin every time my heart beat. I never "finished off" the marquess like Ephidel had ordered, but I didn’t know if he had survived my initial strike. And even if he had, how could I face anyone in the company, let alone Lyn, after what I had done? Marcus would surely have me detained or expelled from the company. That would have been the logical decision. They would be fine without me. Both Eliwood and Hector were capable warriors. They would be able to find Eliwood's father. I had no doubt. But…

Lyn…

Of all the times to discover she shared the same feelings as I did, it had to be when I lost my mind and assaulted her grandfather.

"Mark? Are you awake?" A voice came from the hall.

And, of course, as I was thinking about her, that's when she entered the room. Energetic and joyful as always, beautiful and bright as the day I woke up in her yurt. She strode right up to me wearing that same smile. However, it filled me with dread instead of serenity.

"It's good you're awake, Mark. I have excellent news! We know where Lord Elbert is!"

For someone whose cherished grandfather had been severely injured, she appeared to be in high spirits. Her smile was brighter than the sun outside, and she moved the same way she had whenever the time had come for another of our training sessions—a determination that infected me so profoundly that it touched my heart and set it on high speed. And this time, that touch came with hope as well.

"Your grandfather… Is he?"

"He is recovering," she replied without a shred of worry or allegation. "The servants will tend to him while we continue our search for Lord Elbert."

She didn't know I did it? Maybe I could keep my possession a secret then. "Where is Marquess Pherae?" I asked.

"The Black Fang has taken him to someplace called the Dragon's Gate on the island of Valor south of here. We are ready to march for the coast; we've just been waiting for you to wake up. Hurry. Everyone is waiting for you out in the courtyard."

She headed for the door, and I began to get out of bed. But then, a startling thought crossed my mind. My possession hadn't happened because of Ephidel. He had made it clear that their master had somehow taken control of me. And from what I could tell, he hadn't been anywhere nearby. Why else would this master send one of his henchmen here? That meant I could become possessed again right now if he wished. And if we headed for the Dragon's Gate, we would head for the Black Fang's master. I would be at a higher risk of another possession, and next time, my victim might be…

"I'm not going with you, Lyn."

Her steps slowed, and her gaze, dense and dripping with concern, fell upon me. "Why not?"

I didn't hold back. "I did it, Lyn. I'm the one who assaulted your grandfather."

She strode right back up to me. I expected a firm and swift strike across my face or a flood of rage and despair to be poured out over me. But this woman, so noble and so dedicated to her friends, did neither. In fact, as she neared me, I could see in her eyes that she already knew my transgression. Instead, her eyes searched my own for the truth. "Why?"

The question caught me off guard. For one thing, I hadn't expected the question from her so soon, and another was I didn't know the answer to that.

She could tell the question wasn't what I was anticipating. "My grandfather isn't dead, Mark. Leila is a spy from Ostia. She treated the wound you inflicted upon him with an elixir soon after you fell unconscious. My grandfather will not die today, and he won't die by your hand. Now, I will ask you again. Why?"

"I…" My mind frantically racked itself for the answer. "I… don't know. It just happened."

Then, the smile that had always soothed my anxiety appeared once again, finally filling me with comfort. "Then I do not blame you for what has transpired. I know you would not willingly take my grandfather's life."

"But how can you claim to know me when I don't even know me? The man from the Black Fang… He said I was one of them. This amnesia it's… it terrifies me, it can petrify me, and now I know it can control me. Whoever I am, wherever I came from, I'm a danger. At any moment, I could turn on you."

Curiosity appeared in her gaze.

"Or any other of our companions," I replied quickly to save myself. I knew how she felt, but this was not the time for professions of love. "This isn't the first time they’ve possessed me. The man manipulating Marquess Laus said their master had gained control of me. I am a puppet of this dark master! That must be where I came from! I can't continue with you all. I won't put you all at risk!"

Lyn folded her arms and turned her gaze toward the floor. "You say those things, but you don't remember any of it. However, you do know who you are since I found you in the field. And so do I. You are a kind-hearted man who helped a lonely girl he didn't know reunite with her grandfather and are now aiding a Marquess’ son in searching for his missing father. That man made those choices of his own free will, not through possession. And that man holds my trust. Maybe you did come from this Black Fang, but you also fought against your possession. Leila told all of us of how you fought to resist killing my grandfather. So I, along with Eliwood and Hector, believe if you still are the Mark we know, we are willing to risk the possibility of you turning on us if it means you will continue to lead us. Now set your fear aside, Mark. You are not one of them. We will find the cause of your possession, and we will free you."

As much as the revelation of being connected to our enemy scared me, Lyn’s devotion to her friends and her unshakable determination was a boon I could not reject. Despite my disparaging actions, she still wished for her grandfather's assailant to be with her; she would not lose two people she cared about today. And she had a point. Going to the Black Fang’s master could free me from him. If they intended to save me from him, then I would not let them do so alone. I also had a job to finish, and I would ensure it was finished, with or without me.

"Very well, Lyn," I said, getting out of bed. "I cannot fathom why you trust me so strongly, but I appreciate it. I don't deserve such a loyal friend."

"You've done nothing to make me distrust you, Mark," she said still not blaming me. "I will stand by your side through this trial just as you did for me. That is what friends do."

"I know." Her smile still warmed my heart, but I managed to give her a grave stare. "Which is why I must trust you to do something else for me."

Her mien became unnerved. "What's that?"

"If you are joining our company in this venture, you must follow my orders. And due to recent events, I am deeming myself as a threat to the group should I become possessed again."

"Mark…"

"Lyn, if I become possessed again, you must strike me down."

Chapter Text

Chapter 9

A flock of seagulls squealed while they spun lazy loops in the cloudless sky, alerting me that we were close to our destination. After leaving Caelin, we had headed south for the port of Badon. The seaport resided on a peninsula that would make our shortest voyage to Valor. I had been through Badon once over the year after being hired to help a navy crew escort a group of merchant ships. We encountered a group of pirates during the voyage, but the men were well-trained, and my tactical knowledge included naval warfare.

I hoped we would be lucky enough to only face pirates on this voyage. If the Black Fang were on Valor, it would be reasonable to assume they had their own ships. And that meant a higher risk of another possession. Lyn had convinced me to remain with the company, and even Eliwood and Hector agreed that they did not believe my possession was my fault. However, others in the company did not share their trust. Marcus and Oswin had become especially suspicious of me. I didn't blame them as they were the personal retainers of their respective lords. As a matter of fact, I gave them the order to keep an eye on me and to strike me down should I become possessed again, just as I had told Lyn.

As for Lyn, she hadn't been particularly happy with me after I told her I would stay with the company as long as she would kill me should I lose myself again. I tried to tell myself that her irritation was due to me being her mentor or because I was one of her closest friends. But deep down, I knew it was the crazy feelings she had for me. And what arbitrary willfulness! I could not understand how such feelings could be desirable if they would cause people to think and behave irrationally, such as keeping a dangerous person in their midst. Though, after leaving Caelin, Lyn seemed to lose those feelings. She had avoided me the same way she had after I had confronted her about her attitude toward bandits in that village at the beginning of our journey. With so many old members of Lyndis Legion around now a part of the company, she had gone around to catch up with everyone. At the moment she was carrying on a conversation with Dorcas, asking him about Natalie and-

"Don't worry too much about her." Hector's heavy hand slammed into my back, almost throwing me into Ajax's head. Everything he did, he did with all his strength behind it. "She'll come around soon enough. Just don't be asking her to kill you again when she does."

"What?" I didn't realize that I had been gazing at Lyn. "N-no. I wasn't…"

Hector chuckled. "Do you know lying isn't one of your strong suits? You have these moments where your face goes blank, and you don't speak for a long time."

"And you've been having those moments quite often since we left Caelin," Eliwood replied, coming along the other side of me. "If you're worried about hurting Lyn, I can assure you that none of us will allow that."

I released a heavy sigh. “I can understand Lyn’s dismissal of my actions, but you two? Do you truly believe I am not a threat?”

“Not you,” Hector said. “But the master of the Black Fang who can take control of you.” He stared at me out of the corner of his eye. “That hooded man in the room with you was the one who said you were part of the Black Fang, correct?”

“Yes,” I said as my heart dipped.

Hector turned to face me. “But you are only a part in so much as their master can control you?”

“Yes,” I repeated, raising a brow to him.

“Well,” Hector straightened himself. “The way I see it is you are a man who can be possessed. But that’s their master controlling you. Not you.”

“That doesn’t make me less of a threat,” I stated. “No,” Eliwood said. “But the point is it’s your possession that’s a danger. You, however, are not a threat. Otherwise, you would’ve acted as Ephidel did.”

I gave Eliwood a sideways glance. “You believe that so simply? I can’t even be sure of that.” The way I spoke while assaulting Lord Hausen echoed in my head.

Eliwood nodded at me and smiled. “That’s exactly why we believe it. All of us, including Lyn. If you truly were part of the Black Fang, you would’ve killed Lord Hausen and gone off with Leila back to the Black Fang’s master as you are part of their plan, right?”

Dread shot through me. I had almost forgotten about that part. “Blast, you’re right. I can’t go to Valor with you all. That’s exactly what the Black Fang’s master wants.”

“Which is exactly why you need to come with us,” Hector said, gripping my shoulder. “If you’re important to their plan, the Black Fang will get you to that island. It’s better that you stay with us where we can restrain you if you become possessed again. Leila helped you fight before, and we’ll help you if it happens again.”

Hector once again surprised me with his logic. As much as I feared being a danger to the company, there was no telling what would happen if they left me alone. Even if they threw me in a prison cell, the Black Fang’s master would likely teleport me out as he did at Castle Caelin. I needed to be watched, and there was no better group to do that than this company. So, I took a deep breath and pushed my anxiety down. "I'm just glad your spy was there to stop me from killing Lord Hausen. She works for Ostia?”

"Yep," Hector flashed a big grin. "One of Ostia's best spies. She and Matthew are our top agents, and she's been collecting information on the Black Fang for some time now. That's how we discovered they were based on Valor."

"She's truly a master of deception," I said. "She had Ephidel fooled that entire time. Had me fooled as well. I hope we see her again. I wish to thank her. And if she’s as good as you say, maybe she can discover a way to free me from the Black Fang."

"Yeah," Hector agreed in a hushed tone. "But I wish you would've kept that possession stuff to just us. Your announcement about being a possible threat has put everyone on alert." He glanced over at Oswin, who was riding only a few yards away, staring at us. "I can't get a moment's peace now. He's worse than when he guarded my brother before his coronation."

"Hector, that reminds me," said Eliwood. "Something has me concerned."

"What is it?"

"It's been five days. The death of Marquess Santaruz… Our attack on Laus Castle... Our intervention at House Caelin… Word of these things must have reached Lord Uther by now. And yet he shows no sign of action… Why?"

Hector aimlessly stared around at the buildings. "I'm sure he has his reasons. My brother has other concerns tying his hands right now."

"What do you mean?" Eliwood pushed.

Hector inhaled and held it for a moment before releasing it slowly. "It's Bern. We've received disturbing reports over the past few months. King Desmond is behaving oddly. If he sees even the slightest crack in Lycia's defenses, we believe he'll invade with all of Bern's might behind him. My brother has only recently become marquess, as well as head of the Lycian League. He can't allow another country to see any weakness or discord."

"In other words," I said, processing the situation, "he has to present the face of stability and strength. He has to keep this talk of rebellion under wraps lest Bern find out we are in disarray. Is that it?"

"Yes. It seems every country has a spy working in Ostia right now. They all want to assess the new marquess' temperament and skill. If they sense anything wrong, word will spread like wildfire."

"That's why you came," I started putting the pieces together. "You wanted to help deal with the situation in your brother's stead."

"That,” he nodded at Eliwood, “and I wished to help my best friend."

"Hector," Eliwood said. "You're the marquess' brother. Would not being at his side be seen as something ‘wrong'?"

Hector let out a hearty chuckle. "The marquess' brother is a well-known lout. If I were at court, they'd sense something wrong."

"You're not too proud of that reputation, are you?" I guessed with a smile of my own.

"Not in the least."

"The docks are right here," I said as we passed through a row of buildings. "Let's talk to the shipwright and see who can take us to Valor."

I dismissed the company so that they could gather the supplies we would need for the trip while Eliwood, Hector, and I talked with the shipwright. Lyn continued conversing with Dorcas, and Kent and Sain had joined her. Oswin and Marcus attempted to join us, but Hector and Eliwood refused, declaring they needed to refill their Lord's supplies. Though reluctant to leave their charges in the company of a dangerous individual, they complied and left us as we approached the shipwright.

"Excuse me, sir," I said, trying to ease the minds of their guardians by keeping myself ahead and away from Hector and Eliwood. "My company is in need of a ship that can take us to Valor. What is the price to charter a medium-sized galleon?"

The look the shipwright gave me; one would have assumed I asked him to cut off his leg so I could feed my horse. "You want a boat to the Dread Isle? You're mad!" The man became increasingly flustered, and I feared our request might put us in trouble with the magister of the town. "No way! Never! There's no one in this village who'll sail there!"

"Please, sir," I said calmly in an attempt to pacify him. "I understand the reputation the Dread Isle has. Were our circumstances normal, we would never consider sailing for the island. However, we have an urgent purpose on a strict schedule that is forcing us to take this voyage."

"I don't care if St. Elimine herself is leading you. The last group of outsiders that journeyed to that cursed island never returned. And a month later, people in the town started disappearing. Even at midday when the town would be at its busiest, someone would see a person for a second, and then in a blink, they would vanish. Without a trace. Now folks hardly leave their homes for fear that they might be taken."

Now that he mentioned it, the town did seem rather dead for a port city.

"You don't seem too worried about disappearing," Hector pointed out.

"I am a widower, so I have no one to leave, and I'm also the only shipwright within three hundred miles. Been this port's shipwright for well over forty years now, and not once ‘ave I taken a day off. I've gained the respect of the townspeople, and for a week now, the disappearances have stopped. People are finally emerging from their homes. The town is finally recovering. I don't want to be the one that sends us back to that dreadful state. The answer is no."

“Look…” I said, sharpening my tone. It seemed a peaceful approach wasn’t going to cut it. “Your superstitions are irrelevant to-”

"We understand," Eliwood cut in before Hector or I could argue more. "We will find another way to the island that doesn't involve your town." With that, he turned and walked away.

Hector exchanged a dumbfounded look with me before running to catch up with his friend. "What are you doing, Eliwood? We don't have time to travel three hundred miles to find another port that might take us to Valor."

"He's right," I agreed, coming up next to him, who, out of all of us, had to be the most determined to find his father. "That shipwright is the only way we are going to get to that island. And by submitting to his refusal, you might have destroyed any chance of persuading him."

"I know that," Eliwood stated in a firm tone I had never heard from him before. "But let me ask for an impartial conjecture, Mark. Do you believe we would have convinced that shipwright to charter a boat for us with anything less than a sword to his throat?"

I shifted my gaze toward the ground as I walked and thought. "Uhhhh. Well, I did crack a tougher nut before, but only through brutal coercion."

"And I have no intention of resorting to such cruel tactics. I mean no insult to you, Mark. Your profession requires you to dirty your hands with the filth of your employer. But while you advise this company, we will not resort to such thuggish actions."

"I understand. But we don't have many choices when it comes to finding a way to an island, especially if it has the nickname ‘the Dread Isle.' Your father's life is at stake here, Eliwood. We won't always be able to make an ethical choice, and you should be prepared to make those tough choices."

Eliwood placed a hand on my shoulder. "Only if we have no other choices. But I believe you’re a better tactician than that, my friend. Please honor this request: find us another way to the Dread Isle."

Though irritation oozed out of my bones at Eliwood's reluctance for necessary recourses, his strength and resolve flowed through me, pushing away the impatience. I had gained a fresh drive that rivaled my determination to help Lyn reach Caelin. I had been the one to offer my services to Eliwood in the first place. How would it look if I went against my employer's wishes? I looked around, and that's when I spotted the sign for the town's tavern. "That's it!"

Eliwood and Hector followed my gaze.

"Are we going to get the shipwright drunk until he agrees to find us passage to Valor?" Hector guessed.

Eliwood groaned at his jest.

"No," I said. "You should know that taverns invite all manner of characters. They're the best places to learn important information, find leads on possible jobs, or, in our case, find a specific type of person. The only way we're getting to the Dread Isle is through an outsider who doesn't shackle themselves to this town's superstition."

We stepped through the tavern's entryway and were immediately greeted with a thick layer of smoke tainted by alcohol. A small band of minstrels near the back played a slow and jaunty tune that was being drowned out by inebriated customers carrying on incomprehensible conversations. And with this being a port tavern, most of the patrons here had to be sailors, which meant some would likely be pirates who would surely ferry us to the island for the right amount of gold.

I picked out the largest sailor in the room, a sturdy man wearing a purple sailor's jacket left open to display a chest as hairy as his face and hoped he was a captain. He didn't even acknowledge me as we walked up. Of course, he could have been asleep with his eyes shut and his head thrown back. My theory was proven wrong as he picked up his drink and finished it off in three big gulps.

"What do you want, whelps?" His head rolled forward, and he lifted the raggedy bandana from over his eyes so that he could stare at us. "Yer here to see me, aren't ye?"

"You are a commander of a pirate armada, are you not?" I asked, forgetting I wasn't addressing nobles.

The man threw his head back again, busting out laughing. "Commander of a pirate armada? I like the sound of that!" He calmed himself momentarily to signal the barmaid to bring him another drink. "Ah, that be a good one. So, are you lads that naïve? Or are ye just dumb? Which be it?"

Hector stepped forward. "You insolent-"

Eliwood put his arm up. "Peace, Hector!"

The man didn't even blink in Hector's direction. He continued to stare at me, waiting for my answer.

"Pardon my formality, my good man. I have been the tactical advisor for royal navies in the past. Old habits are hard to undo; I'm sure you agree. How should I address you?"

The man grunted out a smirk. "You don't frighten easily, do ye? Well, at least it seems yer not stupid. "Captain will do, whelp."

Bullseye. Now, I had to hope he wasn't superstitious.

"I'm Fargus, captain of the Davros."

"Fargus," I repeated, carrying on the banter. "Master Fargus? Or should I call you Captain?"

"Yer not one of me mates. Call me Fargus. Now, what do you want?"

"My company and I want to book passage to Valor."

"How much will you pay?"

Good. He seemed willing. "We've never booked passage with pirates before, but I'm sure we can come to some accord. How much do you want?"

Bad move.

"100,000 gold," he replied immediately.

I cursed under my breath for forgetting that there were two extravagantly dressed nobles standing behind me. No wonder he had been willing to ferry us. He figured us to be incredibly wealthy and desperate to proposition with pirates.

"Well?" He said when I didn't respond. "Will ye pay?"

I looked at Eliwood and Hector. Neither of them said anything. I knew we didn't have the money, and this pirate had been our only hope to get to Valor. And in my foolishness, I had revealed more than I should have. A stupid mistake, no doubt. But Eliwood had put his trust in me, and I wasn't about to fail him now.

"We have no choice, but we will need a little time. We'll get the gold and return as quickly as possible." I stood up, giving the captain a nod of respect, and then pulled Hector and Eliwood away.

"Mark…" Eliwood’s expression was strained with nervousness. "We don't have 100,000 gold."

"I know. I screwed up. But I have a plan as to how we're going to get that money."

"How?" Hector asked.

"There's an arena here in town. We'll send in our strongest fighters while you two pose as a couple of nobles and place bets on them. With any luck, we can make the money we need in a couple of hours. So long as our fighters don't come up against too strong an opponent."

"What?!" Hector gave me an incredulous look. "Are you serious?"

"I'm not sure I support your plan, Mark," Eliwood replied. "This is a dangerous move you are having us make. We only have a few strong fighters and cannot keep sending them back into the arena. Someone will surely fall."

"We have no other way, do we?" I knew I was digging myself deeper with every word. "Either we make this money now and leave today, or we spend the next week traveling to another port where the shipwright isn't petrified by some fabricated curse."

Both of them stared at me in silence. My heart pounded in my chest, awaiting my inevitable dismissal. I was pushing them into a situation they were not accustomed to. I had taken on the urgency of finding Eliwood's father as quickly as possible, and I had pulled them into the pit of no limitations. I had been willing to do anything it took to complete my mission. Now, they had seen the lengths I was prepared to go.

But to my surprise, they smiled at each other.

"I don't know where you found this tactician, Eliwood. But I like his boldness."

"Indeed,” Eliwood nodded. “I knew our journey would lead us into difficult situations we wouldn't be used to. That's why I wanted someone I knew had the grit to take the first step into the darkness. This is a dangerous course, but so long as it isn’t coercion or criminal, I approve. And sending some of our fighters into the arena will help them grow stronger as well."

"It's unusual but practical.” Hector slammed a fist into his other hand. “Oswin could use a bit of dirty fighting to loosen him up. Come on, let's go win some money."

Well, this was a surprise. I had expected them to be against this idea. I only mentioned it because the captain pushed me into a corner. Eliwood and Hector were coming out of their primp and proper shells and growing into seasoned warriors. I just hoped the rest of the company would be as agreeable to this dangerous plan as they were.

We began to head out of the tavern when a firm hand halted me.

"Hold up a minute, whelps."

"What?" Hector whirled around to the captain. "We don't have your money yet."

"Fool!" The captain barked. "I know ya don't. I would have seen it if ya had pulled it out of yer arses." He brought his attention back on me. "I want to present you with another offer. My boys and I haven't been seeing much action since this town went all frightened and whatnot. So here's the deal: you give us a good show, and we'll take ya to the island for free. I'll head for the docks and send my mates at ye to test yer skills in combat. If ye can beat them all or be clever enough to outmaneuver them and have one in yer company speak to me at the docks in one piece, I'll give y'all passage to that island."

I blinked, thinking I had fallen into another strange dream. "Y-you're serious? No gold? For free?"

"Of course I be serious! I decided it'd be more fun to play around with you whelps than take yer gold. Now do ye accept, or am I gonna wait here until you get me gold?"

"Y-yes," I stuttered in disbelief. "Yes! We accept!"

"That's what I like to hear." He turned back to the rest of the tavern. "Alright, boys! We got ourselves a group of landlubbers wantin' to grow their sea legs. Head out to the town and prepare to fight. Keep them from getting to the docks, but don't none of you go dying on me for a simple skirmish, ya hear? Or I'll hang yer corpse from the mast meself!"

The other sailors in the tavern let out a hearty cheer, downing the rest of their drinks before grabbing their weapons and heading outside. The captain gave us one last smirk that said, "Good luck," and followed his mates out of the tavern. And just like that, we had our third option. The misfortune of this town proved to be our break, and now we would make it to Valor sooner than we could've hoped.

Eliwood, Hector, and I exited the tavern to find the rest of our company outside, all staring at the pirates, hooting and cheering down the street.

"What are they all about?" Lyn asked, watching them.

Before I could say anything, one of the pirates shouted back at us. "Listen up, whelps! The captain's waiting at the docks. Talk to him, and you're the winner! Trust me, though… Don't make the mistake of attacking him! You anger the captain, and there's no turning back! Don't forget!" He ran off down an alley.

Lyn shifted her gaze back to me. "Mark… What is going on?"

"Those pirates are going to give us passage to Valor if we can beat them," Hector answered jauntily for me.

"Pirates!" Lyn shot an astonished look back at me. "Why are we seeking passage from pirates!?"

"The shipwright wouldn't charter a ship to take us to Valor," I answered. I should have known Lyn wouldn't be comfortable with this. Pirates weren't that different from bandits, and I'm sure she lumped them all into the same category of disgust. "So, we went to these pirates for help."

Rebecca stepped up to us, sharing the same disgusted look as Lyn. "I can't believe we are stooping so low to bargain with that scum!"

"I must also protest this course of action," Marcus added. "I will not have my lord put in such needless risk."

"I second that," Oswin replied. "Lord Hector-"

"Shut up, Oswin," Hector retorted. "You already know where I stand on this matter."

"And I support Mark's plan as well," Eliwood announced. "We considered every option for finding us passage to the island, and this engagement has proven to be the most efficient."

Continuing to argue about this would only waste more time. "If any of you do not wish to be a part of this, you may leave now. Otherwise, listen up." Although many still wore disapproving expressions, nobody moved to leave or voice more contempt. "We've fought enemies tougher than these pirates, and this isn’t a deathmatch, so you all should be able to handle them. The issue is getting past them to the captain. I've been through this town before. There is a path that wraps around the outside of the town and heads straight to the docks. I doubt many pirates will be there if any at all. Most of our forces will remain here to distract the main group, while I lead a small team around the outskirts to the docks to make it to the captain. With any luck, we can end this skirmish before it becomes too heated. Defend yourselves like we are facing an enemy that means to take our lives, but do not finish off an opponent that surrenders, and do not give chase if they run. Your goal is to stay alive."

"Who will go with you?" Kent asked.

I looked around at the company, making my decision based on people's attitudes. Lyn and Rebecca needed to come with me because I feared their rage toward bandits would cause them to go too far, so I wanted to keep an eye on them. I also noticed the straight-faced mercenary named Raven, who had apparently joined us when the company seized Castle Caelin along with our old monk friend Lucius, who the company discovered in the dungeons. I wished to witness the mercenary's skill firsthand.

"It will need to be a small group that can move quickly without drawing too much attention. I will take Lyn and Raven, and Rebecca will join us in providing ranged support. Serra will come with us as well in case we need healing. The rest of you take up defensive positions along this street and the next one to the north and wait for the enemy to come to you. Remember, no heroics. I want our units with the most defense up front covering everyone else."

The company complied without another disgruntled comment and moved to their positions. Raven, Serra, and Rebecca came up to me along with Lyn. Her expression hadn't changed, but I didn't want to address it in front of the others.

"Raven, you lead," I said, pointing down the path we would take. "Lyn and I will support you as needed."

The mercenary nodded and jogged down the path, followed by Rebecca and Serra. I turned back to Lyn, who had her arms crossed and glared at me.

"Lyn, I'm sorry it came to this. But we truly had no other choice."

Lyn sighed, shaking her head. "The past year must have really changed you, Mark. You know it's foolishness to trust the goodwill of pirates!"

"They are offering to give us free passage if we win their little game, Lyn."

"That's even worse! Why would these greedy thieves be willing to offer us free passage? They have to want something else out of us."

She had a point. It did seem strange that the captain had been willing to forgo the price he had initially stated for a little bit of fun. "If he deceives us, you can be the first to strike back."

"It's not that simple, Mark! He's an experienced fighter. I don't think the four of us, plus Serra, will be enough to defeat him when he betrays us. We are walking into a trap! Weren't you the one that said we shouldn’t unreservedly trust people?"

"I'm not trusting them. I am not inviting them to our camp to use our supplies and mingle with the company. I am well aware of the risk, Lyn, and I am testing a possible route to complete our objective. Should things turn bad, we are fast enough to regroup. But until we have reason to believe they are deceiving us, this is our best option for saving Eliwood's father as soon as possible. Now I need to know that if these pirates are true to their word, you will tolerate them."

Lyn stared at me without a word as concern crept across her face, and her eyes widened in fear. "Mark…are you possessed?"

Her words hit me like a kick from Ajax. After everything she had said about trusting me back in Caelin, now she’s having second thoughts? That cut me deep, and I let it show by slumping my shoulders. “Lyn… how could you say that?”

Shame washed over her, and she crossed her arms tight around herself. “I’m sorry, Mark. I just… I don’t know how to handle this.”

"I'm not possessed, Lyn, and I understand your distrust. But this isn't about how you or I feel. This is about getting to the island and finding Eliwood's father and stopping the Black Fang…and, with any luck, freeing me. Isn’t that worth a gamble?"

Lyn refused to look at me and instead looked back down toward the docks where our main group was setting up defensive positions on the street. Then, she released her agitation with a heavy sigh. "Fine. If these pirates honor their word, I will endure them. I'll do it for Eliwood." She pulled out her sword and headed down the path. "Let's just get this over with."

I watched her walk away for a moment, then rubbed my forehead out of a mix of irritation and disappointment. Lyn had forgiven me after I assaulted her grandfather, but telling her to kill me upset her, and now I had pushed her away even more by dealing with pirates. Of course, this time, I didn't have the excuse of being possessed. But how could she not see that this was the best course of action? Then again, others in the company had raised concerns. Maybe I should've considered more options. No, wait… There hadn’t been any!

Ugh… By the eight… Let these pirates be as good as they seem…

* * * * *

I smiled as I leaned against the railing, staring over the vast blue expanse. My gamble had paid off. Our small group made it to Fargus, and he had honored our bargain. Now, we were on our way to Valor for free. Nobody, including Lyn, had said anything more about the pirates after we left Badon. And I kept holding on to the hope that they wouldn't betray us somewhere in the middle of the ocean.

At this point, I had the most to lose. If Fargus turned on us now, we would have nowhere to run. And as the person who brought our company into this current state of affairs, the blame would rest solely on me. Lyn surely wouldn't speak to me again if things went awry now. I just hoped I wouldn't live long enough to regret my decision should the worst happen.

A beer stein slamming down against the railing startled me from my thoughts, and Fargus chuckled as he leaned over the railing with me. "Have to admit, lad, I never would have believed a group of mooncalves could outwit my pirate crew. The way you and yer two friends walked into that tavern all twinkle-eyed and standing out more than a whale in a field of flowers… Har! I thought the bar wench had slipped me drink something special. Thunderstruck me further when ye didn't pull out my money right there. I thought ye nobles always had ten times what I asked you for."

"I wouldn't exactly call my clothes the make of royalty. It's just a simple green cloak over commoner’s clothes."

"Aye, but next to those shiny fellows, those clothes look like fine silk." He slurped down some ale and then examined his stein with a soaked smile. "Then again, it could have been I had too much to drink."

"Heh. So I guess I can thank your inebriation for giving us the chance to earn free passage to this cursed island."

"No." Fargus slapped the railing and turned to face me. "I may have been drinking a lot yesterday, but I still be able to think straight with rum running through me bones. Once you boys came up to me, I could see that twinkle actually be determination in yer eyes. At first, I believed it to be the bright light of youth blinding you lads to the dangers of that island. But after hearing ya considerin' throwing yerselves into the lion's den for money, I knew there be some important reason ye be needin' to get to the Dread Isle."

"Yes. You see Eliwood has been-"

"Ah, hush yerself now, lad.” He waved a hand and turned away. “Ye don't be needin' to say nothing I don't need to know about. I be fulfilling me end of the bargain we made, and I don't want yer company getting any more mad at you than they already be." He leaned back against the railing and looked toward the ship's bow. "The lovely lass up there, for example."

Lyn had been standing at the front of the ship ever since we left the port. She hadn't said a word to me or anyone else after we started our little game with the pirates.

"Being viewed with mistrust by others ain't nothing new to me crew. Plenty of yer company givin’ us dirty looks. However, I didn't think anyone could consider a whole group of people invisible. She hasn't acknowledged a single one of me mates or meself since stepping on this ship. And even now, I can tell she be counting the seconds until this voyage be over. Har! Mark my words; she'll be the first one off this ship once we arrive, and we will not even have anchored yet."

"I wouldn't doubt that. And please don't hold it against her. Believe it or not, she's kind and strong and fiercely protective of her friends, which is why she doesn't trust pirates easily."

The wind picked up momentarily, lifting Lyn's hair around her face. Without even turning, she gently pulled her hair aside and tucked it behind her ear just as she did in the fields of Sacae. My heart plummeted out of my chest, racking my entire body in agony, and I sighed in an attempt to relieve some of the pain.

"And out of everyone in our company, I've known her the longest. I mean no offense to you, but I wish we could have found another way to get to this island."

"Eh, I don't blame you. With a lass that lovely, it must have been hard to choose duty over love."

"Huh?” I jolted straight and faced the ocean. “What? No! It's not like that. She's just a really close friend, and we've been through a lot together, and so I worry about her and want to make her happy and…"

"Because ya love her, lad!" Fargus said, lowering his tone. "The only time men be wanting to make a girl happy the way ye do is because she be his sister or lover. And since ye two look nothing alike, yer heart must pound waves against a cliffside whenever ye gaze upon that beauty."

There was that term again. Lover. Even a pirate who had just met me seemed to pick up on my feelings for Lyn. How obvious was I? "I swear to you it's not like that!"

Fargus gripped my shoulder, trying to stifle a hearty laugh. "Oh, don't be lying to me, lad. I've had plenty of men yer age in me crew fallen for a local lass in a port. Ye have the same bewildered looks they do. And I'm going to tell ye the same thing I tell them. Ye need to go up and talk to her."

My body quivered because all the blood had drained from my body, leaving me cold. "I can't go talk to her! This isn't some port town where I'm meeting her for the first time. I'm the last one she wants to talk to right now."

"Aye, I'd bet me ship on that. Which is exactly why ye need to speak t’er now. If ye don't go and give yer explanation for yer choice and try to work out the issue, yer decision gonna fester in her mind ‘til you ‘ave become as invisible to her as we be." He turned me around and gave me a hard shove toward the bow. "Now get to it, lad. I want to see ya two holding hands by the time ye leave us."

I tried to give another excuse to save me, but Fargus gave me a harsh look that said, "If you don't go to her, I'm going to toss you overboard to get her attention." I looked back toward the front of the boat, dreading where the next few minutes would lead. Lyn still hadn't turned, moved, or said anything. I had planned to talk with her once we were off this ship, but maybe Fargus was right. Even if he was wrong, he wasn't giving me another choice.

Swallowing my apprehension, I slowly climbed to the bow. Each step of the staircase shot a chill up my leg, hoping to freeze me in place, but I endured the anxiety and kept moving. I was at the top of the stairs—only a few more steps. My mind filled with what I was going to say first.

How's the sea breeze up here? No, that's stupid. You know, these pirates are actually pretty nice once you get to know them. Ugh, she doesn't care. Lyn you just need to get over yourself and deal with these pirates. We're here now, and there's nothing you can do to change it!

"I know I need to get over these pirates," she answered.

Blow me down… Did I say that out loud?

She rotated her head to strike me with a tempestuous glare. "That's what you're going to say to me, right?"

I inhaled salty air to recover. "No, uh… Actually, I was just going to ask you how the sea breeze was up here."

Her head clicked back to the front. "You know you're a terrible liar, Mark." She sounded more amused than angry. "Your honesty is one of your greater traits. You should really stick with it. And as for these pirates, I’m not going to talk about it. You know why I'm against this."

I would’ve left it alone, but I could still feel Fargus’s stare on my back. "I understand that, Lyn. But these pirates didn't murder your tribe."

She didn't respond, but I saw her body tense for a brief moment.

"I'm sorry. That was a bad choice of words. But what I'm trying to say is that you can't be mad at every form of scoundrel you come across."

"Why not? These pirates are no different from bandits. They just conduct their greed on the sea as opposed to land."

"And yet, these degenerates were the only ones willing to take us to Valor." I hoped Fargus or any of the other pirates weren't within earshot. "They're helping us, Lyn. Even you can see that."

"For how long, Mark?!” She made an interrogative flourish with her hand but continued to look away. “How much longer will we stand here before they finally pull out their weapons and demand us to hand over our valuables and then kill you and Eliwood and the other men and sell us women? Pirates are named such for a reason. They are no better than bandits. They have no honor!"

"And what honor is there in assuming that every person that is of a certain group is immediately deplorable? These people are called pirates, so we should assume they are greedy and care only to grow their coffers with ill-gotten gain because that is what other pirates do? The marquess in Araphen refused us aid because you were labeled a Sacaean, and many nobles in Lycia consider all of your people to be savages. But we all know that's not true!"

"It's not the same, Mark!"

"It's exactly the same, Lyn!” I dared a step forward. “It's bigotry. You are stubbornly rejecting another person based on what they are called or what they look like without having any proof to support your rejection of them in particular. It is the exact same thing that pretentious marquess did to you, refusing to give kindness, and now you are doing it to these people."

Lyn remained silent, but her head fell away from me.

"You said honesty was one of my greatest traits. Well, your kind heart is one of your greatest traits, Lyn. Because of my amnesia, out of anyone I know, I've known you the longest. You have such compassion that you are willing to bring an unconscious stranger into your Yurt, where you lived alone, and nurse him back to health. What if I hadn't been a tactician? What if I told you I was a bandit? Would you have thrown me out or cut me down? Hell! I don't even know that I'm not a bandit!"

I stepped to the side of the ship to catch my breath. "But you know what I do know? I can be possessed. That I can hurt someone I care about. Like I did with your grandfather over a week ago. I nearly killed him, and yet you forgave me even though you knew I did it. However, when pirates you've never met offer us passage for free and have done nothing to hurt you, you immediately brand them as untrustworthy based solely on what they are called.

"Back in the fort that night when we met Dorcas and Natalie, I told you not to give your complete trust to every stranger we come across. And that's not what I'm telling you to do now. It's foolhardy to trust or accept someone you don't know completely, and not everyone's life choices are right. Even I have been wary of these pirates ever since I met the captain, and even now I'm still wary they might betray us. But as of right now, they are doing us a great service out of sheer kindness. And at the very least, I think they deserve a little bit of gratitude."

"Eliwood!"

Hector ran up the stairs and stopped when he saw Lyn and me.

"Uhhh…"

Lyn spoke quickly. "If you're looking for Eliwood, he's talking with Marcus below deck.”

"Oh," Hector said as if coming out of a daydream. "I won't bother him then."

Hector did not leave, and none of us said anything for a long, uncomfortable moment. I'm sure Lyn felt the same way I did. Hector's presence invaded a tense conversation. Hopefully, the silence would give him a hint to leave.

More silence… And more… And more… Still, Hector didn't seem to get it.

"…Do you need something?!" Lyn finally blurted out.

"I'd like you to stop pouting."

What?

"What?!" Lyn shot the gall of Hector's request at him in a rueful scowl.

"This pirate ship is the only way for us to get to the Dread Isle. Everyone else understands that, and I thought you would by now. Was I mistaken?"

I put up my hands. "Hector, I think-"

"How I feel or what I think is no concern of yours!" Lyn was screaming now. "So don't you dare start making demands!"

Hector crossed his arms. "I heard about your parents and those bandits. But these pirates? They don't seem like bad fellows. Both Eliwood and I trust Mark's judgment, and we've known him for less time than you have. So why can't you trust his decision?"

I was about to grab Hector and pull him away before he could make things worse. But Lyn beat me to him, getting right up in his face.

"I do trust him. I trust him with my life. I have ever since he and I met. But some things are hard to forgive." She jerked her head away from him, and I saw the tears sparkle in the sunlight before crashing onto the deck. "Things that someone like you will never understand!" Lyn placed her arm over her eyes and rushed down the stairs.

I pressed my head against the railing and prayed for a rough wave to slam into the boat and take me away from this shipwreck of a talk. "You really don't have any concept of empathy for others, do you, Hector?"

"I don't know why you put up with it, Mark," he replied, still completely apathetic. "She milks being a wounded victim because she lost her parents and thinks it gives her the right to treat these pirates and you with utter contempt."

I was about to yell but thought better of it and just dumped more severity into my tone as I talked to him under my breath. "It wasn't just her parents, Hector! She lost her entire tribe to bandits! They murdered everyone she ever knew and loved her entire life in a single night. And it wasn't like they came down from the mountains and fought her tribe with honor. They poisoned their drinking water and struck when her tribe was weak. They were cowards! And Lyn lost everyone she cared about… to cowards!"

There was no change in Hector's expression.

"It's a miracle Lyn hadn't drunk any of the water. But she had to watch as her father, the chieftain of her tribe and likely the strongest man she knew,” her story from the night in the fort flowed through my mind, “barely able to stand, his arms trembling because of the pain, put her on a horse so she could survive. And that happened only two years ago. It is a fresh hell for her."

I pushed off the railing and stared at the ocean. A pleasant sea breeze caressed my face, drawing my attention to the other side of the ship, where I spotted Lyn. She buried her head in her arms against the railing, and the small jerks in her body were a clear indication of what she was feeling. Thankfully, Florina had joined her with a comforting embrace from a dear friend.

"I know you were just trying to have her see reason, Hector. But you have to be more sensitive to other people. Before you came up, she and I were talking about how she was treating the pirates—how it was unfair to treat them so coldly even though they had done nothing to her. And you just did the exact same thing she was doing. You assumed something without knowing all the facts."

I turned to find Hector had his back to me, looking off the front of the ship.

"Uh, what are you doing, Hector?"

"Lyn is a strong woman," he replied. "You are right. I had no idea how much pain she had to endure. She's not just putting on airs. She's truly trying to move on. So, I don't think she would want us to see her crying. That's why she went to the other side of the ship."

I couldn't help but smile at Hector's strange antics. He may have been an idiot. But at least he was the first to admit his blunders and… try… to make up for them. "Are you sure it's not that you don't want anyone to see you cry?"

"Heh, I've discovered I can't cry. I lost my parents too, you know?"

"Oh?"

"It was an illness that took them. Nothing like what happened to Lyn. Still, I wanted nothing more than to cry like a little baby. And yet, I couldn't cry… Not in front of others. And even when I was alone, I found I still couldn't. So… I simply thought… I don't know…"

I didn't have an answer for that. So, I decided to jump on the bandwagon of revealing personal details. "At least you and Lyn knew your parents. I can't remember if I had any parents."

"Then you should consider yourself lucky. At least you don't have to live with the memory of losing them."

"You say that, but sometimes I wish I knew them and where I had come from. At least then, I would have some kind of hope to hold on to instead of living with this fear that all I am is a possessed puppet created solely for the destruction of those around me."

"Ahoy!" One of the pirates shouted from the main deck. "There's a small dory adrift to port!" He grabbed a grappling hook from the mast. "Someone's on board! Tell the captain!"

Hector and I descended the stairs to help the pirate pull the dory to the ship. Once the dory had been pulled up, the pirate crawled over the railing to retrieve the person.

"A boat?" Lyn said, coming up to us. She didn't seem to care that her eyes were still red.

"What's going on?" Eliwood asked, emerging from below deck with Fargus and Marcus.

"They found a dory with someone in it," Hector said.

"Odd finding a boat adrift here." Fargus scratched his beard.

"Why do you say that?" I asked.

"The sea currents in this area… Anything drifting around here must've come from the Dread Isle."

The pirate that had gone down to the dory returned and approached Lyn, looking nervous and avoiding her gaze.

"Uh… you there…" He rubbed the back of his neck, still looking off and away.

Lyn looked around at us, then back at the pirate. "Me?"

"Give me a hand, will you? We've hoisted the dory up, but it's a girl in the boat, and uh… I don't know where to… grab her."

Lyn blinked."O-Okay," Lyn said, heading past him down into the dory.

"Such the gentleman," Hector remarked.

The pirate threw him a dirty look. "Stow it!"

"Ninian!" Lyn shrieked.

We all rushed over to the side of the ship as Lyn carried Ninian onto the deck. She didn't move, and her eyes were closed.

"Ninian!" Lyn shouted again, gently setting her on the deck and rubbing her cheek to try and rouse her. "Wake up!"

Pain shot through the back of my head at the sight of her again. I gritted my teeth, bearing the pain, and wondered why this kept happening whenever I saw her.

"Unbelievable…" Eliwood said. "What are the chances?"

"Do you know her?" Hector asked.

"She's how I met Lyndis and Mark a year back. I rescued Ninian from a band of villains."

"Please, Ninian!" Lyn rubbed her hand over Ninian's face to brush away hair made stale by the salt water. "Open your eyes!"

"Let me call Serra and Priscilla up here," I said.

But before I could leave, Ninian stirred. "…Ah…" Her eyelids opened halfway due to the harsh sunlight, but after a moment, they fully opened, and they appeared different from what I remembered—darker…

"Ninian, can you hear me?" Lyn asked.

"Unnn… I…"

"Are you well? Why were you on that boat? Where is Nils? Why wasn't he with you?"

Ninian blinked again. "Ah… Ah…"

"Ninian?" Lyn didn't understand why Ninian wouldn't answer her questions.

"Lyndis," Eliwood said, "I think something's wrong with her."

"She's lost her memory," I replied, figuring it out.

All heads turned toward me.

"It's the only explanation why she is responding in such a way. She knows Lyn and me well enough that she would recognize us and should even recognize Eliwood. And the fact that she isn't responding to Lyn saying Nils’s name either means she's suffering amnesia."

"Captain," called the pirate in the crow’s nest. "Ships approaching from the northwest!"

Fargus puffed up his hairy chest. "Do they dare attack Captain Fargus and the Davros? They must be mad!"

"What flag are they flying?" said a pirate examining the ship through a spyglass. "I've never seen that pattern before."

"Doesn't matter," Fargus stated. "These seas belong to us! Whoever they are, they're in our waters!" He looked over at us. "You whelps watch your own hides. We've no time to waste on ye!"

"Incoming enemy fire!" Another pirate yelled.

The ship shook violently as cannon balls crashed into the vessel's side. In a matter of seconds, one of the enemy ships pulled up on the starboard side, throwing grappling hooks across so the crew could board.

"All right," Fargus said, grabbing an axe from a nearby weapons rack. "Let's show these scum what happens when they pick a fight with the Davros!"

"Water! Someone yelled from below deck. "The hull's been breached! We're taking on water!"

"Get to fixing it, boys!" Fargus shouted. "I've got scallywags that want new gizzards carved out."

"It's bad, Captain," said a pirate, coming up from below as the rest of the company arrived on deck to give the pirates room to attend to the hull breach. "We need all hands belowdecks, or we'll sink! You must come help, captain!"

Fargus's grip on his weapon became so tight his knuckles were turning white.

"Fargus!" I said, going up to him.

Only his eyes moved to look at me.

"Leave the enemy to us. We can handle them while you repair the ship."

"That's right," Hector said, resting his axe on his shoulder. "Fighting is something we're good at!"

"But a sinking ship is your affair," Eliwood added. "We won't be of any use to you fixing your ship, so let us handle the invaders."

"We can deal with things up here," Lyn agreed. "But please hurry! Help your men before we all drown!"

Fargus's grip around his weapon became so tight the wooden handle began to creak. But he finally threw his weapon at an enemy on the other ship, taking down him and his unlucky cohort standing behind him. Then he shook his fist at the other crew that was preparing to launch gangways. "Fine! The deck is yours! I'll be back as soon as we've plugged the breach in the hull!"

"Just go!" I shouted.

Fargus yielded, following his men below deck.

I turned to Lyn, who still held on to Ninian. "Lyn! Take Ninian to the captain's room!"

She nodded and carried Ninian into the captain's quarters.

"Another ship coming along the port side!" Dorcas yelled.

"Here come the gangways from this side," Hector said, grabbing my shoulder.

The gangways fell against our ship, and the enemy crew jumped on to board our craft.

"Oswin, Hector, Kent, Sain! Block the gangways on the starboard side and make sure they don't board this ship. The goal is to dispatch them as quickly as possible. Kill them or knock them into the ocean. Lucius and Erk! Use your magic to shoot the enemy off the gangways! Serra and Priscilla support where needed!"

"Another ship approaching the stern!" Bartre shouted

"Eliwood, Marcus, Lowen, and Raven go help Bartre deal with that ship. Serra and Lucius, ignore my previous order and support the stern group."

As I turned to ship coming up the port side, an enemy shaman had already made it onto our ship and was walking toward us. Though it was the strangest-looking shaman I had ever seen. He didn't conceal his purple hair under a hood, and his scholarly face bore a monocle over his left eye. Didn't matter to me, though. An enemy was an enemy. I grabbed my sword and charged him. When the shaman saw me coming, he threw up his hands and… started shaking?

"Mark, no!" Eliwood shouted, pulling me back. "That's Canas! He joined our company back in Badon!"

I had to take a moment to process that. We now had a user of the dark arts on our side. That would be a powerful addition. Thank goodness Eliwood had stopped me. "Uh… Sorry, Canas. I didn't realize you were on our side."

Canas lowered his hands and smiled politely. "No harm done, my good sir. Confusion over my loyalties is not surprising. It's the curse I bear dressing similarly to these blokes. But I pray that my skills might be of some use to you."

"Gangways are coming down!" Dorcas yelled. "I need some help over here!"

"Yes," I quickly said. "Go with Eliwood and defend the stern."

"Right away!" Canas bowed and followed after Eliwood.

Lyn stepped out of the captain's quarters and ran up to me. "Where do you want me, Mark?"

"With me," I turned and shouted at the rest of our awaiting company. "The rest of you are with me on the port side."

The company followed me around some crates to the port side, where Dorcas was busy fending off a mercenary while two shamans were preparing to attack.

"Rebecca, Wil, take them out!" I ordered, pointing at the shamans.

Two arrows flew across the ships piercing straight through the robes and felling the casters. Dorcas managed to cut down the mercenary attacking him, but an enemy myrmidon stepped off the second gangway and charged him. Guy bounded up and leaped off the nearby crates to get around Dorcas and take down the myrmidon."

"Guy and Dorcas. You two stay here and deal with any non-magic users, but don't move too far away from where the archers can cover you. Everyone else, keep the enemy off this ship. Lyn, you're with me. We're going over to deal with those shamans." We jumped up onto the first gangway and started crossing to the other ship.

"Hey, Mark," Lyn called. "Do these guys seem familiar to you?"

"I was thinking the same thing, Lyn," I called back. "They're Black Fang members, and one of them can probably tell us-"

Pain drilled into the back of my head. At first, I thought Wil or Rebecca had aimed poorly, but I realized it was the same pain I felt at Santaruz and Caelin. It caused me to slip, and I crashed onto the gangway.

"Mark!" Lyn grabbed me just as I tumbled over the side. Only half my body had fallen over, but the excruciating agony in my head prevented me from pulling myself up.

Bring me the girl… said a demented voice in my head. I wasn't possessed, but I could feel myself slipping away. And with each second the pain became more intense. I closed my eyes and did my best to endure it. The pain spiked for a moment, but then it subsided.

"Mark!" Lyn shouted. "Mark, what's wrong?"

"N…Nothing," I said through gritted teeth. I grabbed past her and pulled myself back onto the gangway. When I was safely back on it, Lyn helped me to my feet.

"Are you all right?"

The pain had dissipated so I nodded to her. "I'll be fine. Come on." Thankfully Wil and Rebecca had covered Lyn and me from the shamans during that stumble. But now another problem arose.

"Lyn!" Florina called from our ship. "They have Pegasus Knights!"

A squad of eight Pegasus Knights had taken to the air, and was preparing to swoop down on our company.

"Florina, I need you to deal with them. Rebecca, Wil, give her support!"

Florina didn't say anything else or hesitate. She immediately took to the sky to engage the enemy. I didn't have time to watch, but I could see Rebecca and Wil already covering Florina.

"She'll be fine, Lyn," I said, reassuring her. "We need to take care of these shamans."

"I know," Lyn replied as we finished crossing to the other ship. "Florina has grown up since you last saw her. She's not that timid girl you first met."

I spotted a shaman coming around a pile of crates, and I lunged forward, slashing through his hand and then his chest. And as soon as I cut him down, the pain in my head forced me to the ground again."

Lyn dispatched two other shamans with a series of strokes between them, then turned to me. "Mark, what's wrong?"

BRING HER TO ME! the voice bellowed again even louder.

"It's happening, Lyn. I… I'm being possessed… You have to…"

"You have to fight it, Mark!" She engaged another pair of shamans. "You have to…"

The pain had grown to such extreme levels that all sound was being drowned out. All I could hear was the demented voice ordering me to bring her to it. And my mind knew whom it was talking about.

Ninian. Somehow, she had escaped the Black Fang, and whoever was in charge needed her back. I could feel my body wanting to stand up and go back to the ship, but I struggled to fight through the pain. I had to hold on to myself. I focused all my strength on keeping me on the ground. But I knew that it wouldn't last.

"L…Lyn! You have… You have…"

"I'm not killing you, Mark!" Lyn shouted as she brought her sword down through another shaman, attempting to take advantage of my handicap. More shamans were coming from around the crates. Even if Lyn wanted to, she couldn't take the time to plant her sword in me. And if I didn't deal with this hijacking force, I would lose myself and do something I would regret. I couldn't feel anything else in my body at this point. My blood had frozen in my veins, and there was no more feeling in my limbs—the master almost had control again. My head throbbed in agony with each beat of my heart. I had to end it. I wanted it to stop!

So, I turned myself toward the gangway and used my remaining strength to crawl for it. I thought I could hear Lyn screaming at me, but the pain deafened her cries. Even the voice had stopped. The world had become completely silent except for my heart, which had traveled up into my head and pounded against my skull like it was trying to break it open. I was eight feet away from the edge. Another stretch of my right arm, and I was seven feet. Little more reaches—four feet… I grabbed the side with my hand now. Just one more pull, and the pain would finally end.

A large black boot stomped down on my arm. I didn't feel a thing, but I looked up to find Fargus standing over me with a frown. Like Lyn, I couldn't hear a word he said, but I could make out, "What do you think you're doing, whelp?" by his lip movement. At this point, I couldn't take the pain any longer. If I became possessed, maybe Fargus would put an end to me. But I was done resisting. I let go of everything, and the world faded to black.

Light footsteps echoed around me in the darkness. “I can’t believe…” a familiar feminine voice said through panting. “…it’s come… to this… I must inform… Lord Hector… of these events!” She took a deep breath, and her fervent footsteps doubled in pace. “If I hurry, I may be in time.” The footsteps shuffled to a stop. “What!?”

“Leila,” A second voice crooned. I recognized the devious undertone of Ephidel in it. “Where are you going?”

The world was still pitch black, and the voices echoed around me.

“Lord Ephidel,” Leila replied, trying to keep her voice steady. “The sentries… I’m going to check-”

You overheard, did you not?” Ephidel released a displeased sigh. “And I had such high hopes for you.” He raised his voice. “Jaffar.”

Metal pierced through flesh, and Leila let out a bloody gasp. “Aa… Ma…Matthew…”

A body fell to the ground in the black.

“Impressive, Jaffar,” Ephidel said. “Your power is beyond compare.”

Jaffar did not respond.

“Take this woman’s corpse and leave it in the forest. Let it serve as a warning…”

Light appeared in the darkness, but it did not illuminate anything or anyone. It was blinding, forcing me to scrunch my eyes. I heard the sound of waves crashing against a shoreline. The light faded, and my eyes fluttered. The world spun like it did after drinking too much, so I shut them again. My head still throbbed, but it was only a headache—not another possession.

"….he'll…hand…."

Was I hearing more voices in my head? No. These voices were familiar… and normal.

"….done so much for us…"

That was Eliwood's voice.

“…back alive! That's all the thanks I need."

And Fargus.

"We'll be back before you know it."

And Hector. I opened my eyes again. The world ceased to spin now, so I struggled to sit up. As far as I could tell, my body wholly belonged to me. My eyes took a moment to focus, but I could see Lyn, Eliwood, and Hector talking with Fargus near a group of dories.

"Ah! Lord Eliwood! Lord Hector! Lady Lyndis! He's awake!"

I turned to see Priscilla sitting on a piece of driftwood next to me. My companions all turned around. When they saw I had awakened, they rushed over.

"Mark!" Lyn said, arriving first and dropping to her knees to cup my face in her hands. "Thank goodness you're awake. How do you feel?"

"There's a painful throbbing in my head. But it's merely a headache. I'm in control once again."

"You gave yer friends quite the fright, lad," Fargus said. "I spotted you crawling toward the gangway on yer belly like a sea turtle on the beach. For a moment, I thought ye might have been done in, but when I saw no blood in yer wake, I knew something weren't right."

"All I remember is your boot," I said as Lyn helped me stand back up. "What happened after that?"

"Fargus and his men had finished plugging the hole in the boat," Eliwood explained. "They came back up and helped us deal with the rest of the enemy."

I gave my head a shake to rid myself of the daze. "Any casualties?"

"No,” Hector said. “Keeping the enemy bottle-necked on the gangways prevented them from overwhelming us."

"What about the Pegasus Knights? Is Florina okay?"

"She's fine," Lyn answered. "With the help of Rebecca and Wil, she managed to dispatch most of the enemy fliers, but she had help from a third source as well. It turns out the Black Fang had encountered a Pegasus squad from Ilia en route to engage us. The squad fell, but one knight survived." She pointed toward a woman with turquoise hair wearing white and blue armor, speaking with Florina. "She's one of Florina's sisters, Fiora."

"Fiora?"

"Apparently, she and her comrades were sent to investigate Valor when the Black Fang attacked them," Hector explained. "She had chased after her assailants when she found them attacking us. She reunited with Florina, and now she wishes to join our company."

"Great…" I sighed still trying to endure the remnants of my piercing headache. "What about Ninian?"

All heads turned to Ninian, who was sitting on a log fifty yards away.

"She's fine, Mark," Lyn said. "Though she still hasn't regained her memory."

"She can't come with us," I said.

Everyone turned back to me with varying levels of bafflement.

"What?" Lyn's eyes widened at my statement.

"What are you talking about?" Eliwood asked.

"The pain in my head during that fight. My loss of consciousness… I was almost possessed again. That's why I was crawling to the edge of the ship. I was trying to kill myself so that I wouldn't be taken over."

Hector’s arm twitched. "Are you okay now?"

"I'm fine for now, but Ninian can't come with us."

"Why not, Mark?" Eliwood asked.

"While I fought off the possession, I kept hearing a voice in my head that said, ‘Bring her to me.' Although the voice never directly stated Ninian's name, I could feel the possession trying to force me back to the boat and to Ninian."

"But didn't that happen while we fought the shamans?" Lyn pointed out. "The voice was probably one of them."

I considered the possibility. "Maybe, but regardless, they were part of the Black Fang." I looked at Fargus. "And didn't you say anything drifting in the waters had to have come from this island with the currents?"

"Aye."

"And we know the Black Fang is here. The Black Fang wanted Ninian, which means that Ninian isn't safe here. She has to go back with Fargus."

"Ninian wanted to come with us, Mark," said Eliwood. "That's why she's here. She feels safe with us."

"She's lost her memory," I retorted. "She doesn't even remember us."

"Which is why she needs to stay with us," Lyn replied. "She needs familiar people around her if she does regain her memory. We can keep her safe if she stays with us, just like we protected her when we first found her and Nils."

"Besides, lad, me men don't want her aboard the ship. They think she's cursed." Fargus put up his hands. "We be more than willing to help y'all out, but I need to keep morale on me ship steady. If ye see yerself as too much of a risk, then you can come back, and we can tie ya to the mast. But until ye deal with whatever ye here for, I'ma ask ye keep the girl." He headed back to the dories before anyone could respond.

I had said my piece, but no one seemed to agree with me. This situation was another one of those moments where I would have to bend to the will of my employer. "Very well," I said with a laborious sigh. It was becoming irritating that people were arguing my recommendations more often, no matter how logically I presented them. "If you all have chosen to keep Ninian with us, that is your decision. I have said my case, but I will honor your choice. However, if that is the case, I must require something from you all."

"What is it?" Eliwood asked.

"If I am to become possessed again or even on the verge of being possessed, you must kill me without hesitation. No more waiting around to see if I regain control." I glanced at Lyn. She avoided my gaze. "I know how you all feel about this, but I am too much of a risk. This is no longer just about me potentially killing someone in the company. The Black Fang need Ninian for something terrible, and they wanted me to bring her to them alive. I have no doubt they will try again. And when that happens, you have to stop me. Unless you agree to these terms, either Ninian or I must remain with Fargus."

Everyone exchanged glances. I could see none of them wanted to accept the reality of the situation—that's why they had me make most of the decisions. I was a risk to Ninian and the company, so I had to drop them with this ultimatum. This mission wasn't just about Eliwood's father anymore. The Black Fang wanted us on this island.

“We’ll have time to build a strategy to face the Black Fang,” Hector said. “Leila will find us and provide us with directions and their numbers, so we’ll know what to expect.”

“That’s fine,” I grunted out in agreement. “Until then, let’s…”

A cold chill raced down my spine, and I remembered the voices in the darkness.

“Ah hells!” I rushed off into the forest.

“Mark!” Hector called. “Where are you going?”

“I have to find her!” I yelled back. “She’s in danger!”

“Who’s in danger?” Eliwood shouted from somewhere in the trees behind me.

“Are you possessed again?” Hector questioned.

A dense fog flooded the forest; I could barely see seven feet in front of me. Adrenaline spiked with anxiety surged through me as I vaulted over a fallen tree, trying to grasp some kind of hint from the premonition about where she might be. I hadn’t been able to see anything, so I had no direction, but I didn’t have time to wait. There had to be a hill around here where I could get above the fog. I needed to get my bearings on this island. “No!” I shouted out. “I had another premonition. Leila, she’s-” I ran around a tree and stopped dead in my tracks. There was a form sitting against a tree. “Hello?” The person’s legs were pulled up, arms crossed over her knees, and their head buried against them, but I saw the burgundy hair.

“Leila?” I breathed out.

No response.

“Leila!” I called louder. Please… please just let her be sleeping. I need to warn her. Please tell me I’m not too late.

"What's going on?" Eliwood asked, coming up next to me.

Lyn came to my other side and said, “Is that…?”

"Leila!" Hector exclaimed, rushing up to her. The fog concealed her dire fate from him. "Impressive work finding your way here!"

“Hec…tor…” The words were caught in my throat. “Don’t…”

Hector gave me a confused look. "Huh? Don’t what?" He turned back to Leila and reached down to pat her shoulder. “Leila, what have you found-” Hector’s lack of restraint knocked Leila to the ground, revealing bloody lacerations on her torso.

"She's dead." I damn near choked on the words

"No!" Lyn threw her hands over her mouth.

Hector stumbled back from Leila's body in disbelief. "…This can't be. She was one of our best spies." His body wavered while he stared at her. Then his strength gave out. He slumped to the ground while he stared blankly at his spy. "Leila…"

"Where's Matthew?" Eliwood asked with urgency.

"Right here, my lord." Matthew was leaning against a nearby tree. “I heard Mark say Leila’s name, so I came to see her.” There wasn’t a speck of sorrow in his tone. He just smiled at the corpse of his friend.

Hector got back to his feet and went to him. "…I'm sorry, Matthew."

Matthew continued smiling when he looked up at Hector. "Why do you apologize, my lord? Leila blundered… That's all."

"Matthew…" Eliwood said. "Leila was… She was…" He couldn't find the words.

"I never got to thank her…" I spoke without thinking while I sagged to the ground. "She was there when I assaulted Lord Hausen. She stopped me before I could kill him. She saved him and me as well…"

Another sickening moment of silence passed through us before Matthew chuckled. "After this mission, I was going to ask her to put this life behind her…" He gulped hard but maintained his smile. "Waited too long, didn't I? Ha…" The depressing silence fell over all of us again until Matthew sucked in a breath. "…My lord, might I… rejoin you later? She has to be buried…"

"Of course," Hector replied.

Matthew nodded and stepped over toward Leila. He stood there, unblinking, unmoving, still smiling. Perhaps he didn't believe she was dead. Or maybe he was waiting for her to wake up like Hector was—like we all were. He didn't wait long. With barely a sound, he picked her up and carried her off deeper into the woods, leaving the four of us in the ambiance of the woods. Though she had never officially joined the company, Leila belonged to us. Her death marked the first casualty, and the sting of that reality poisoned us all with sorrow, me most of all. What I had heard in the darkness was not a premonition but a revelation. My connection to Ephidel, his master, and the Black Fang allowed me to be a bystander in Leila’s death as it happened, not before. Who would be next?

Hector literally broke the silence by smashing his axe through a nearby tree. "Blast!" He threw his head back and roared at the sky, and then he slammed his axe into the ground. "They put her out here for us to find like this!"

"Unforgivable!" Lyn agreed. "This is… a foul deed. Beyond foul."

I noticed Eliwood didn't say anything. And I knew why. I recovered my composure and stood up. "Don't worry, Eliwood. We're going to find your father."

"That's right," Hector stated with even more fire. "No matter what it takes, we're coming back with your father! Leila is not going to have died in vain!"

"I know," Eliwood said, "and we are going to put a stop to this Black Fang before any more die!"

"Ah!"

We turned around to the new voice to find Ninian standing a few yards away. Distress marked every inch of her face.

"Ninian!" said Lyn. "What are you doing here?"

"…Beware!" Ninian raised a trembling finger toward her. "Something comes!"

Before anyone could follow to where she pointed, Lyn cried out. A man on horseback had picked her up and held a sword to her neck.

"Lyn!" I shouted, pulling out my sword as I ran toward her.

The newcomer pulled the sword closer to Lyn's neck. "Not another step. If you value her life, send the girl to me."

I glanced backward at Ninian. Both Eliwood and Hector stood in front of her with their weapons drawn. I looked back at the man. The dark bandana around his head set his expression in a perpetual scowl. His mien could have intimidated a bear. Stoic and unyielding. And almost… familiar…

Lyn picked up on it. "You, you're Sacaean!"

"That's correct," the man replied. "I am Uhai of the Black Fang. I've been sent to capture the girl… And to kill the lot of you." He stared directly at me. I may not have been Sacaean, but I did my best to appear as steadfast as he did. "If, however… you hand over the girl and depart the island at once, I'll grant you your lives."

"And if we refuse?" Lyn asked, not letting her situation daunt her.

Uhai's stare left me for her. "You know nothing, little lord. Nothing of Nergal's might. Nothing of his terrible power. You are ignorant, and so you hope to oppose him."

There! That was the name! Nergal. He was the master of the Black Fang. Was it his voice I heard on the ship? How had he convinced a Sacaean nomad to do his bidding? Maybe… Maybe he had been possessed like I had! And he could only control one person, which is why he didn't control me.

"You're being possessed, Uhai."

The Sacaean furrowed his brows. "What?"

"I know it seems strange. But I've been possessed, too. You're not in control of your body. But you can fight it. You have to try."

He pulled Lyn in tighter. "You know not what you say, and you know not what you face. Hand over the girl, speak no more foolishness, and be gone."

Okay, maybe he wasn't possessed.

"Maybe we don't know what it is we're fighting," I said carefully. "But if we flee, our loss is assured. So, we will continue to struggle, and we may yet prevail, or we may fall. But we will not run. That is who we are. And I know who you are."

"Do not claim to know me," Uhai replied. "You speak of possession, but my mind is my own. I willingly serve the Black Fang."

"But you are also Sacaean. I know you consider holding a woman hostage shameful, especially one of your own kind."

Uhai didn't respond, but I knew he had to be bluffing if he wasn't possessed. If he were Sacaean, like Lyn said, he wouldn't kill her. "You can't leave without the girl, and we can't flee. So, let us settle this matter with honor. I challenge you to a Ru'so jan."

"A what?" Hector asked.

"Mark, no!" Lyn exclaimed.

Uhai gave me a curious look. "You know the old ways of the Sacaean?"

"I do," I replied, recalling my studies. "A Ru'so jan was used by the Sacaean people to settle disputes with uncompromising parties, a one-on-one fight to the death. Though the Sacaean people have since forbidden it after the first grand chieftain Morzo united the clans."

Uhai’s frown shifted to a grin of esteem and released Lyn. "Very well. I accept your challenge."

"If you are willing to accept the challenge, then I assume you will honor the tradition of fighting on equal ground?"

"You know much of Sacaean tradition for an outsider." Uhai dismounted his steed. "I never expected a noble to possess such knowledge of a people they consider savages."

"I'm not a noble," I replied, bowing gracefully to show respect as was customary for a Ru'so jan. "I am merely a tactician who has studied different cultures."

Uhai returned the bow. "If you have studied our people, then you must have studied our fighting style." He brought his sword arm up. "I look forward to this duel."

I brought my sword up as well. I actually knew little about Sacaean fighting styles outside of their archery prowess. As Guy had confirmed for me back in Santaruz, the Sacae found sword proficiency inferior to handling a bow; something I'm sure Uhai cared little about if he had joined the Black Fang. But I had seen some examples of famous Ru'so jan in my research. I also trained Lyn, and she implemented Sacaean sword fighting techniques into her form as she became more confident with a blade. That would be the only experience I had. The rest would be up to my instincts.

"What are your terms?" Uhai asked.

Whoops. I had almost forgotten to state the terms of the duel. "They're simple. If you defeat me, then the girl goes with you."

"How can I be sure your friends will honor our terms," Uhai asked. "They are not Sacaean, and neither are you."

"No, but the woman you took hostage is, and she will honor the terms should I fall." I looked to Lyn. Her apprehensive expression did not instill much confidence in me. And I was taking advantage of her Sacaean heritage to save her life while risking Ninian's and mine. Every choice I made since she joined the campaign did not please her. But there would be time for argument later. I gestured at her to respond.

"If Uhai wins the duel…" Her words barely passed her lips. "We will surrender the girl to him."

"And Sacaeans never lie," I quickly added before someone could retort. "As for me, if I win, you will tell us where your master is."

"As you wish," Uhai replied. "Though you will not gain that information from a corpse. If you seek the Dragon's Gate, from here, go south. Turn at the rotted tree. And then head west. There lies the path to the Dragon's Gate."

"Awfully trusting to give us this information now. What's to stop us from tipping the odds in our favor by attacking you all at once."

Uhai smirked. "True, but I see there is more to you than I first observed. You will honor this duel not solely out of respect for tradition. You did it to save your Sacaean friend and to gain her-"

"Okay!" I said, lunging forward before he could say any more. "We've talked enough."

Uhai deflected my blade and could have finished me off. But he simply pushed me aside and waited. I cursed silently at my blunder. My haste to stop him from finishing his sentence almost cost me my life.

"Calm yourself, tactician. You've proven to be knowledgeable in our traditions, now prove to me you are a worthy opponent. Don't let your emotions trip you up."

I glanced at Lyn out of the corner of my eye. Fear swirled about her expression like a serpent constricting its prey, and that prey was curiosity. A speck of it still glimmered in her eyes. She wanted to know what had caused me to hastily jump into battle. And furthermore, why had I challenged Uhai to a Ru'so jan?

Uhai grew impatient and struck in with a flurry of quick jabs from his blade. I stepped to the side and refocused on the battle. From what I studied of Sacaean fighting styles, those who battled with blades usually favored short swords or knives. Their attacks consisted of a multitude of quick, random strikes to throw their opponents off balance. Both Lyn and Guy fought this way, and it appeared Uhai did, too. Trying to block or deflect his strikes would be risky. The quick attacks aimed to create an opening to land a killing blow. The best way to counter him would be to copy his moves.

I waited, taking quick glances at Uhai's footwork. He favored his left leg to push forward, and his sword arm was out in front. He also waved his sword in hypnotic motions. I knew better than to watch that. The mesmerizing way he moved his blade was an attempt to distract me from his real attacks. His assaults would be the same no matter what. I needed to watch his eyes for when he would strike.

Uhai struck again, stepping forward with a lunge. I sidestepped and pushed my own sword forward. As I expected, he stepped away to dodge. I intended to interrupt his attacks as much as possible. Given enough hits, he would create an opening. I had to keep his strike count small.

He moved in again with three quick blows. I dodged, trading off with my own three strikes, which he sidestepped. We circled each other, mirroring our stances. He tried to feign an attack, but I caught on quickly. He wouldn't bait me. But how else would I create an opening? Uhai was a smart fighter. He wouldn't let his weapon move anywhere but in front of him. He tried another feint attack on me, but I stepped around it.

"Smart," Uhai remarked. "Most opponents fall for that move." He jabbed at me again.

"I have a question for you, Uhai," I replied, stabbing at his face to back him away.

"Speak."

"How can a proud Sacaean like you live as an assassin? Why leave your tribe and your people?"

Uhai circled the tip of his blade around my own, trying to throw me off again, but I kept my eyes locked on him. When he struck, I saw it coming. "I sympathize with our leader, Brendan Reed's, ideology."

"Brendan Reed?" I asked, stepping back from a quick jab. "I thought your leader was Nergal."

Uhai backed off as he explained but did not leave himself open. "No, Nergal came after the woman. Before, the Black Fang held firmly to the idea of helping the weak and breaking the overly proud." Uhai struck at me, though merely to strike. He had no intention of a kill yet. He wanted to finish. "Discussing this philosophy with Brendan and his sons, training together, getting stronger together." Another false strike. "For me, the Black Fang was the first place… that felt like home."

"Felt?" I struck in with my own flurry of blows. "Is that feeling gone?"

Uhai did not attempt to retaliate. "The Black Fang has changed… Ever since Nergal sent that woman… But it's too late to change now!"

Uhai struck again, and I copied the attack to prevent too many blows. As I swung back, he pivoted and pushed my hand aside. I had barely enough time to duck down as he tried to grab my neck to finish me. He missed the grab, but his sword punctured my back next to the collarbone. I rolled away, recovered before he could attack again, and cursed myself for forgetting to use my free hand.

He struck in with another flurry of jabs that I could barely sidestep. I threw out a strike to back him off, but Uhai pushed my arm away to repeat his previous move. I let myself fall backward, bringing my sword around and catching him in the side. Uhai stumbled away, clutching his waist. I inflicted a harsh wound. He now had to use his free hand to cover his injury.

But it did not slow him down. Uhai moved at me with an unending flurry of strikes. I backed away and sidestepped his attacks, but he continued to hound me. It was all I could do to keep my sword in front of me. He caught a moment where I faltered. My blade was deflected away, and he lunged in for the kill. I grabbed his hand just in time to move it to the side, missing my heart. Instead, the sword went through my left shoulder, and he could not recover fast enough. I drove my blade back into the wound I had created and pushed it with all my might.

Uhai grunted, and I could feel his weight falling on me. I had to let go of my own sword to keep him from falling on top of me. I pulled off to the side, and we both crashed to the ground.

"Guuu…" Uhai groaned. "Well… done…. You are stronger than I expected." With a final exhale, he became silent.

I took air back into my battered lungs and endured the pain of my injuries. "Ahh… Ah…. Ughah…." At least it wasn't that throbbing headache again. "Uhai… I wish we could've met under different circumstances."

Lyn's tender touch caressed my back. "Mark… Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine. Just give me time with the healers."

"Well done, Mark," Eliwood replied, coming up as well. "Your combat prowess is vast indeed to be able to fight a skilled Sacaean such as him."

"You never cease to amaze," Hector said, helping me back to my feet with Lyn. "But do we trust what he told us? About the location of the Dragon's Gate?"

"He was a Sacaean," Lyn answered. "He would not lie. That's why you used me to seal the terms, right Mark?" Her tone was a bit accusatory.

"He wouldn't believe me if it came from my mouth. I apologize for having to put you on the spot, Lyn. But I knew that even if I fell and you all had to hand Ninian over to him, you would still go to the Dragon's Gate. And since he told us at the beginning of the fight, I'm inclined to believe he was telling us the truth."

"I choose to believe him as well," Lyn replied.

"Then we'll set out tomorrow morning," Eliwood replied. "Come, let's get you back to the healers, Mark."

Chapter Text

Chapter 10

A building unlike any I had seen as far back as my memory stretched rose up before the company like an ancient custodian awaiting our arrival. The stonework was entirely smooth, void of any gaps. It seemed as if this had all been a giant stone slab, and the passageways had been carved from a single piece of material. Pillars thicker than any tree trunk I'd ever seen lined the hallways leading inward. The structure appeared to have been abandoned by its builders long ago based on the amount of overgrown vegetation that covered the stonework.

"What's wrong, Ninian?" Eliwood asked. "You're trembling."

Ninian barely peered over Eliwood's shoulder. "…This place… so frightening. Something powerful…"

"It's her power, isn't it?" Lyn replied, bringing her horse up next to her.

"What's that?" Hector asked.

I stared off into the gloom of the hallways, attempting to make out anything within that could be the cause of her distress. "Ninian has the ability to sense impending danger. Her memory may be gone, but her power remains just how I retained my knowledge of battlefield tactics through my amnesia." Of course, I already knew there was danger ahead. Somewhere within this structure, we would find Ephidel and Nergal and, no doubt, more of the Black Fang. Not only that, but I would become more of a risk the closer we came to finding them. My conscious logic screamed at me to turn around and leave before that could happen, yet my loyalty held me firm. I had given everyone the order to put an end to me should I become corrupted. However, I still wrestled with my faith that they would follow that order.

Eliwood reached around to place a gentle hand on her shoulder. "What is it you sense, Ninian?"

A mien of fear fell upon her, and she hid herself behind Eliwood. "I… should not have… come here. Something awful will happen if I'm here." A shadowy figure materialized, seizing Ninian in the blink of an eye and disappearing again.

"Ninian? Ninian!" Eliwood shouted, spinning his horse around to locate her.

The sound of glass shattering and then rushing past us alerted me. I turned Ajax around to find Ninian's face grasped by a black haired man in a purple cloak.

"This little bird has escaped its island cage twice. Now that she's back, she'll not be allowed to fly away again." He turned to give us a wicked grin, and that's when I spotted his golden eyes.

"Ephidel!" A sharp pain pricked in the back of my head, but my anger numbed it.

"You're Ephidel?" Hector dismounted his horse and drew his weapon. "I've been looking forward to this."

"Gallantly spoken," Ephidel mocked. "Of course I know who you are. Marquess Ostia's younger brother, Lord Hector, here alongside his best friend, Lord Eliwood of Pherae." He snapped his gaze to Lyn. "And here we have Caelin's beloved princess, Lady Lyndis." His golden eyes fell upon me. "Then, of course, the brilliant tactician who has led you all here today. I see you all have held onto him even after what he did to the Marquess Caelin. How foolish of you all to keep such a dangerous man amongst your ranks."

"Leave the girl, Ephidel," I said in an attempt at persuasion, remembering how he said I was crucial to whatever mad scheme they had concocted. "It is me you want."

His eyebrows rose, but his smile did not disappear. "Oh, indeed I do. But there is no need for me to hand over the girl to you. Taking her will ensure that you come to us."

"And what if I don't," I countered. "What if I stay behind while my friends hunt you down?"

Ephidel laughed entirely too smugly. "I believe you know how we can ensure you obey."

So it was true. "Who am I, Ephidel?! And who are you that you can possess me? Why not possess me now?"

"Because that would waste valuable resources," Ephidel replied. "And we will need those resources very soon. If you truly wish to find the answers, then come. Come inside, and you will get your answers." His golden eyes flashed back to Eliwood and Hector. "In the meantime, I've been dying to know. The gift I left for you in the forest… Was it to your liking? The corpse of that filthy red-haired traitor?"

Hector's restraint snapped, allowing him to move on Ephidel. "Monster! Stay, right there! I'm going to crush the life from you with my bare hands."

"Be aware of Ninian," I said as he passed me. "Make sure she is out of range of your wrath."

Ephidel's grin curled up tighter than a sleeping snake. "Now I see! She was an Ostian spy, wasn't she? Don't worry; she did not suffer. It only took one blow."

"Die!" Hector lunged for his target. But before he could get within three feet, Ephidel vanished. Hector stopped himself and whipped his head around to locate his target. But Ephidel had vanished for good this time. "Blast."

Marcus rode his horse down the entrance of the structure about a hundred meters and returned with haste. "He left no trace. We have no way to know where he took Ninian."

"He didn't take her far," I stated, staring into the dark of the ruins again. "This is the Dragon's Gate, and he took her somewhere in there. Split into groups of four and spread out through the ruins. We need to find where they took her." I glanced at Eliwood. He was grinding the reins in his hands so tightly that I could hear the soft leather groaning against his gloved hands. "And that's where we'll find Lord Elbert. But be on your guard, if Lord Darin went anywhere after abandoning Laus, the most likely place would be here to defend Ephidel and his master. Watch for Black Fang soldiers, and send a runner to alert the rest of the company if Lord Darin is spotted. Do not engage until we have all come together. We need to take him alive if possible. He will be our only chance to find Ninian and Lord Elbert." I finally decided on an important conundrum and I turned to Marcus. "You are with me."

Marcus, as well as the other lords, looked at me with confusion.

"Why Marcus?" Eliwood asked.

"I will not leave my lord's side," Marcus protested.

"Eliwood will be well protected," I assured him. "Lowen will go with him, and I want Hector and Oswin to join him as well. I need you to accompany me because I need the second fastest horse to help me scout these ruins."

"Very well," Marcus conceded, only slightly more at ease.

"I will go with you too," Lyn replied.

"No!" I blurted. Lyn started at my outburst, so I chuckled with a calmer composure. "No, it will only be Marcus and me."

"Only you two?" Hector asked. "You said groups of four."

"The more time we waste searching these ruins, the more time we give the Black Fang to use Ninian to finish whatever they are preparing. Marcus and I can cover the most ground in the least amount of time. Our top priority is finding Darin or Ninian and Lord Elbert. Hopefully, Marcus and I will be able to discover one or both of their locations and then we shall round up the rest of the company to liberate them." I urged Ajax to move before anyone else could raise an argument. "You have your orders. Get moving."

As I rode away from the rest of the company, I prayed that Lyn did not follow, and to my relief, I heard only a single horse galloping behind me. I continued pushing Ajax further into the ruins until I was sure we were far enough away from the company before slowing down.

"A part of me believes you intend to kill me," Marcus said, catching up to me. I heard no more hooves coming from behind, so I slowed Ajax. "But then I ask myself ‘why me and not my lord?’ My death would benefit you only in the short run. Another part of me believes the enemy already has you. But if that were the case, you would have given some other excuse to ride off alone. So, the only other conclusion I can make is that you are astonishingly trusting. Not many men would keep a sword at their neck, and fewer still would not be the one holding it."

I relaxed the reins to let Ajax trot at his own pace. "I guess that means you've already determined the real reason I had you accompany me."

Marcus let his lance hang by his side. "I have, but for peace of mind, I'd like to hear it from your mouth."

His stern gaze fell upon me, puncturing from a safe distance like his lance. "Each instance of my possessions produced differing outcomes, each of which have been completely arbitrary. I cannot determine when, how long, or to what degree I will lose myself. All I know is the person who is responsible for it. With Ephidel's statement, there is no doubt I am at the greatest risk of possession in this place. Since the attack on the pirate ship, I have been considering these facts, and I have finally come to a conclusion. I cannot gamble with the lives of everyone in the company." I matched Marcus' hard stare. "And you are the only one I trust will obey my order and end me as a threat."

Marcus did not look away from me. "And how did you come to this conclusion?"

I was the one to look away. "Let's consider the best-case scenario for a moment. Let's say the company dispatches all of the enemies waiting for us here including Darin, and we find where Ephidel took Ninian and Lord Elbert. It is inevitable that Ephidel or his master will possess me to stop us. And with no way of knowing how they go about possessing me, we have only one way of stopping it from happening."

Marcus still did not shift his gaze.

"You have to kill me, Marcus! Here and now before I can do any damage. If you don't, then you will have to kill me anyway when I do become possessed, and by then I might hurt someone, and that someone could be your Lord Eliwood. You have a duty to protect your lord, so fulfill it now."

Marcus shifted his jaw thoughtfully. "If you wish to remove yourself as a potential threat, why bring me with you? Why not fall on your sword?"

His response surprised me. Of everyone in the company, I figured he would have jumped at the chance to eliminate me, as he had distrusted me ever since I came to Eliwood. "I… I'm not sure I could do it. I fear that Ephidel and his master are watching me, and they might possess me before I could even draw my sword. Then I would be lost for sure."

Marcus didn't relent on the questions. "And you do not know if they will even possess you."

"No, I do know they will," I said, returning my hard stare to him. But it was like smashing my sword against a shield.

"No, you do not. All you know is that they might possess you. And right now, they are not."

"That doesn't change the fact they will."

Marcus cocked his head, presenting me with a smile. "So why hasn't the enemy possessed you to cut all our throats while we were sleeping or during battle to give us poor tactics."

"I don't know."

Marcus struck in expertly. "Exactly. You don't know. None of us know. What we do know is that there is a risk, as there always is in battle. But we face them anyway. You understand this better than anyone. There was a risk those pirates would turn on us at any moment during our voyage here, but we didn't kill them all because they were potentially a threat."

"We had no choice but to trust them to help us. We couldn't have made it to this island without them."

"And we wouldn't have made it this far without you. I understand your reasoning, Mark. It is logical. However, the problem is that your profession forces you to treat life like a battle plan, and you don't stop to consider others' feelings. Take me for instance. I don't think you considered that I am a Paladin dedicated to honor and would never murder an innocent man."

"I can't say I thought it mattered," I grumbled, wishing I’d brought Oswin with me instead.

Marcus continued his verbal counterattack. "And did you ever consider what your death might do to our company? Let's consider a less favorable scenario. Let's say I kill you here and now. We do find the Dragon's Gate, but it turns out that Ephidel and the Black Fang have their army waiting within a labyrinth. Without our brilliant tactician, we would be left to make our own tactics, which only a few people in the company have any experience with."

"You put too much faith in me and not your skills."

"I put my faith in my lord's wishes," Marcus struck again. "And he has put his faith in you. I would dishonor myself by carrying out an action that my lord did not order nor would carry out himself. And that's because Eliwood trusts you, Mark. But not in the way you believe." Marcus' stare became wily. "Tell me, Mark. How did you come to be the commander of this company?"

"Because Lord Eliwood hired me as the company's tactician."

"And why did he hire you?"

"Because he knew who I was."

"What did you say?"

"Because he knew who I was."

"Ah ha. He knew who you were."

Marcus's response puzzled me. "Yes, he knew me from my work with Lady Lyndis."

"Right, he knew what you did for Lady Lyndis."

My mind tumbled with his words, trying to make sense of his point. "That's right? And so, he hired me for my tactical abilities."

"That's not what you said before," Marcus retorted, pointing at me and becoming wilier. "You said he hired you because he knew who you were."

"Right," I replied, reestablishing the facts. "He hired me because he knew I was a skillful tactician."

"No, he didn't."

I clutched my hair in frustration. "What are you talking about? You said he hired me because he knew me, and I agreed with you!"

Marcus, a man skilled in both blade and wisdom, drove home his point. "That's right; he hired you because he knew you, not because he knew your abilities. He only witnessed your tactical prowess for a day, but he witnessed your selfless aid to Lady Lyndis and that girl Ninian from your actions throughout that entire campaign. All of Lycia heard about Lord Hausen reuniting with his granddaughter and the brave tactician who helped Lady Lyndis travel all the way from Sacae to Caelin, only taking the horse gifted to him as compensation. What you did was not a job. It was one friend helping another. And from what I've witnessed from you during this campaign, there is no difference."

I had no response. Marcus had utterly disarmed me.

"Make no mistake, Mark. I understand the risk you pose, as does everyone in the company. We've all discussed it on several occasions. And should you become a threat, we will take the steps necessary to eliminate your threat. But killing you is the last resort. Your tactical glasses have blinded you to the impact you have had on everyone, including me. People trust you not only because you have led them this far but also because of the person you are. You came to Eliwood because you wanted to help him find his father. Correct me if I'm wrong."

"Well, jobs were scarce at the time," I admitted.

"But you offered your services because you wanted to help, not because it would be a lucrative opportunity," Marcus countered. "If I'm not mistaken, other than furthering your name as a tactician, you and lord Eliwood have yet to discuss monetary payment for this campaign."

"Well…" I thought for a moment.

"You're also a terrible liar, Mark," Marcus parried before I could finish the thought. "It's unwise to lie to a Paladin of Pherae."

"That's correct," I submitted with a nod.

"And you're always someone who finishes a job."

I nodded again. "I pride myself on it."

"Then why would you leave before you've finished this job?"

"Okay, Marcus," I replied, begrudgingly accepting defeat. "I get it. I just don't want to hurt anyone." The memory of Castle Caelin continued to flash before my eyes, sending a cold shock throughout my body each time—my blade rising out of the dark, Ephidel's golden eyes and his sickening grin, Hausen on the ground in a pool of blood. "I don't want to kill those who have put their trust in me."

Marcus placed his hand on my shoulder and turned me to face him. "I promise I won't allow that to happen. But there is no point in surrendering before the battle has even begun. You've fought off the possession before.” He turned his horse into the ruins. “I say you can do it again."

Something ahead of us drew Marcus' attention. I realized that Marcus and I had not seen any Black Fang troops during our conversation, and I discovered why. Armored bodies littered the ground before us. Something killed them, but not with weapons. We moved closer, and the corpses appeared almost hollow as if their insides had somehow been sucked out. Only dark magic could have done this. I knew who, but why?

"Marcus!" Lowen rode out of the gloom to meet us. "We have found Lord Darin!"

"Does he still live?" I asked, considering the dead men below us.

"He does," Lowen replied. "But only barely. Lord Eliwood and Lord Hector are interrogating him up ahead."

Lowen led us a few hundred yards through the ruins. The hollow cadavers became more numerous the further we ventured. Then, they finally seemed to stop after we passed into what appeared to be a throne room. Unlike the rest of the ruins, this room looked to have avoided time's decay and invasive foliage. At the far end, Eliwood, Hector, and Lyn stood with a portion of the company before a kneeling Lord Darin. I dismounted Ajax and went to them.

"Your treachery is over, Lord Darin," Eliwood said, as Marcus and I came up. "But it's not too late. Where is my father?"

Darin coughed. "I… was to be… the ruler… of the world. Ephidel… you traitor… How could you do this to me?" Darin fell forward and released his last breath.

"He was mad," Lyn said, shaking her head.

"Consumed by his own lust…" Hector agreed. "Pitiful fool."

Eliwood did not look away from the fallen marquess. "Lord Darin…"

So they were the bodies of the troops Ephidel had promised to protect Lord Darin. And they had been betrayed just the same. Ephidel or his master had to be the cause. We had to move now. "This is no time for sentiment, Eliwood." I clutched his shoulder and gave him a gentle shake to bring him back to the present. "We need to find your father."

"You needn't search much further."

A man dressed in ragged dark clothing, a purple cloak, and a black headband tied around his long violet hair stepped out of the gloom. He had a serene smile, and his eyes were both tempting and intimidating. His appearance was similar to Matthew’s, and considering who was on this island, he filled me with considerable unease.

"Thank you for coming so far. You'll find what you seek just down that hall."

"There are only two types of people on this island that I am aware of: my company and the Black Fang." I nodded to Sain and Kent, and the two cavaliers flanked either side of him, pointing their lances down to block his exit. "And you are not a part of my company."

The man gave a tame laugh. There was no sinister intent or concerned confusion in it either. He seemed quite content with his current state of affairs. "Quite right. My name is Legault, and I am a house cleaner for the Black Fang."

"I don't care what you are. You are our enemy. And I will not trust the words of a snake."

"As you shouldn't,” he said, deliberately holding up his hands to raise his cloak and show he was unarmed. “For you see, my loyalty is quite fragile. My life is my primary concern, and so I have come here to surrender myself in hopes that you might spare my life when you are finished retrieving Marquess Pherae and provide me passage off this island."

"Why would you do that?" Eliwood asked, equally skeptical of his words.

"My reasons are my own," the man replied with a shrug. "But I do hope that you all will prove capable of what you are about to face. Because you are walking into a trap."

"How do you know that?" I asked.

Legault folded his arms and smirked. "Surely, you can sense such an obvious set-up."

"Then let me return to the previous question. Why tell us this? Why betray the Black Fang."

"Did you not hear me before?" Legault said, raising a brow. "I said I wished for my life to be spared and taken off this island."

"I heard you. I just don't believe you."

"My, you are the cynical one, aren't you?" the man said, rubbing his chin. "Tell you what? Prove my assertion of you all accurate, come back from this alive, and I will tell you everything you wish to know about me and my former employers. You will most certainly have earned it."

"Why would we fulfill what you request?"

He eyed me knowingly. "Because I know you have questions you want answered."

I studied the man a moment longer. His demeanor had not changed at all during our exchange. He admitted to being a part of the Black Fang and even acknowledged we were walking into a trap, and yet he did not try to stop us, and if this was some trick, it seemed entirely pointless. Eliwood's father was down there, and so were Ninian, Ephidel, and likely Nergal. What possible trickery could this man be trying to pull on us that we wouldn't already be facing? I gazed at Hector and Eliwood. They merely shrugged; they didn't know how to respond to this either. And no one else in the company had voiced any opinions on the matter.

"Take him into our custody," I ordered and then turned to Eliwood. "Your father is down there. Trap or not, it is our only choice. Let's go."

Eliwood nodded. "Right."

The three Lords made their way down the hall, but I turned to Lowen and Marcus before I followed. "Lowen, keep the company here and await further orders. The man is right; there is most likely a trap waiting for us in those dark halls. I don't want to risk what happened to Darin's men happening to our group. If we need the rest of the company, I will send Marcus."

Lowen nodded, and Marcus and I left to catch up with the lords. After several minutes, we entered into an expansive, dimly lit room that made my heart skip a beat. We had found ourselves on a green walkway—the same green walkway from my dream. There was no denying it. I recognized the intricate designs etched into the architecture and the platforms standing in the darkness on either side of the walkway. Which could only mean…

"Father!" Eliwood raced across the walkway, looking around. "Father!? It's me! Eliwood! I've come to save you!"

Hector scanned the walkway as well. "It's dark in here. Can barely see a thing…"

A weak voice came from further in the darkness. "Eli… Eliwood…"

We all charged forward as Eliwood called out again. "Father! Where are you?"

"There!" Lyn pointed at a man slumped on the ground, barely visible in the gloom. "I see someone there!"

"Father!" Eliwood rushed to the man, falling on his knees next to him. "You… You're all right!"

Lord Elbert slowly lifted his head to find his son's joyful gaze. "Eliwood…" He burst to life. "Wait! For-Forget me! Take that girl and flee!"

Eliwood followed his father's gaze to Ninian, who stood further down the walkway, poised like an elegant statue and just as still. Eliwood went up to her. "Ninian?"

Ninian did not respond. She did not even seem to notice Eliwood approaching.

"That girl…" Lord Elbert replied. "She's the key to the Dragon's Gate. Hurry! Go before Nergal notices you!"

I turned to Marcus. "We've found your marquess. We must leave as soon as possible before Ephidel or his master appears. Go back and prepare the company to leave for Fargus immediately. If we have not joined you in two minutes, bring the company here."

"Right away." Marcus rode off back the way we came.

The lack of Nergal, or even Ephidel, kept my blood at a chilling temperature. Legault had said this was a trap. And even though I didn't trust him, it was strange that Ephidel and Nergal had gone through the trouble of capturing Ninian only to leave her alone for us to find and simply carry off. I scanned the rest of the room, hunting for our enemies. But with the ability to teleport, the likelihood of Ephidel being visible was low, and I had yet to witness Nergal's power.

"Eliwood, I have your father!" Hector called. "You take Ninian!"

"I understand!" Eliwood went to grab Ninian.

A strange sensation washed over me. Not another possession. This sensation filled me with power. I suddenly burned with an ambition to carry out a task. But what task and why, I could not conceive.

The gate is opening. Call them. Ninian’s voice echoed in my head

Another voice spoke in my head as well. The voice spoke in a strange language I didn't understand, yet I was familiar with it. The words were low and guttural, almost bestial. With each word, they became louder until they were all I could hear.

A tug on my arm pulled me out of the trance. I turned to see Lyn beckoning me back down the pathway. "Come on, Mark." The foreign words muffled her voice. "We must leave now."

Before she could pull me any further, a man materialized before us. It wasn't Ephidel. This man had hair the color of blood, and a carefully wrapped cloak shrouded everything but his face and the top of his head.

"You will not pass here," he stated, pulling out two daggers.

Lyn stepped back, pulling out her sword. "When did you…?"

"You must not fight that man!" Lord Elbert shouted to us.

The man stared us down but did not move to attack.

"Father, there's no time. This danger must be faced."

The voice stopped growling in my head as another familiar voice spoke out in the darkness. "Be a good boy, and listen to your father, young master Eliwood."

"Ephidel," I shouted, turning around to find him beside the cloaked man. He no longer wore the hood that had covered his face as before, so I could see the wicked grin.

"Even among the Black Fang, that man is feared for his skill," he explained. "You are no match for him, not even as a group." Ephidel stepped toward us, addressing the man as he walked. "You've done well, Jaffar. Return to Bern and begin your next assignment."

The man was gone when I blinked. I didn't even hear his footsteps.

"Hear my words!" Ephidel shouted, turning in place. "I have an invitation from my master. In honor of your hard-fought arrival, he's prepared a special show for you."

Here it comes.

"Stop it!" Lord Elbert demanded. "You cannot release the dragons!"

Eliwood turned to him. "Father? What's all this about?"

"You will know shortly," Ephidel said. "At the expense of your father's life!"

Lord Elbert let out a shriek of pain as he contorted in Hector's grasp.

"Father!" Eliwood rushed to help Hector. "What's wrong? Father!"

"Lord Elbert! Hold on!" Hector did his best to contain the marquess, but it was as if he were trying to keep hold of a rabid mongoose torn away from its meal. Just when Hector seemed to have him, Lord Elbert would spasm and break free. Lyn ran up to aid them as well, but even with three of them, they were having difficulty holding Lord Elbert.

Ninian’s voice echoed in my head again. Pow…pow… er… power…

"Ninian?" I noticed her hand reaching toward Lord Elbert, like she was trying to grasp him.

Take it… take the quientessence.

The voice started snarling in my head again, and this time, I wanted to move toward the Dragon's Gate. I did not resist. This ambition within me… It was invigorating. No possession. I was entirely in control of my body. I wanted to do this. I wanted to… complete my… my… what? What was I doing?

"Now, Ninian… at last." Another figure appeared next to Ninian, draped in a black cloak like Ephidel, with a dark turban wrapped around his head, covering his right eye. "Open the Dragon's Gate."

"Gate…" she said completely monotone. "Open… gate…"

Ninian spoke and the giant black doorway behind them exploded in a ball of fire. My heart beat faster as her voice grew louder. I continued stepping forward past the lords towards the gate and my mouth stretched into a wide smile.

Exhilaration surged through me at the sight of a hulking form emerging from the fire, followed by a resounding roar. I took another step closer and then a sharp crack to the back of my head turned everything black.

Chapter Text

Chapter 11

I awoke to a lantern’s light spilling in through a window. My eyes adjusted and I found that I was no longer in the green halls of the Dragon's Gate. Instead, I was staring at the wooden panels of the ceiling of a bedroom. When I sat up in the bed, Nils was sitting on a chest at the foot of the bed and turned around when he heard me.

"You're awake, Mark," he replied with a cheerful bounce to spin himself around to face me. "How are you feeling?"

"Nils? What are you doing here?" I asked. Out of the corner of my eye, Ninian was sitting on the other bed, staring at the floor. "Ninian, are you okay?"

Nils looked at his sister. A look of slight discouragement crossed his face for a brief second, but he expelled it with a hopeful smile. "She will be fine now. Her memory has returned."

"Well, I’m glad to hear that, but…that man with her," I said, remembering the black figure at the gate. Just recalling the image of him caused my head to ache as it usually did with members of the Black Fang. But with him… it was even worse. "I feel like I know him."

"That was Nergal," Nils said.

"Nergal?!" Pain spiked in my head. "Ah!"

"Mark!" Nils raised a hand to me. "Are you okay?"

I took in a deep breath to endure the pain, and after a few seconds, it dissipated. "I'm… fine." Truly, I was. I had no desire to do anything to Ninian as I had on the ship, and there was no invigorating feeling like at the gate. But that latter feeling concerned me… Why had it happened, and why had it happened when Nergal appeared? "Where are we?"

"We're back in Badon," Nils answered. The worry on his face took longer to calm than I would've liked. That hand he had raised toward me wasn’t out of concern for me. It had almost curled into a fist. He had been ready to defend his sister… "We got away from Nergal and the Dragon's Gate. And don't worry. The dragon is gone, too."

"The dragon?" I remembered a form coming through the fire. "Was that what came through the gate?"

Nils gave me a puzzled look. "You mean you didn't know?"

"Know what?"

Before he could answer, the door swung open, and Lyn and Hector entered, looking as relieved as ever to see me. But how long had I been out, where was Eliwood, and how did we escape Ephidel and Nergal, and the dragon for that matter?

"Glad to see you've finally woken up," Hector said. "We were about to put you with Serra and Priscilla if you did not wake by morning.”

The thought of waking up to see Serra hovering over me started a new headache. “Thank you for considering my sanity. But I’m actually shocked they weren’t already here. Where are they?”

Hector’s gaze wandered away from me with a strange apprehension. “We’ll tell you later.”

Lyn went to Ninian. "Are you feeling better?"

Ninian glanced at Lyn for a moment as if to ask her something but returned to staring back at the floor. "Yes…"

I doubted there was one person in the room who believed her, but Lyn did not push. "That's good." She rubbed Ninian's back before turning to me. "And how about you? Do you remember what happened?"

I reached back into my mind and tried to piece together the events. "All I remember was fire and a form coming through it. After that, everything went black." I didn't mention the inhuman voice in my head or Ninian's, nor getting knocked out. If I couldn't make sense of it, it would be pointless to explain it to them. After all, it could have been my imagination.

"So, you didn't see the dragon?" Hector asked.

"Then it wasn't a dream…" I breathed out, having the truth confirmed for me.

He nodded, folding his arms. "First one any of us have ever seen. The company had a hard time believing it after we returned."

"What happened to it?" I asked.

"Nils came," Lyn said. "He broke Ninian out of whatever trance she was in, and the dragon couldn't maintain its existence, according to him. It exploded after the gate closed. Ephidel was caught in the blast as well."

"What about Nergal?" I asked, standing up from the bed, anxious to hear that he, too, had perished. Strangely enough, a tiny bit of anger boiled up in me like an unexpected burp, lasting less than a second but still noticeable.

"Lord Elbert put an end to him…" Hector answered. "Struck a grievous wound before he could attack us." His words faded. "But…"

"But what…?"

Lyn folded her arms and dumped her head. "That’s why Serra and Priscilla aren’t here. They’re helping prepare Lord Elbert’s body to be returned to Pherae."

Devastation shot through me. "No…" That's when I remembered Eliwood wasn't here. "What about…?"

"He's fine," Hector assured me. "But he's taking his father's death hard. He needs some time alone."

I nodded in understanding and decided to continue my questions. "What about you, Nils? How did you make it to the Dragon’s Gate?"

Nils looked at his sister and then followed her example of staring at the floor. "After we left Caelin, my sister and I had both been kidnapped by Nergal's minions. Lord Elbert freed us a few days ago, and we escaped in a small boat, but I was thrown out in a storm. When I woke up, I was back on Valor. For a time, I hid in the ruins by myself. Then… I sensed something really dangerous. When I raced to the Dragon's Gate, I…" He glanced at me. "I saw everything."

I peeked at Ninian in the corner of my vision. She had lost her memory after we had found her in the boat. She hadn't remembered Lyn or me. The other issue was that she had been speaking to me at the Dragon's Gate. She told me to take the quintessence.

"At the gate, Ninian hurt Lord Elbert and opened the gate. I remember that. How was she able to do that?"

My words caused Ninian to wince slightly, but I ignored it. I needed answers. Nils answered for her. "I think it's because we can open the Dragon's Gate."

"What!?!" I exclaimed while Hector and Lyn both drew surprised breaths. "You two can open the Dragon’s Gate? But how?"

"It's another one of our special powers," he said with an uneasy expression.

"Is that why I heard her voice in my head?" I asked, anxious to know more. "And what was that other voice speaking some strange language?"

Nils fidgeted with his hands. As an adolescent, it would have been reasonable behavior for anyone watching him. But as a trained strategist, I knew how to read people's faces, including those as young as Nils’s. Whatever he was about to say, he was considering shrewdly. "Her voice was probably your quintessence being transferred to her as well to open the gate. And the other voice was the dragon itself feeding off that same quintessence."

"Are you serious?" Hector asked, shocked by the notion that the twins had that ability. "Just like your ability to sense danger?"

"No." Nils’s face remained troubled, but now he knew what he wanted to say. "We can open the gate, but neither Ninian nor I can steal quintessence from others. Nergal and Ephidel drained people of their quintessence and then transferred it to Ninian. But opening the gate and calling the dragons required a tremendous amount of quintessence. That is why he needed to drain Mark as well."

"You keep calling it quintessence. What is that?" Lyn asked.

"That's what Nergal called it. The substance of a being's spirit… Power. Energy. The essence of life itself."

"So my quintessence was being stolen…" I said, still trying to put the pieces together.

"And those whose quintessence is stolen…" Hector replied.

"They… they die…" Nils finished solemnly. "I'm sorry I could not save Lord Elbert in time."

Lyn grabbed Nils' hands. "But you did save Mark." She looked at me expectantly.

"That's right," I said. "Thank you for that."

I said what they wanted to hear, but I wasn’t convinced. Nils had a strange restlessness about him that told me he wasn't telling us everything. And if Nergal and Ephidel had been draining me, it had been the most energizing drain ever. My body had burned with life like I was ready to become the greatest warrior that ever lived. Not only that, but excitement had surged through me at the sight of the dragon… I wanted an answer to that, but I decided to go with a more glaring question. "But why did Nergal need my quintessence?"

"Nergal needed to gather a large amount of quintessence," Nils continued almost too eagerly. "So, he sent his henchman Ephidel to get close to Marquess Laus. He sought to plant the seeds of war in Darin's power-hungry heart."

"To what end?" I asked.

"It seems the quintessence in each person varies in strength. A being of strong mind and body has hundreds of times more energy than the average person. It sounds like there aren't many people like that, though. It would take too long for Nergal to find people with enough strength. Instead, he said the easiest way to get that much quintessence was by starting a war."

"He decided to make up for quality with quantity?" Hector spit. "Black-hearted fiend. Are all men nothing but pawns to him?"

"One day, Ephidel came back to Nergal saying he had found what they needed to call the dragons. The war had ended, but Nergal was happy. He had planned to take Elbert's quintessence, but whatever Ephidel found stayed Nergal's hand."

"Lord Elbert's spasms…" I said, growing cold. "He took his quintessence… Why did he wait?"

Nils shrugged. "I think it was because you were the one Ephidel found. You must have a lot of quintessence. And Ephidel found out you were traveling with Eliwood in search of Lord Elbert."

"He kept Eliwood's father alive as bait… to bring me to him?"

"Mark!" Lyn grabbed my arm and turned me toward Eliwood, who was standing in the doorway, his face pale and lacking the altruistic brightness it usually carried.

"Ah… I'm sorry, Eliwood."

"It's all right…" He did not look at me or anyone.

“Lord Elbert was a great man. He did everything he could to save us. All of us.” Nils said going up to Eliwood. "Your father told us that he had a son. He said you were blessed with natural fighting ability. But he also told us you were compassionate and disdained fighting. He told us that his son would be a better ruler than he was, and he would sooner sacrifice himself than see his homeland, Lycia, embroiled in the flames of war."

"That's…" Eliwood did not finish.

Nils moved closer to Eliwood, attempting to find his eyes. "When we'd lost all hope at the Dragon's Gate, your father always spoke to us of happy things. Well, he mainly spoke of his cherished son and his dear wife, but Ninian and I… We loved him very much. His stories about his family… They saved us."

Eliwood still did not respond, but his gaze traveled over to Ninian. When she saw him staring at her, it was as if a lantern lit up within her. A small smile formed, and she nodded to agree with her brother. But I noticed something else as well. Her cheeks were starting to turn a pale red, her eyes darted to and away from Eliwood, and the smile… I had seen this kind of smile before…

My thoughts were broken off when a heavy hand pulled me off the bed and toward the door. "Come on, Mark, Lyn," Hector said. "We should let him be alone for a while…"

Eliwood groaned. "Hector, I'm fi-"

"No, you're not." He said, throwing open the door for me. "I'm your best friend, and I know when you're off. Plus, Mark's a tactician. He knows how to read faces."

I jerked my head toward Hector in shock. "How did you-"

"See!" Hector threw his hand against my back to silence me so he could cover his bluff by capitalizing on my reaction. "Tactician's orders, Eliwood."

"Come on Nils. You too Ninian." Lyn said, extending her hand to her.

"As you say, " Nils replied. He and Ninian followed us out into the hall.

"Um…" Ninian said as she quietly shut the door. "If it's all right, I'd like to rest in my room. I'm still feeling rather drained…"

"Of course, Ninian," Lyn replied. I wondered if she knew Ninian was lying. She wanted to go back to Eliwood. "If you need us, we'll be outside."

Ninian nodded gratefully, then started heading for her room while we headed out to the chilly night air. I didn't make any mention of Ninian. Despite Hector's insistence for his friend, the smile I had seen on Ninian's face betrayed her true intentions. And she would be much better for Eliwood's mental state rather than being left alone to his thoughts.

Hector walked a couple of paces and then set his hands on his hips, staring at the twinkling lights in the night sky. Lyn and I exchanged glances. We both knew he hadn't just called us out here to give Eliwood some peace.

"Hector?" Lyn asked, taking the initiative.

Hector started at her voice. "Huh?"

"Shouldn't you go to him?"

He nodded at the ground. "Mmm… Thought about it, but… There was someone else who looked ready to start crying, too."

"Oh…" Lyn answered, knowing he meant Ninian.

Hector recovered his composure and then looked at me with the same concern. "And how are you holding up, Mark? I hope that blow to your head didn't knock out your tactical genius."

"That was you?" I asked, rubbing the dull throbbing on the back of my head.

"Of course," he said, grinning wide. "You said if you started acting weird and possessed to put an end to it. So, I did. Just not in the way you were imagining."

"But you almost overdid it," Lyn countered, throwing him a nasty glare. "This was going to be his third night unconscious."

"Hey, Mark expects me to follow his order to the fullest." He looked at me for support. "Isn't that right?"

I gave him a good-natured chuckle for support. "Well, after that blow to the head, I may need to rethink my previous instructions, but yes, I do. And it did work."

"Yes, it did work," Lyn sighed, turning her attention to me. Her brilliant green eyes shimmered with concern in the inn's torchlight as they flickered about, examining me and leaving me short of breath. "Do you feel… anything wrong?"

I took a moment to let my body assess itself as I recovered from Lyn's gaze. For the first time in a while, I felt more alive, like I had just come out of a cruel illness. "Now that you mention it, I do feel much better." Then, I remembered another concern. "You said Lord Elbert gave Nergal a grievous wound?"

Lyn and Hector both nodded.

"But he's not dead, is he?"

They realized what I had said and glanced away.

"His wounds will not kill him," Nils replied.

"That's what Lord Elbert said, too," Hector added through a bereft sigh. "Do you know what he meant?"

"Nergal uses quintessence on himself as well. His wounds heal quickly. His body does not age."

"So he isn't..." Lyn almost choked on her question. "Human?"

Nils did not respond right away, which, for me, begged the question as to why. "If nothing else, he's…"

"Still a threat," Eliwood said, coming up to us with Ninian.

"Doing okay, Eliwood?" Hector asked, not the least bit surprised to see his friend.

Eliwood nodded. "Sorry to worry you."

"You don't have to push yourself so," Lyn urged. "If you need time, we understand."

"I appreciate your concern," Eliwood said with a smile. "But I promise you I'm fine."

With his assurance, I decided it was time to carry out a duty I still owed to Eliwood, as hard as it would be. "Eliwood…"

Eliwood gave me a curious look. "What is it, Mark?"

"I must apologize. I have failed as your tactician. We were unable to save your father, and more than that, it was because of me that your father suffered so much. I had no idea that Nergal desired my quintessence. He manipulated me into thinking we were coming to save your father to bring me to the Dragon's Gate, and I put you and everyone else in the company in danger due to my ignorance. It is my fault we have failed our mission, and I accept full responsibility for the suffering everyone endured during this campaign."

"Goodness, Mark," Eliwood said, setting a hand on his head. "Perhaps it is you who needed some time alone. Though let me say, I am happy to see your mind is your own again and that you are still with us." He reached out and grasped my shoulder. "And please, do not blame yourself for my father's passing. You did not kill my father. In fact, if it weren't for you assisting the company, Nergal would've likely killed my father long before we arrived on Valor. It is because of you that I reunited with my father in his final moments. And for that, you have my most sincere gratitude."

I averted my gaze to the ground. "You commend me inappropriately, my lord. Our mission was still a failure."

"And you accept blame that you should not, Mark," Eliwood replied with a new determination reinforcing his words. "Our mission was not a failure, nor is it finished. We'll have time for mourning when this is all done. For now, in my father's name… I will do everything I can to stop Nergal and protect our lands."

Eliwood’s newfound ambition was contagious. I suddenly had the drive to end Nergal as well. Although I still did not know of my origin, I knew where I was now, and I wanted to protect this land as much as Eliwood. Or, at the very least, I wished to free myself from Nergal's insatiable hunger for my energy and his ability to possess me. "If that's the case, we need to head to Ostia and relay what has happened to the Marquess."

"My brother?" Hector asked, caught off guard by my statement.

"He's right," Eliwood replied. "After all we've learned… We can't not tell him, can we?"

Hector folded his arms, unconvinced. "Sure, I guess…"

"Hector?" Lyn asked. "Why that odd expression?"

"Hector doesn't want to meet Lord Uther," Eliwood said. "He's been lax in contacting him and is afraid to face him, right?"

"What!?" Hector tried to appear legitimately offended. "How did you expect me to send him any messages when we're traipsing about the isles like merchants on holiday?"

Eliwood burst out laughing. "He's going to be so mad!" Eliwood suddenly took off, and Hector gave chase.

"C'mere!"

The two of them bolted around some houses, with their joyful bickering filling the air.

Lyn chuckled as she came up to me. "They're both in good spirits."

"It's a lot better than giving in to despair, I suppose,” I said with a nod.

"And how about you?" She took my hand in hers, and a rush of heat ran up my arm at the intimate gesture.

"M-me?" I gathered myself. "I… I'm better. Much better now, in fact. But…" I sighed.

"You still worry what might happen to you with Nergal still alive," Lyn answered for me.

"I do." I looked at Nils. He had taken Ninian aside to have a private conversation with her, and whatever they were talking about, Ninian appeared to be disheartened with it. "I worry about them as well. I'm not sure how, but Nergal has the ability to possess both Ninian and me, and likely Nils as well. But why us…? Whatever the reason, I feel it has to do with my past that I cannot recall."

Lyn squeezed my hand tight. "We'll figure it out, Mark. We'll put an end to Nergal's corruption of you and the twins. And you'll be the one to lead us through it."

I couldn't help but smile at her words of confidence. "Such faith in a man who passed out in the presence of a dragon."

She giggled. "It wasn't your fault. Hector didn't want to lose you, and neither did Eliwood or I. You led us all the way to the Dragon's Gate. We all trust your leadership. So, I have no doubt you'll be able to lead us through this hunt for that madman." She squeezed my hand one last time and then began walking away from me. "I'm going to turn in for the night. I will see you tomorrow."

“Good night, Lyn,” I said with a smile that came easily to my face.

She gave me a wave before heading back into the inn.

Once she was out of sight, I looked back to Nils and Ninian. He—and probably Ninian as well—knew something about my past. Perhaps I might have come from wherever they did. Both Ninian and I suffered amnesia. The only difference was that I still hadn't regained my memories, but Ninian had. And then there was the fact that they could open a gate that brought dragons into our world. Nils hadn't been altogether truthful about those circumstances. Why?

"Nils,” I said, approaching them. “At the Dragon's Gate, I heard Ninian's voice as well as a foreign voice in my head. You said Nergal was draining my quintessence, but it did not feel like I was in pain nor was I possessed. I suddenly felt an overwhelming desire to do something."

"You wanted to call to the dragon," Ninian said for her brother.

"I… what!?”

“Ninian!” Nils tried to intervene.

"Mark’s involved, Nils. He needs to know.” She stared at me with confidence in her eyes. “I'm the one who told you to do it. That exhilarating feeling was Nergal giving you the quintessence to call the dragons. Not taking it from you."

"Why would he do that?"

"You can call the dragons," Nils begrudgingly replied. "Just like we can open the gate and sense danger. There is no other explanation for why you heard Ninian's voice and the voice of the dragon. You might not be that different from us."

"From you? What are you two?"

Ninian shook her head. "We just have special powers. That's all. Just as different people have more quintessence in them than others, some people have special powers. And Nergal is able to sense people with these abilities."

"So when Ephidel discovered I was traveling with Eliwood, he didn’t want me for my quintessence, but because he wanted to use me to call the dragons?"

Ninian nodded sadly.

"Then we’ve come from the same place. Did he kidnap me like you two? And I must have escaped. That's why I lost my memory like you did when we found you floating in the ocean."

The two of them eyed each other with uncertainty, and then Nils spoke again. "You are not one of us. We don't know where you came from. It is possible that Nergal kidnapped you like us, but…” He paused and glanced at Ninian. His sister only stared back. “We never saw you during our first imprisonment. When I asked you and Lady Lyndis for help finding Ninian a year ago, that was the first time I had met you."

"Yes," Ninian nodded. I am sorry to say that this is all speculation on our part based on our own experience and what you've told us. We know Nergal needs you as he needs us. I learned that when we were connected in my possession, but we don't know anything about your past. I'm sorry."

Pain invaded my head. They were lying again or at least not telling me everything. I didn’t know why they were keeping things from me, but something told me it was better not to pry further. For the time being, I felt perfectly in control of myself. Hopefully, with Ephidel dead and Nergal driven into hiding, I wouldn't have to worry about becoming possessed again, at least for a while. But as Eliwood had said, we weren't finished. Nergal wasn't dead, and no doubt the Black Fang was still at large. The mysterious figure, Jaffar, was in Bern, and we had yet to encounter the leader, Brendan Reed, or that mysterious woman Uhai mentioned. No, our troubles were far from over.

"For the time being, I think it best if we keep this to ourselves,” I told them. “With Nergal weakened, we are not in danger of being used by him. We do not need to add another concern for Lord Eliwood and Lord Hector if we are not a threat." I remembered how poorly Lyn had taken my response to my possessions. I didn't need the company to worry about the twins as well. "We'll find Nergal, and we will free ourselves. However, if you feel yourselves about to be possessed, let me know immediately."

Nils looked like he was about to say something, but Ninian stopped him.

"What? What's wrong?"

"Nergal can't possess us unless he can physically touch us," Ninian replied. "Our ability to sense danger also allows us to block out remote influences."

"Oh?" I set my hands on my hips, surprised yet also relieved and slightly disappointed with myself for not having more abilities like them. "Well, good. Then I'm the only one we have to worry about."

There's more to it than that. They just won’t tell me. Why?

The joyful voices of Hector and Eliwood came from behind a couple of nearby houses. I spotted them coming back to the inn, arms around each other's shoulders. They had big smiles and were laughing the same as I imagined they had when they were both younger—before these strange occurrences interrupted their lives. I was glad to see they could hold on to their high spirits despite what we had suffered. Because I had a feeling that before the end of this campaign, we would be facing more heartache.

Chapter Text

Chapter 12

Considering what the company had been through these past few days, I decided that we should take extra time for rest and make for Ostia after lunch the following day. Traveling to Ostia from Badon would take us at least two days, so I felt no need to push the company, especially since we had no leads on where Nergal had gone. Hector was in full support of my decision, even requesting to take a more scenic route to Ostia. I decided to meet him halfway and chose a road that would end us at an allied fortress that I had worked at in a previous job on the border between Thria and Ostia.

With Lyn and I back on talking terms, I decided it was finally a good time to introduce her to Rebecca and Guy formally and asked if she would be willing to teach them combat. Being Sacaean as well, Guy could better learn the ways of Sacaean sword combat as well as gain confidence in his abilities by learning from one of his kind. There was no reason for him to give up swordplay just because his people viewed it as inferior to archery. Lyn happily accepted him, and after watching her graceful movement and fluid technique in a sparring session against me, he seemed considerably less apprehensive.

My intentions for Rebecca were different. I recommended that Lyn try to teach both of them separately since they not only used different weapons, but Rebecca had wanted to learn how to fight smart from me rather than general combat. I gave the excuse that, as the company's tactician, I didn't have the time for proper lessons. At first, Rebecca was disinterested in learning from Lyn, and a bit frustrated that I was rejecting to teach her myself. But after finding out that I trained Lyn myself and watching our sparring sessions as well, she opened up to the suggestion.

However, my actual intention for Lyn to teach Rebecca was the fact that they both suffered a tragedy in their lives caused by bandits. Hector and Eliwood had told me how pleasant Lyn had been to Fargus and his crew on the trip back from the Dread Isle. Apparently, Lyn's attitude toward them had shifted so radically that they thought she incurred a curse on the island and avoided her almost as badly as she had them on the initial trip. I didn't mention Rebecca's past to Lyn, but as open as Lyn was, I had a feeling Rebecca would share the story at some point, and by talking about it with Lyn, Rebecca's merciless mindset might change. I had considered it a fool’s hope at first, but my faith in Lyn’s kind nature outweighed my doubts.

On the road to the fortress, another Paladin of Pherae arrived to meet us. Marcus had sent a messenger back to Pherae to inform Lady Eleanora, Eliwood's mother, of her husband's passing. The new Paladin, Isadora, had been Lady Eleanora's personal bodyguard until a few days ago and explained that her lady had ordered her to provide us aid. Despite Eliwood's worry of the castle's defenses being shorthanded, Isadora beseeched Eliwood to consider his mother's feelings. Lord Elbert wouldn't be coming home, and all she could do was pray for her son's safe return. Considering our situation, I voiced no objection as the tactician, and Eliwood did not argue further.

We arrived at the border fortress earlier than I had anticipated but it would have still taken us at least another full day of travel before we arrived at Castle Ostia. Knowing Hector would likely try to devise an excuse if I suggested we continue traveling, I called for the company to break for the day. And with the extra time, I decided to take advantage of the respite and get to know some of our newer members.

"And by that point, my pants, that had been torn by the scallywag with the axe from the battle earlier that day, decided to fly solo, and the cold sea spraying against me nether regions wasn't doing me any favors. So when the captain saw me hanging upside down with nothing but a rope keeping me from joining the locker down below, he shouted, ‘Oi' ya slack-jawed swine! I told ye' to fasten that rope to the broadside, and now ye be showing off that ye only be half a man!' to which I responded, ‘I always considered m'self to be a quarter, captain, but I'll take half if ya really think so!'"

I joined in the laughter that burst out of Bartre and Wil as Dart rewarded himself with a good chug of his drink. Dart was one of the pirates from Fargus' crew. After we returned to Badon, he decided he liked the company and wanted to join us. Fargus had allowed it, and I had been unconscious at the time, so Eliwood and Hector approved him. I didn't see any reason to veto their decision. After all, Fargus' crew had proved their tenacity enough times since our fight in Badon so one of his crewmen in the company would be a valuable asset.

Dart put down his drink and released a satisfied sigh, which I could smell from across the table. "Aye, being Fargus' best mate always landed me in some shaky spots—oi! Raven! That red-haired lass over at the other table has been staring at ya for a while now. Did ye say something to her?"

The aloof mercenary didn't even open his eyes. "Maybe she’s staring because she's my sister, you drunken buffoon."

"Eh?" Dart looked back and forth between them a couple of times. "Is that so? I guess ya two do look a lot alike. I hear she's a princess or something from some land to the west. What does that make you?"

This time, Raven opened his eyes and gave Dart a razor-sharp glare. "That makes me none of your business."

Dart must have been made from sterner stuff because the glare did not faze him for a second. "Now don't be going and gettin yer britches bunched up. I was only talking to ye all friendly and sort."

"I have no desire for a friendly talk with peasants."

"Eh? What did you call me, ya mooncalf?"

"Sounds like fighting words if I ever heard any," Bartre egged them on.

"What about you Canas?" I broke in trying to calm the raging waters. "Where is your home?"

The monocled shaman jerked up from the book he had been reading. "Me?"

"Aye, you, three-eyes!" Dart joined in, forgetting Raven's insult completely. "Who reads books when there is drink and merriment to be shared."

"Someone who has the capacity in his brain for more than just sea shanties," Raven remarked.

"Whaddya say, mooncalf?"

"Yes, Canas!" I overtook. "You! Tell us about yourself." I was beginning to question Raven’s reasons for joining our company. He followed my orders without question, and he had proven to be a solid fighter on more than one occasion, but it wasn't until now that I realized his incredible surliness. No wonder he hadn't said anything when Wil and I came and sat down at the table with him and Canas. Bartre and Dart had joined us later, but since he hadn’t left, I assumed him to be merely uninterested in story-sharing.

Canas set his book on the table and adjusted himself in his seat, daintily placing his right foot on his left knee and resetting his monocle. The entire process took him several seconds, in which I feared Dart and Raven would draw their weapons out of impatience. Bartre sure seemed enthusiastic to start up a brawl. Wil just sat there regarding the entire scene with a polite indifference that made me feel a little betrayed that he wasn't acting as a second voice of reason.

"It's not a pleasant tale, I'm afraid," Canas finally said. "The knowledge of ancient magics has been passed down in my family for generations. I have, or well, had, three brothers. The forces of the darkness we studied took all of them. Now, they merely subsist. In order to use this elder magic, we must invite the dark forces within ourselves. It is quite tempting to submit to the darkness. It promises great things. One of my brothers thought he would marry the most beautiful woman in the world; another fell for the guarantee of immortality."

"And the third?" Bartre asked with tense anticipation. Everyone else at the table had become raptured in Canas' history. Even Raven stared at Canas out of the corner of his one open eye.

Canas adjusted his monocle and puffed out a soft sigh. "He gave into the darkness, believing it would protect me from it. But of course, just like the others, it was a lie. The darkness always lies; I know this better than most. It is why I have resisted for so long. However, there is no guarantee that I will not suffer the same fate as my brothers… Truthfully, the thought terrifies me. But as terrible as their fates are, I must see the other side of this elder magic. My curiosity pushes me ever deeper. It will be my undoing—I say, Dart. That girl with the braided pigtails has glanced in your direction for the thirteenth time now."

"Eh?" Dart stared around as if in a daze. Rebecca, who I now noticed staring our way, quickly returned her attention to fixing another mug for Matthew who was sitting at the bar slumped against his arms while Lyn seemed to be trying to talk with him. And the sight of him reminded me of someone. "Hey, where's that Black Fang member we picked up on Valor?

"You mean Legault?" Wil asked. "He's in the dungeon below. He's been in custody like you ordered."

Of course he is.

I shut my eyes in irritation of myself since I had forgotten I ordered his detainment and only just now remembered him. No one had made mention of any issues with him. In fact, no one had mentioned anything about him at all. He must have been behaving himself. I wasn’t planning to free him for good behavior, but I did want to ask him some questions. I excused myself from the table and made my way to the stairs that led below the fortress.

"Mark, may I have a word with you?"

Sain came up to me, but his attention was drawn elsewhere. I followed it to see him staring at Marcus and Isadora, chatting at the bar. Rebecca was there, too, filling their drinks, but slower than her usual pour. I realized it was because she was staring my way, though not at me, not at first. It wasn’t until she did lock eyes with me and jerked away from the bar that I realized she’d been staring at Sain.

“What…” Rebecca headed to the other end of the bar, watching us out of the corner of her vision. Why does she keep staring at people around me?. “…is it, Sain?”

His gaze was still locked on the Paladins. “That Paladin from Pherae. Lady Isadora.”

I cocked a brow. “Yes, what about her?”

He turned to give me his full attention. “Have you met with her?”

My other brow rose. “Yes, I evaluate all new members of this company. But there wasn’t any need to scrutinize her as both Eliwood and Marcus vouched for her.”

“Have you sparred with her?”

“I…what?”

Sain came back to me with a mien of dire urgency. “Have you assessed her combat skills?”

“No. As I said, Eliwood and Marcus both vouched for her. I trust she can hold her own in combat.”

Sain grumbled out something incoherent. “She most certainly can,” his attention drifted away again. “Blast.”

“What’s this about, Sain?”

“Well, I attempted to converse with Lady Isadora, but she requested that we train with our lances, and if I could land a blow on her, we could converse again.”

And I’m sure conversing was your only intention, the thought jumped in my head. Wiping my face to hide my irritation, I said, “And I suppose it didn’t go as planned?”

“It did not.” His eyes lit with determination. “But I am not ready to give up. I intend to ask for a rematch, and taking a page from your book, I thought it prudent to gather information on her combat style.” He gestured at me. “You are always watching us in battle, so I was hoping you might lend me a stratagem to match her.”

Normally, I would’ve considered a request like this from Sain to be nothing more than the worthless skirt-chasing he loved to partake in. But there was something different about this request. The way Sain asked his question was not done in his usual dreamy, oblivious, and obnoxious manner like he had whenever some new woman entered his view. So, for once, I couldn’t be sure his request was made out of some chauvinistic reason. Though, in all likelihood, it was, and I really didn’t wish to be a part of it.

“We have not been in battle since she joined, so I have not witnessed her combat prowess firsthand. If you want insight into her fighting style, I’d suggest asking Marcus since he and Isadora are both Paladins of Pherae.” And Marcus would also be better at shutting Sain down if he was up to one of his ridiculous romantic escapades.

“Ah!” Sain slammed a fist into his hand. “Of course. A grand idea, as always, Mark. Thank you!”

“You’re welcome,” I said, praying my suggestion wouldn’t lead to some future conflict in the company.

With that, we parted, and I traveled down to the dungeons below the fortress. I used the wall as a guide as I descended the stairs. The only light down here came from the barred window of one of the cells. "I know it’s still half daylight outside,” I said to myself, “but it's a common process to light a torch when there is a prisoner in the dungeon."

"Ah, yes," came a familiar, untroubled voice out of the darkness. "That would be my fault. I requested that, oh... what was the name of that shaggy-haired fellow? Lowen? I believe so. I asked him to extinguish the torch. I did not get much sleep due to the rain last night since I was not given a tent, so I had hoped to get some sleep while I sat in this dungeon."

No tent during the rain? That seemed rather harsh, even for a prisoner. Of course, I doubted anyone would have been offering to let a Black Fang member share a tent with them. "I'm sorry to wake you, then," I said as I lit the torch at the bottom of the stairs. It reached its peak brightness, and I saw Legault sitting against the wall in the back of his cell. The torchlight accentuated his demeanor as a crafty individual. His dark clothes looked like shadows creeping off the wall to envelop him in their shroud, and the two scars that ran down the left side of his face reminded me of deep cracks in dry and broken earth.

"Quite all right," he replied. "Truthfully, your company has been more hospitable to me than any of my other confinements."

"So this isn't the first time you've been imprisoned?"

"Well, it is the first where I voluntarily surrendered, but not my first incarceration, no. When you begin working as an assassin, it takes you a while to learn how to do things right. That other thief in your group (what was his name? Matthew?) was quite keen on his inspection. He found every spot I would've hidden a knife or a lock pick had I intended duplicity for your company."

"I would be wary of Matthew. He's not fond of you Black Fang at the moment."

"I don't blame him," Legault said, shaking his head. "Neither am I."

"You're not?"

"Ha, no!" Legault chortled, jumping to his feet so fast that I started reaching for my sword. "‘Former Black Fang’. Remember? I think we established that back at the Dragon's Gate. Now, I'm merely a thief. When you all first showed up, I thought to keep quiet, pilfer a few goods, and pretend I never saw you. Keep a clear conscience."

I relaxed my sword arm. "But instead, you surrendered yourself to us."

"That I did."

"And now you intend to offer us aid?"

Legault took in a sharp inhale through his teeth. "Not really. I just wanted to get off that island."

"Then, would you?"

"Me? Help you?"

"This Black Fang is dangerous. I want to know more about them… please."

The man rested his hands behind his head and eyed me whimsically. "This is a surprise. Are you really going to battle the Black Fang?"

"Yes," I said plainly.

Legault leaned forward, staring at me with hard eyes that demanded my attention. "Your enemy is not Brendan Reed, but that horrible man named Nergal."

"I am well aware."

"You're quite plucky." He gave a humored grin. "I like you!" The grin suddenly disappeared. "However, I know almost nothing of the current Black Fang."

"Tell me what you can. Start from the beginning. Who are the Black Fang?"

Legault plopped back down in the spot he had been sitting. "Brendan Reed founded the Black Fang over a decade ago. Its purpose was to target the powerful that exploited the weak. The Fang was a small group during its beginning. We were close—like family—and the people of Bern adored us. I like to think of those days as the ‘Old Fang.' Brendan and his sons Lloyd and Linus, Jerme and Ursula, and Uhai; they were some of my closest confidants during those days."

Sorrow was painted clearly on Legault's face, and I could understand the reason for it. "We fought Uhai before we came to the Dragon's Gate. He was a proud Sacaean; we talked before the end. He, too, did not seem happy with what the Black Fang had become. What happened?"

"The Fang changed a few years ago when Brendan remarried. We gained a deadly new member, who actually joined before the marriage, and a spritely young lady who quickly became a little sister to Lloyd and Linus." The sorrow on Legault's face was banished for a moment by a genuine smirk of remembrance. "And she liked to call me uncle, the sweet girl. But…" And the smirk was gone. "Brendan's new wife, Sonia… She's some kind of seductress. She twisted Brendan's mind, manipulating him to accept any job even if it went against our original ideology, so long as we were paid. Nergal and his morphs joined the ranks soon after, along with more and more despicable individuals that were not only willing to take on our more heinous jobs but also indulged in unspeakable acts."

"And you all went along with this?"

"I think most of us knew something was wrong. I can't speak for the others, but I felt like by staying in the Fang and continuing to carry out jobs, we kept the Black Fang from becoming a band of ruthless murderers. Brendan's sons also told me that their father didn't fully trust his new wife and was having her and Nergal's group investigated. It wasn't until just before you all showed up that I learned about his plans to summon the dragons. But there's more to Nergal's plans than that. Brendan wanted us to play along until he could figure out the full extent of that man's plans."

"Sounds sensible. So why would you abandon him and the Fang so quickly? Surely, your work would prove beneficial in returning the Black Fang to its former glory."

Legault took a moment to stare past me before continuing. "Well, after hearing about the dragons, that had done it for me. I didn't want to take any part in bringing destruction to this land."

He was lying.

"So, you just decided to leave like that? I thought you said there was more to Nergal's plan that Brendan wanted to find out. You said you had stayed with the Black Fang out of loyalty to it and your leader. So why did you suddenly leave him?"

Legault raised an eyebrow at me. "Why would I stay and help bring destruction to this land? I told you, once I heard about the dragons, that was it for me."

"Then let me ask you another question. Why did you surrender yourself to our company?"

"As I told you back on Valor, you all were my ticket off the island."

"But you're a clever spy, Legault. You could've tailed our group back to our ship, snuck on board, and gotten off the island, and I'm not naïve enough to believe you don't currently have a lockpick still hidden somewhere on you. You've had multiple times in which you could've escaped from us."

"Sharp man. You are more discerning than you look. My turn. Why have you not executed me if you know I've been deceiving you?"

"Because if you meant to do us harm, you would've done so by now or at some point back on Valor. I don't know your intentions, but I do know you don't intend to help the Black Fang. So, I'm asking you, why? Why keep up this charade? You either want our help, or you want to help us. That’s why you’re still here. But I want to know why us over your ‘family'?"

"Still don't trust me. Even after all my ramblings."

"I'm this company's tactician. I wouldn't be doing a very good job if I just accepted one of our enemy's spies on good faith."

"Fair point…" Legault dropped his head and dumped out a weighty sigh. "Do I really have to go into all of this?"

"Consider it your price for freedom," I said, trying to sound encouraging rather than demanding.

Legault seemed ready to refuse me. Even with the dungeon already being considerably dark, his mien almost fade into the shadows. "We can't go back… Back to the good old days. Sonia's arrival marked the beginning of the end. The change came slowly… The Fang rotted away bit by bit. And it was all the doing of that creepy villain, Nergal…The Fang changed, and so did our work.

"Those who had no taste for killing, the wounded who couldn't work… We started receiving orders to kill these innocents, too. So… I was ordered by some dead-eyed stranger to kill a wounded companion of mine. Her name was Aesha. A woman I'd worked with for years.

"She'd made a mistake, and her wound cost her her skill at killing. Her career as an assassin was over. But she shouldn't haveto die for that. She could have lived in some village somewhere…" Legault's fist suddenly went into the wall he sat against. "She should have had many days of happiness ahead of her… But…" The fist shook. "I, with this hand, I…"

"That's enough, Legault," I stopped him before he could relive any more of this memory. "I understand now. I'm sorry I put you through that."

His trembling arm finally returned to the ground. "Well, it would've had to come out sooner or later. And honestly, if I had to pick someone to tell it to, I would've rather it been that red-head with the wings in her hair. But you make a close eighth." He straightened himself up, taking in a deep breath to regain his composure, then looked back up at me, only slightly worse off than before. "Satisfied?"

"Indubitably. I have just one last question."

"Figures," he answered with a smirk.

"Do you know who I am?"

For the first time during our talk, Legault appeared surprised by my question. "Do you mean to ask me if you are a part of the Black Fang?"

I nodded earnestly as my heart became heavier in anticipation.

"Not the Old Fang. You were never an original member of the Black Fang. But I do remember seeing you with Nergal once. However, I couldn't ascertain why you were with him. To be honest, I assumed you were actually secretly working with him when I first discovered your company wandering the ruins of the Dragon's Gate. But I overheard you talking with that Paladin about being possessed, and I had to throw away my assumption about you willingly serving him. That is why I felt I could surrender myself to your company."

"That's all you know?" I asked, slightly disappointed.

Legault gave me a sad nod. "I heard about your amnesia. I wish I could reveal more for you, but all I can tell you is that you were with Nergal before he took over the Black Fang. Whether you were a henchman or a prisoner, I cannot say."

"I believe you." I walked over to the pillar bearing the torch. Each step felt like wading through ice water, and my arm was heavy like it was carrying a sack full of bricks as I took the keys from the nail they were hanging on.

"You still want my aid?"

"I do," I replied, inserting the proper key into the lock and opening the door for him.

"Very well then. But my services come at a price. I will help you as long as I feel safe."

"That’s reasonable."

"Mark!" Hector's voice bellowed from the stairway. "We need you up here now. We've got enemies trying to invade the fort."

I turned back to Legault with an expectant look.

He returned it. "Guess we'll see if you can meet my price now."

"I'll try not to disappoint."

I headed up the stairs, taking them two steps at a time, and arrived back on the main floor to find the company arming themselves. Eliwood, Hector, and Lyn stood near a window, looking outside. Out of everyone, I expected Hector to be already heading out to meet the enemy, but he leaned against the side of the window and glowered with his arms crossed.

"What's happening?" I asked, coming up to them. "Is it the Black Fang?"

"Not even close," Hector growled. "A lonely pack of Laus renegades probably looking to get in good with the Black Fang since they know my brother will have them incarcerated for rebelling."

"Well even if they’re the dregs of the late Laus military, we shouldn’t take them lightly if they’re willing to assault this fortress." I headed back into the main room to give orders. "This fortress has some defensible positions on the main floor, but the upper levels will give us a height advantage. We'll move most of our forces upstairs and have our most defensive units block the stairs for a bottleneck."

"We can't do that, Mark," Eliwood called out before I had made it to the main room. "Nils has passed out in a back room, and we can't move him."

"What?" I spun around, baffled by the ludicrous statement. "Why? Did he gain 600 pounds when I wasn't looking?"

The three lords exchanged unsure looks, which showed me that they understood my confusion—even agreed with me—but had no other choice.

"Ninian says we can't move him," Lyn replied. "She wouldn't tell us why, but she's adamant about it."

"Was she now…" I was about to say something about needing to know the reason or else Nils was getting moved, but thought better of it and reformulated my strategy. In all likelihood, my argument would be treated the same way as it had been when I said either Ninian or I needed to stay on the ship back on the Dread Isle.

"Alright. Eliwood, take Guy, Dart, Kent, and Erk and cover the western entrance. Lyn, you, Sain, Dorcas, Serra, and Wil take the eastern flank." I turned back into the main room. "Listen up. I've assigned some of you to our lords. They'll find you. Marcus and Isadora, you will be outside with Lord Hector and me. Lowen, use your horse to guard the back room where Nils is and make sure no one gets to him. Oswin, back him up. Those not assigned to a lord gather in here and prepare to fend off anyone who tries to come through. Rebecca, man the ballista on the second floor. Raven, you cover her." I went back to Hector. "Hector, you go in and pick who you want with us in the courtyard. Seeing your angry face first might demoralize these rebels. Maybe pick someone who has a lance and is highly mobile like Florina."

"Florina?!” Hector flustered. Why would you assume I would pick her? All she did was fall on top of me back at Caelin. We haven't been talking that much. And Lyn was the one who asked me to pick those flowers for her. She said they looked good with her hair."

"What are you on about?” I asked, trying to pull my face back together from his unexpected response. “I was making a recommendation since I've assigned most of our cavalrymen, and Oswin is guarding Nils. I’m going to send Marcus and Isadora to distract and pick off targets rather than stay with us, so someone who wields a lance would do good to cover us since I use a sword and you have an axe. Bringing her sister along wouldn't be a bad idea either. We'll just have to make sure we prioritize the enemy archers."

"Uh, right!" Hector threw off his bluster and tried to put on a face like he hadn't arbitrarily questioned my proposal. "I'll make sure to strike the fear of Ostia into those gutless dastards." He rushed off into the company before I could say anything more.

What in the world was that all ab-

"Mark!" Ninian came running up, looking as timid as she usually did. However, there was a strange sparkle in her eyes this time.

"Ninian? You shouldn't be here. Go and stay in the room with Nils. We'll keep him safe. I promise."

Ninian glanced away for a moment and then brought her gaze back to me with that sparkle glistening even brighter now. "Please allow me to help."

"He-elp?" I choked on the words out of bewilderment. "Ninian, I admire your spirit, but you’re mad if you think I’m going to let you fight. No offense, but your dancing isn't going to do much to fend off someone charging you with a spear."

“Mark!” Eliwood called, coming up to us. “My forces are placed, but...” He stopped short when he saw Ninian’s determined expression. “Ninian, what’s the matter?”

“She wishes to join the fight,” I explained. “But I was informing her that a battlefield is no place for a dancer.”

Ninian shook her head. "I am no mere dancer. My dances… They will help you." She glanced around for a moment, checking to see if anyone was watching us. Then, after giving Eliwood a confident nod, she spread her arms out, holding on to her translucent veil, and started spinning in place, swaying her arms in rhythm with the movement of her body. I was about to say something, but as I watched her, a familiar wave of energy washed over me, causing adrenaline to pump through my veins. And suddenly, I wanted to go out there and face the enemy all on my own.

"Whoa! What? Ninian!” I glanced at Eliwood, who was equally astonished by Ninian’s dance. Then, I realized where I had felt this vigor before. It was a more invigorating version of the energy I received whenever Nils played his flute for me during the Caelin campaign. I turned a shrewd gaze back on Ninian. "This is why Nils can’t be moved, isn’t it?"

Ninian hid her face behind her hair, confirming my supposition.

"Why can't we move him, Ninian? It would be much safer for all of us if we could take him upstairs."

"Please, just one night's rest... That should… make things right."

The sound of fighting on the western entrance curbed me from pushing the matter further, and I turned to Eliwood. "She’s with you."

Eliwood nodded in agreement. “No harm will come to her. But I wish to take Lowen with me as well. There are more axe-wielding foes and a Wyvern rider with an axereaver lance on my side. Oswin should be able to defend Nils by himself.”

“Do it,” I said. “And use Ninian’s dancing to stimulate your forces.”

The sparkle in Ninian’s eyes burst across her face, and she clapped her hands together in gratitude. "Thank you, Mark!"

I made my way toward the courtyard to examine the enemy forces. Despite his strange outburst, Hector did bring Florina and Fiora with him, along with Bartre, Priscilla, and Canas. Rebecca gave them covering fire from the ballista, focusing on enemy archers that threatened the Pegasus sisters.

I traveled down the steps out of the fortress to join them, and as I did, an enemy mage came out of one of the doorways under the eastern rampart. A foolish move to appear so early and alone. I had plenty of time to dodge the fireball building in his hands, but an arrow pierced his chest before it grew to the size of his fist. The sound of hoofbeats trotted up to me, and the stoic nomad that had fired the arrow greeted me with a nod.

"…So you're being hunted again, are you, Mark?" Rath said, scanning our surroundings for any more surprise attackers.

"Well, you were among the last people I’d have expected to meet here. Well met, Rath. What brings you to this corner of Lycia?"

"Mercenary work. I still cannot return to my tribe, so I offered my services to villages and travelers out here." He fired another arrow that took out a fighter that was harassing Priscilla. “I’ve been tracking this group for a week now after they made trouble in a nearby village. I’ve been waiting for a moment to strike against them.”

"If that's the case, we wouldn't mind having you join us again. Lyn is with us as well, and we are involved in another terrible threat."

Rath nodded with a smile. "If you desire it, I will join you once we finish-."

A green Wyvern flew over the western wall behind Rath. Hector and the Pegasus sisters were busy fending off a group of enemies, and Rath would notice the rider too late, so I moved past him to intercept.

A ballista bolt soared past me. The Wyvern Rider dodged by performing a barrel roll around it but put him in a vulnerable position for me to slice his neck. But just as I lifted my sword to strike, he pulled his Wyvern and lowered his lance.

"Peace, friend. Do you command this group?" The green-haired man wore the armor of the Wyvern Riders of Bern. But our enemy was a group of renegade Laus soldiers, not Bern. Which meant he might very well have been one of those spies from Bern Hector had mentioned. But if that were the case, why would he reveal himself like this?

"What does it matter to you?"

"I'm Heath, a wyvern rider serving these mercenaries. I wish to surrender."

I turned around to Rath, furrowing my eyebrows and throwing my thumb at the strange aggressor. "Did you see him with the Laus soldiers?"

Rath nodded as he lowered his bow. “He was, and he did not seem happy with what they did in the village, nor did he partake in the harassment.” He looked to the rider. “Why are you surrendering to us now? You have stayed with the group since the village.”

"I am a former Wyvern knight from Bern,” Heath said. “I could not continue to serve my king and left, but I needed money. Euban’s mercenaries promised me this job would earn us a grand fortune, but I've no wish to harm women and children. I'm a soldier, but…" His expression darkened with sorrow. "I'm trying to be human, too."

"We aren't exactly in a position to let you be human,” I said. “In fact, we would appreciate it if you would actually put that weapon and Wyvern of yours to good use and help us repel these invaders rather than surrender."

Heath’s wyvern released and ear-piercing shriek and bared its jaws at me. I endured the splitting sound and readied my blade, thinking the wyvern had gone feral, but it spun, revealing an archer and two sword-wielding mercenaries charging us. Rath fired an arrow. It whisked underneath the Wyvern’s wing as it flapped, piercing the archer’s neck. Heath thrust his lance over his Wyvern’s head, catching the first mercenary’s blade and twisting it away. The defenseless mercenary scrambled for his blade, but the Wyvern pounced and tore him apart with its powerful jaws. The second mercenary stopped his charge, stunned in terror by the evisceration of his cohort, allowing Heath to jab his lance straight into his chest.

The mercenary tumbled to the ground in a bloody heap, and Heath turned his Wyvern back around, its mouth bloodied with bits of the other mercenary. "Then I will help you fight."

I did my best to keep my mouth from dropping open at the gore and looked straight at Heath. "Good." I pointed over toward Hector and his team. "That man with the axe is pushing to take out your former leader. Help us aid him."

Heath looked past me and his face wrinkled with uncertainty. "Uh, I don't think that will be necessary."

"Huh?" Hector and his team had stopped fighting, and the remaining enemies had dropped to their knees in surrender. "What in the world? Were all of your comrades planning to surrender?"

"Not that I was aware of," Heath responded, just as confused as I was.

I was about to go to Hector and ask what had happened when I saw another man strikingly similar to Hector, if but a little older and with a gruesome scar covering his face, come up to him and smile.

"So, brother, you're alive after all." Lord Uther's smile twisted with dark humor. "You were so long gone that I feared you dead. Another day, and I might have arranged you a funeral rite."

I could see Hector's face, but his body language communicated he wasn't pleased to see his brother. "…My apologies. Been a little busy." He turned and beckoned me to join them.

"Yes… Leila's final report covered much." He acknowledged me as I approached them. "You must be Mark. My sources have told me much about you." He extended a hand to me. "It is an honor to finally meet the tactician who reunited Lord Hausen with his granddaughter."

"The honor is mine, my lord," I said, taking his hand. "I thank you for your assistance. We were not expecting an attack like this."

Lord Uther gave me a hearty chuckle. "Lucky for you all, I decided to take a stroll out this way today."

Hector's eyes rolled so far that I thought he had lost them behind his head. "Yes, quite the coincidence with the number of spies you have crawling all over the place. Let's get to the point of this meeting. How much do you know about Nergal?"

"Only what was reported to me. He appeared a year ago and seized control of the Black Fang. Then, he ensnared Laus in a plot of rebellion against Ostia. I can't see what he's after…"

"The dragons that vanished after the Scouring," I replied. "He wants to bring them back again."

Sober urgency came over Uther. "What?! Can that be done?"

"Yes. Let me explain inside with the others."

"This has even got my brother brooding," Hector said, pacing about the room with more impatience than I had ever seen in him. "He's always been a firm believer in quick decisions. Yet he wishes for more time… that's never happened before."

Lyn shook her head with the same disbelief. "It's gone from a simple rebellion to a threat to the human race. We saw it with our own eyes, and yet… It's all so unbelievable."

"Yet… It's all true." Eliwood said.

"Yes," Hector said. "I wonder what will happen next. Ideally, we could bring the whole of our lands together to fight as one. It would be a return to the time of the Scouring."

"However, this all hinges on the existence of dragons themselves," I said, reaching back into my mind to replay the events of the Dragon's Gate. "I don't doubt you all when you said you saw a dragon come through that gate. I saw something, too. But I was knocked out before I could see it with my own eyes, and even hearing such a thing… I'm with Lyn. It's unbelievable. Unless dragons are seen in the skies, I doubt anyone will believe us."

"Right," Lyn said. "And once the dragons are here, it'll be too late."

Eliwood pushed himself off the wall. "We must stop all of this now. And we're the only ones who know enough to do it."

"Yes," I said.

"I agree," Lyn added.

Hector set his hands on his hips and nodded. "There we have it! Come on, let's speak to my brother!"

"I heard," Uther said, coming into the room. "I would sooner not place this burden on your shoulders alone. And yet, I can see no other choice before me." He regarded Hector with a strong gaze coupled with a heartache that almost reminded me of the look Lyn had given me before I left Caelin. "Listen, my brother…" He brought that steady gaze toward the rest of us as well. "Eliwood, Lyndis, Mark, are you determined to act on your resolve?"

"Yes, we're prepared," Eliwood replied swiftly.

"Me, too…" Lyn joined. "I don't care for sitting back, waiting for others to act."

Uther's gaze fell back on me. "And you, Mark. My brother and his friends are in your debt for all you have done for them thus far. What role will you play? Will you help them? See them through their coming trials?"

"Of course. I've been through our previous trials with them, and Nergal is still a threat." I remembered what Legault had told me. "A threat we must strive to vanquish. I will not quit until we finish."

"I see…" Uther nodded. "Then I have no more to say. I will aid you as much as I can. …Good luck to you all." He turned to Ninian, who had been quietly standing aside. "…And what of this girl we spoke of earlier?"

"Oh, Ninian," Hector said.

Ninian stepped forward and bowed to Uther. "It… It's an honor to meet you, Marquess Ostia…"

"Both Ninian and her brother, Nils, possess a special power," Hector explained.

"Is that so?" Uther had a quiet curiosity about him as he stared at Ninian. "Then I would ask you. Do you know where Nergal is at this moment?"

"Yes," Ninian shut her eyes. "I can sense him… To the east… He is… very far."

"East…" Lyn said. "Is he targeting Bern next?"

"That bodes ill." Uther's countenance hardened. "Bern is a powerful and militant country. If Nergal ensnares it… We're done for."

"…There's still time," Ninian said. "He is still… very weak… …Now… We must act…"

"So, Nergal can't act right away, is that it?" Lyn shook her head. "Yet, what can we…?"

"We've no choice but to depart for Bern," Hector replied.

* * * * *

"Well, we're going, brother," Hector said, crunching the dewy grass under his boots as he went to Uther.

"…Hm," Uther replied with a nod. "Take care of yourself. And Marquess Pherae, too. You must be Eliwood's support and strength."

"I know." Hector folded his arms and stared back at his friend, tying down a saddlebag on his horse. "This has all gotten so out of hand. Still, it's not entirely hopeless. Lord Elbert's death need not be in vain. We won't lose."

Uther smiled. " You're beginning to sound reasonable…"

Hector turned back to Uther, and his sullen expression suddenly turned grave. "Hey!"

Uther cocked his head. "What is it?"

"Your coloring. You don't look so good. Is something wrong?"

Uther let out a casual laugh. "…I just heard a tale that would frighten anyone. When I think that the future rests on the shoulders of a man like you, who lives so haphazardly, I realize that my life's been too short."

"Bah! Is that any way to be? And I was worried about you, too!"

"You should get going. Your friends are waiting."

"Ha ha…” Hector threw up his hands. “Pardon my overlong visit. I will take my leave of you then, most honored elder brother!" Hector spun and trudged back through the morning grass.

"Hector!" Uther called before he had gotten too far.

"What is it?" Hector called back without turning to him.

"Remember, I have not given you permission to die. Heed the orders of your marquess and return to me alive."

"Mm." Hector raised a hand but still did not turn to him. "I'll bring you a tale you won't believe. Mark my words, brother. I shall return."

"I have no doubt," Uther said under his breath. His gaze shifted to his left. "I hope you will all bring back glorious tales. You've all created quite the tale so far, isn't that right, Mark?"

I emerged from behind the wall where I had been listening and waiting for Uther to be away from the other lords, Hector in particular. "I'm sure we will. But the real question is if you will be around to hear them. Is it fair to order something of Hector if you yourself cannot obey it? Even more so, not telling him the truth?"

Uther smiled at me and then gazed back at the company. "Do you think it would do my brother good to know he will lose me to the same illness we lost our father to? The disease surprised me just as it would Hector if he knew, and in less than a year, it had taken what it needed. My life will end soon; it is inevitable. But as Marquess Ostia, my duty is to protect my country and my people. My health is irrelevant to the fate of the world. The success of this campaign is dependent on you all surviving, not me." He turned back to me, considering me with a sly grin. "I'm sure a tactician such as yourself would agree. If my brother's reports are to be believed, you yourself have given orders for your own execution." He eyed me curiously. "How are you feeling?"

"At the moment, normal," I said, gathering my thoughts. "I haven't suffered any possession since the Dragon's Gate. Ninian was telling the truth when she said Nergal was weak. I don't feel any invading presence within me. But it won't last. Putting an end to Nergal means my freedom. That is why I am seeing this through."

"Can you be sure of that? My reports say that you're suffering from amnesia."

"I am," I said, nodding. "I can't be completely certain. But while we were on Valor, we picked up a former member of the Black Fang. He revealed much…" I took a moment to think about my next words. "…including seeing me with Nergal before they took over the Black Fang."

"That is quite the damning evidence."

"I know. I had that feeling ever since I assaulted Lord Hausen. It's why I've tried time and again to have myself ended as a threat. Yet, your brother, Eliwood, and Lyn… despite having witnessed these possessions themselves, they still refuse to see me as a threat. They'll believe a madman is trying to bring dragons back to this world, but they won't believe me to be a risk." I breathed out a baffled sigh as I hung my head. "Even if I asked you to lock me up in Ostia, they'd probably fight you to break me out. So, if they're going to continue to be this foolish, then all I can do is continue to help them with their cause and ensure that I end Nergal's plans and potentially eliminate myself as a threat. It's the only hope I have. I refuse to be the cause of this world's demise."

Uther hummed, looking back out at the company that was beginning to mount up. "I would never lock up someone who spoke those words with that kind of resolve, even if he did run me through with a blade. But I'm sure the thought of that does not help, so allow me to offer this instead. Make your destination, Missur."

"Huh? Missur? You mean in the deserts of Nabata? That's the opposite direction of Bern."

Uther nodded. "Go to the Nabata desert… You may find aid there. Not just for yourself, but perhaps all of Elibe."

"What do you mean?"

Uther’s eyes blazed so brightly it felt like I was back at the Dragon's Gate when it was opening. "Go and meet the living legend."

Chapter Text

Chapter 13

"A desert!" Hector growled, putting a hand to his forehead to shield his eyes. "Of all the places my brother recommended we go for aid, he had to suggest the Nabata Desert. I should have trusted my gut. He was sick. Sick in his blasted head!"

His brother's suggested course of action may have befuddled Hector, but Uther's recommendation sat well with me despite what we were entering. We most certainly could have gone after Nergal. However, with no leads on his exact location, Bern likely to invade Lycia the moment they found a Lycian troop wandering their country, and, of course, the ever-present risk of my possession, going after Nergal now would be a losing battle. And a good tactician never enters a fight he does not believe he can win. Facing this desolate sea of sand was something we could do, however. At least some of us could.

I learned about the Nabata desert during my time researching royal archives. It was a wasteland of scorching sun and frigid nights. Any careless or foolish enough to enter its embrace would be doomed to wander lost. And we were walking straight into it with a select few from the company. I only brought those lightly dressed along with us except for Hector, and none of the cavalrymen. Horses did not do well battling in the sand, and I did not want to risk losing any to the desert. The only words we had were the ones Uther had spoken to me about meeting a living legend out here. And those words were our only guide.

I flipped up the hood of my cloak and took a solid step up the dune before us. "I told you someone as heavily armored as you should wait back in Missur with the rest of the company.” Marcus and Oswin had not been too happy to remain behind either, but trying to get Hector to do the same would have been like trying to stop a tsunami from wiping out a coastal village. And that tsunami had an axe. "I had good reason for only bringing along those lightly dressed."

"And miss out on meeting a living legend?" Hector responded, doing his best not to sound like he knew I was right. "Not a chance. I'm just confused as to why my brother would recommend we need to see this guy first!"

"It does seem strange that Marquess Ostia would send us out here when Ninian said Nergal was in Bern," Eliwood replied squinting his eyes. "But he must believe there is someone out here who can aid us."

"He's an honest man," Lyn agreed. "If this person can help Mark, it will serve us well to find them."

"…So hot." Nils panted. "I'm…going to die."

"Hey," Hector said, jogging up to him. "Do you want me to carry you on my back?"

"Huh?" Nils was taken aback. So was I.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Hector questioned.

"Such kindness from you surprised me, Lord Hector. Is this some fever dream?"

Hector planted his hands on his hips. "What's that supposed to mean? I was concerned that you might collapse again, like at the fortress."

"You're usually so brusque," Lyn said with a poorly suppressed laugh. "It's no wonder he's confused." She smiled at Nils encouragingly. "Don't be shy, Nils. Let him help you out."

Nils still looked uncertain. "…But…"

"Do as you're told, boy!" He plucked Nils off the ground and placed him on top of his shoulders, causing Nils to shout in surprise.

Lyn and I shared in the laughter. "It is good to see you lending a helping hand rather than complaining about the heat, Hector.” She rested a hand on my shoulder, sending a jolt of surprise excitement through me. “With how much you were complaining, I feared I was going to have to carry you on my back."

Hector flattened his gaze at her. "Why don't we switch outfits and let's see how long you last."

"Please don’t tempt her,” I said. “You know how competitive Lyn can get. She’d switch outfits and then carry both you and Nils. And as few forces as we have out here, I can’t have one of our expert swordsmen exhausted should trouble find us out here.”

Lyn turned to me, gracing me with her benevolent smile. I’d beheld it many times before, but seeing it this close to me filled me with a sudden urge to do one of the things Hector had mentioned that night. To place my lips against hers—I think that was what was called kissing. It was a mild form of showing romantic affection for another. I had seen others doing it in towns we had been in, and had never known the gesture was symbolic. But now I understood why they did it. With Lyn this close to me, her smile bright and full for what I had said, made me want to kiss her too.

How could I not? She was an exotic flower blossoming brilliantly in this desert. Her flawless legs were like slender stems reaching up out of the ground, her beautiful hair riding the warm wind, and her sweet, glistening lips beckoned me to partake of them. Oh, how I wished to indulge in this beautiful woman. If but for one second I could…

Jeez. I almost went full Sain there.

Let her try," Hector challenged. “She’ll be begging for water before she gets even one boot on.”

And just like that, the smile faded, and she turned back to Hector. "I have nothing to prove to you here and now. It’s clear you’re about to collapse and for the good of our mission, I’m going to ignore your hollow blather.” She folded her arms. “But once we are on even ground again, I’ll gladly prove just how frail you are.”

"Excellent," Hector said with a smug chuckle. "Now what did my brother say again? ‘Enter the desert and move west. Someone will meet you.' Correct?"

I nodded. "That's right. But we’ve been traveling for a few hours now, and yet, we've seen no one."

"Then we must move further in," Eliwood asserted. He turned to Ninian and held out his arm. "Here."

"What?" Ninian gave him a startled look.

"This heat is taking its toll on you," he said. "If you please, take my arm."

"I couldn't…" Ninian tried to argue.

"Oh come now," Eliwood urged.

"…Very well. Forgive me…" She took his arm and then looked past Lyn and I over at Nils who had finally found a comfortable position on Hector's shoulders, and a frown appeared on her face.

"Hm?" Eliwood said, taking notice. "Is something wrong?"

"It's strange."

"What is?"

Ninian stared up at him. "All of you treat my brother and me so… normally. Doesn't it bother you? Our powers…our looks… We're different from…people…"

Eliwood laughed a pleasant laugh. "Has that been bothering you? What's wrong with being a bit different from other people?"

"Our company is made up of many different people, Ninian," Lyn replied. "It's what gives us our strength."

"She's right," I joined in. "Everyone in this company has been a vital asset to the success of our mission, including you and your brother. Lord Eliwood would be bothered if we did treat you differently."

“We all would,” Hector agreed “It’s never about how you’re different from others, but how you use those differences toward other people that matters. Nergal is just as different from us as you all claim to be, and he seeks to hurt people rather than aid them.”

“Well said, Hector,” Lyn said with a nod.

He nodded back to her and reached up to pat Nils’s leg. “That’s why I’m carrying you, Nils. If not for your swift intervention at the Dragon’s Gate, we might not have made it out. I want to repay a little of all you and your sister have done for this company.”

Ninian glanced away from us, but Eliwood placed his hand under her chin to turn her back to him. "When I look at you, I don't see other people. I see Ninian. I see a normal, kindhearted girl."

Ninian's face flushed into a bright red hue. "Do you speak truly?"

"Mm," Eliwood replied nodding.

Ninian smiled back at him. "Lord Eliwood."

Something heavy nudged my arm as I watched them, and I turned to find Hector staring at me with that stupid goofy grin, and he nodded in Lyn's direction. I knew what he was implying, and I slowed down to allow Lyn ahead of me so I could tell Hector off with my eyes. He started giggling at a high volume, and everyone turned around to us. Feeling their eyes on me sent blood up to my face and I was about to bring up a new subject when Ninian cried out, "Lord Eliwood!"

"Ninian?" Eliwood asked giving his attention back to her.

"Over there…" She pointed off into the distance. “Someone is under attack."

"Are you sure?"

"Ah!" Hector said while he brought Nils back to the ground. "That must be him!"

I focused my eyes on seeing through the sun and sand, and spotted an elegantly dressed man surrounded by a band of shabby looking people. "Looks like…a lone man and a mob of bandits."

"Let's help him!" Lyn said, pulling out her sword. "I dislike seeing someone facing overwhelming odds!" She took off without waiting for my orders.

"Hold on, Lyn!" Hector called, chasing after her while grabbing his axe. "I'm going with you!"

"Hey, you two!" Eliwood shouted. But they were already well off and ahead.

"No point in waiting around." I twirled on my heel to face the rest of the company. "The mission is simple, everyone! That man is our ticket out of this desert. Make sure he survives."

Eager heads nodded, and weapons were drawn to follow Hector and Lyn's example racing out to aid the man. Dart let out a loud whoop and shouted something about mooncalves as he charged over a dune, and others in the company burst out laughing.

Nils shook his head in bafflement. "Where do they get all that energy? Unbelievable."

"What will you do?" Ninian asked Eliwood.

Eliwood turned to me, and he and I shared a smirk. "Let's go! Have to keep up with one's friends, right?" And he rushed off to join the rest of the company.

Friends?

His words caught me off guard. Not that I was surprised that he considered me a friend. That's how they all saw me, of course. But, like Ninian, I hadn't seen it the same way. For me, our relationship had been professional. I was this company's tactician, leading them through a campaign as I had done for all my other employers. But now… with the overwhelming dread of potentially hurting any of these people because of my possessions… I had forgotten what being friends actually meant. It was that feeling of relief to know that you were not alone in the darkness, and that desire to face it with others—with friends. That is why I had offered to help Eliwood in the first place.

"Hector! Hurry!" Lyn shouted back. "I'm going to leave you behind!!!"

"…This…is as fast…" Gasps for air divided Hector's words. "…as I can go! I've got… armor…on and… Blast! Slow down! Show off!!!"

An immaculate sentiment flowed through me, causing my heart to swell. I felt stupid for not realizing this magnificent blessing sooner—and even more foolish for wishing to cut myself off from it.

I started following after Eliwood, but stumbled to the side when the sand beneath me shifted. I tried to regain my footing, but the sand continued to shift downward, pulling me down with it. Out of instinct, I reached out my hand to grab hold of something, but there was nothing. And before I could call out to Eliwood, a dreadful stench permeated the air the further I sank, causing my head to swim and my mind to lull. My body slid along a slope, right before consciousness left me to the dark.

* * * * *

A lone figure stood naked in the middle of the room. The warm glow of four torches that surrounded him lit a body covered in harsh fractures. It stood their unmoving, head bowed, hands clasped together until another figure walked into the room. This one was draped black robes and a turban wrapped around his head. His face was stern and flawless—except for time's unavoidable touch—as he walked up to the figure and stood before him. There was a moment’s pause. Then the black-robed figure held up a hand before the naked one, causing it to flinch.

"…I name you Kishuna," the black figure said. "You are the only morph to whom I've given emotions. It won't suffice to simply refer to you as a number. It is said man was sculpted by the hands of the gods. If so, then you, who were sculpted by these," The figure raised his other hand up, "my hands… And I, whose labors gave you breath and life… What are we, then? What does that make us? In your fabricated heart, I gave unto you, what is it that you believe, Kishuna?

The naked figure did not respond. And the torches went out.

“Look,” said a new voice. “He’s stirring.”

When I finally came to, torchlight revealed a different figure standing over me. This figure had long silver hair and dark attire that was far more refined than even Eliwood's, He was squatting in front of me and waddled back being careful not to drop a large slab of stone under his right arm.

"Hello," he said, as I sat up. “Are you well?"

He seemed to be in a good mood despite having been sucked under the sand if my last memory was real…and this wasn't another dream.

"…You're the man that was beset by bandits…"

"Pent." He reached out his free hand and helped me to my feet. His hand tightened around mine for a brief second, but when I looked at him, he smiled as if he hadn’t, then motioned to the shirtless axe-wielder who stood behind him, holding a torch. “And this is my dear friend Hawkeye.”

My vision was finally focusing, and I could see a hulking, shirtless man standing there with his massive axe on his shoulder. The torchlight reflected off his axe, lighting the back of his blonde hair tied in a ponytail, and as my vision continued to return, I could see he was also tattooed along the sides of his face and on his forehead.

"What happened?” I groaned out. “Where are we?"

"Under the sand. That's about all I know. Hawkeye, where are we?"

"I don't know," Hawkeye replied with a low, untroubled voice.

"Eh?" Pent brought a startled look onto his companion. "You don't know? Look at this place… It's terrible. Bleak. Dreadful. I never imagined such a place like this existed out here."

There weren't many distinguishing traits of our location. Just a stone hallway lined with torches.

"My master never spoke of anything like this until he sent me this way to find you," Hawkeye said.

Pent waved a hand. “I’m sure he will tell us once we arrive.” His shoulder twitched, and he eyed me. “I’m terribly sorry that this is our first meeting. Were you a part of that group that joined my fight with the bandits?”

I realized the three of us were the only ones here. “Y-yes. I was. What happened to them?”

“Slid under the sand as well,” Pent said. “I thought to find them down here with me, but it appears we fell into separate passages. Yet if the three of us are uninjured, I imagine they should be unscathed as well. They seemed quite capable of handling any bandits if any fell down along with us.” Curiosity sparkled in his eyes as he smirked at me. “But what was a group like yours doing out here in the desert?”

"Well…" I said, looking around, hoping to find some distinguishing mark. "We were told to come here and meet a ‘living legend.'"

"Living legend?" The man laughed pleasant, and slightly melodically, amused by my words. "I see. That's well said."

"You know what I mean?”

His shoulder twitched again. "Yes, I suppose I do.” He bounced the large slab under his arm. “We have a common destination.”

"Ah! Mark! It is you!" Nils came running out of the darkness. "I'm so glad you're alive!”

“Nils! I opened my arms to catch him in a hug. "I’m glad you’re alive too. Where are the others? Are they hurt?"

“I got separated from them when we fell under the sand, but…” Nils closed his eyes. "They're nearby. I can't see them, but… I can sense them. So, they must be okay."

I exhaled my relief. "That's good to hear."

"Do you know where we are?” he asked. “I wonder how we get out of here."

"Our priority is finding your friends," Hawkeye said. "When we have collected everyone, we will look for the way to my master."

"Something strange is here," Pent said with an unsettling seriousness lacing his words. "I can feel it in the air."

"Yes!" Nils started looking around. "You're right. It feels… thick!"

Now that they mentioned it, something did feel weird. A stench assaulted me when I first fell under the sand. At first, I thought I was recovering from falling into this place, but I realized I had smelled it elsewhere. "Do you remember it, Nils? Back on Valor?"

"I…” Nils closed his eyes to concentrate. “I do. It wasn’t at the Dragon’s Gate but somewhere out on the island. Beyond some mountains.”

"Mhm. If it had been at the Dragon’s Gate, our encounter with Nergal might have ended differently. But it wasn’t nearly this potent. The entire company felt it on the way to the Dragon's Gate. A disconcerting feeling, like someone with a cold hand was touching us from afar. It was different than-" I caught myself before I revealed too much to Pent and Hawkeye. "-the other bad feelings I experienced on the island. And then everyone's magic failed for a time."

Hawkeye looked at his friend. "Pent, doesn't that sound like…"

Pent nodded. "…like a magic seal." He hefted the slab in his arm, but I caught the twitch in his shoulder before he could hide it behind the amplified movement.

"A magic seal?" I asked. For all my knowledge of tactics and strategies, I had never heard of such a thing.

Pent grasped his chin with his free hand. "I'm not entirely certain how to explain it. It's…someone whose very presence nullifies all magic."

"There's someone like that down here?” Nils asked. “Why?"

"I have no idea. All I know is that we're being watched."

"Then we need to find the others quickly." I pulled out my sword and started walking in the direction I felt the aura coming from. "He can't nullify weapons, but maybe they’re the key to us getting out of here. Let's find them."

Pent grabbed a torch off the wall, and I gave him a quizzical tilt of my head. There were torches all along the hallway; there was no need for one of us to carry one. Pent let out a pathetic chortle and wiggled the torch in front of him to move us along. “The detail that I am useless to you down here is more oppressive than the magic seal. Humor me if you will.”

I complied. He was trying to hide his twitching by holding the torch, and there wasn’t a reason to question him right now.

Hawkeye came up next to me as we traveled down the hallway. "Mark, was it? I must see you all safely back to my master. I will lend you my strength if you require it."

"If I require it?"

"Yes. You appear capable of defending yourself. There is no need to protect you, so I will fight with you."

"And by the way you’re taking charge and suggesting our course of action," Pent said, "I assume you must have been that group’s leader. Tell me, the regally dressed individuals, who are they?"

"The red-haired man is Lord Eliwood, the Marquess Pherae, and his blue-haired friend is Lord Hector, the Marquess Ostia's brother."

"Ah yes," Pent replied. "Eliwood just recently became the marquess, if I'm not mistaken?"

My head bobbed solemnly. "Yes, the former marquess had gone missing a few months ago, and we had been searching for him. Unfortunately, we were too late. An evil sorcerer by the name of Nergal killed him, and now we are trying to put an end to that madman. That is why we are out here."

"I see. And what of the lady with the green hair? I dare say she looks nothing like the Lycian ladies I'm acquainted with, and yet her face strikes my memories with a hammer of familiarity."

"You're not the only person to find her different. She is not originally from Lycia. Rather, she is a Sacaean plainswoman. Her name is Lady Lyndis of Caelin, though we just call her Lyn."

A loud CLAP banged from Pent's hands, which caused me to jump with a start. "That's who you are! Mark! The tactician who reunited Marquess Caelin with his granddaughter."

"So you've heard of me?" I said, trying to fathom how he clapped with one hand holding the torch and the other holding the stone slab.

"Yes of course. You're quite famous. I first learned of you from the Etrurian ambassador you helped escort several months ago, but most all of Elibe has heard of the Noble Lady of Sacae, and how she was returned home by a wandering tactician she found in the fields one day. It's such an amazing tale that it would be considered fiction if not for Lady Lyndis and her retainers’ accounts. You were spoken of most highly by them. Tell me, Mark. Where do you hail from? How did you end up with Lady Lyndis in Sacae?"

"I wish I could tell you. The earliest thing I can remember was waking up in her Yurt in Sacae, and she told me she had found me passed out in the fields. I have no memories of any time before that…" I deliberated how much more I wanted to reveal. Pent may have known my reputation, but it didn't seem wise to disclose the hints of what I dreaded my past to be.

"Tragic indeed," Pent said. "Though you may not be remaining in the dark for much longer. The legend you wish to meet is exceedingly knowledgeable of all that happens in Elibe. I have no doubt he is aware of you and your friends' excursion to see him. And I am quite confident that he will know of your past."

"Is that so?" A mix of hope and anxiety swirled around me. Finally knowing who I was would put to rest a great many questions, but at the same time, a part of me wished to remain ignorant of the truth. Based on what I learned from the twins and Legault and my possessions by Nergal, a dark feeling writhed within like an profane creature ready to be born.

"Ah!" Nils cried out. "Ahead of us. There is danger."

Two figures stepped out of the gloom. Their skin was as pale as ash, cracked like dry and damaged clay, and their eyes were a dead white, lacking any pupils. One of them was almost as big as Hawkeye and wielded an axe that was chipped and cracked on the bottom half. The other was slenderer and used a broken lance with a rusted tip.

"We’ll handle them," Hawkeye said, taking a step ahead. “Mark, pick your target, and I will deal with the other."

Considering weapon and size advantages, I decided to take on the giant axe wielder. My sword would be able to outmaneuver his axe, and I would be swifter compared to him. As for the lancer, I had no doubt Hawkeye could destroy that shambling creature with a single blow. “Take the Lancer.”

Hawkeye rushed forward, shouldering the axe wielder into the wall to give me a further advantage, while he cleaved through the Lancer with a single, mighty drop of his axe. Such incredible strength and his minimal armor led me to believe that he was one of the fabled berserkers I had read about in my research. This was my first time witnessing such a devastating fighter.

Which was more than I could say for myself. Being shoved into the wall didn’t hinder my opponent at all. Rather, it bounced off the wall and swung its axe at an awkward angle, opening his chest up for an easy pierce, but throwing off my movement. After sidestepping the wild strike, I drove my blade into my foe’s midsection, and my assumption of this thing being held together by clay and dried rope was decisively disproven but not far off. Having cut through the first layer of—whatever the thing was made up of—my blade had become jammed in the grimy folds of its skin. I didn't have any time to wrench my weapon free. The axe was already coming back around for another strike. I dove forward into a roll and landed on my knee to pivot, ready to move back in and retrieve my weapon, when Hawkeye obliterated the thing in a single overhead chop.

"Look out!" Nils shouted just as I had begun to salvage a breath.

My brain worked on its own, commanding my body to fling itself against the wall before my head bothered to turn. Hawkeye kicked through the remains of our felled foe to send my sword back to me and then swung his own body aside while Pent swiftly scooped Nils up in his torch arm and twirled out of the way of the arrow that whisked by. My sword skittered along the stone floor right into my waiting hands. I pushed myself off the wall, keeping my head down as I charged. The Sniper came into view in a matter of seconds, pulling back the string of a hefty longbow. It had the same dead face as the other two. I stepped to the side while heaving my blade with extra force in case the bow happened to be as durable as its wielder. There was minimal resistance from the bow, and my spare momentum slashed through the shoulder all the way to the midsection of the ghastly Sniper before it became stuck again.

The corpse slumped to the floor, pulling my trapped blade with it. Further down, I saw a pair of glowing yellow orbs peering at me from underneath thick black robes that almost melded into the shadows of the dim torchlight. The arms of the Druid were already up, and with my arm being dragged down by my sword, my only direction to dodge would be down, which is precisely where the Dark Magic would detonate. But either the Druid had not realized it or, like me, had forgotten that something had created a magic seal down here. I yanked my weapon from its viscid prison and took a casual stroll up to the harmless pile of cloth, scanning the darkness behind it in case another foe was readying to do me in. But I had finally caught a break. Seizing the relief while it lasted, I inhaled deeply and let it back out in a cacophonous groan that reverberated down the hall before driving my blade between the luminous orbs into another gummy mass.

"Hey, I heard something ahead of us," Hector’s voice echoed down the hall.

"You did?" Eliwood’s voice followed.

"Yes, it sounds like someone groaned," Hector replied.

"There’s a lot of things groaning down here, Hector…" Lyn’s voice remarked.

“I know that!” Hector barked. “But this one actually sounded human…”

"They are close…" Ninian’s voice confirmed for them.

The sound of a swift blade cutting through something heavy vibrated off the walls, followed by a "MARK?!"

"Lyn!"

Before I could move, the consistent sound of bulky metal colliding with stone overtook my friends’ voices. An armored General appeared out of the darkness. I started to roll my eyes and curse my luck for the day when Hawkeye charged past me and just about tackled the General. The golem of steel slammed against the wall where Hawkeye brought his axe through one of the weak points under the arm with an uppercut. I continued past them down the hall toward the sound of more fighting, ready to strike down any more enemies that dared to slow me down with their doughy bodies.

But I did not find any more gelatinous obstacles. Only a doorway into a room. Within the room was another form. A robed form, but not a Druid. The robes were brown. The hood covered everything but the bottom half of a severely cracked face. It was the figure I had seen before waking up. The one called Kishuna. I stared at the figure quietly. It had the form of a human, but there was something wrong with it. I felt hardly anything from it. No emotion, no life.

As I looked at this…thing, I felt like I was staring at a sword or a book. A tool of some sort—and a broken one. It was a tool in the form of a human, just like the clay monsters we fought. But what I did feel from it was the aura that Pent had called the magic seal, emanating off this thing like an invisible haze of poisonous gas, oppressing my mind to the point I could barely form a coherent thought. I focused on the one thought that mattered: destroying this thing would nullify the seal. But I had hardly moved a muscle in my leg when the sound of glass breaking and rushing past me rang in my ears. Light runes appeared above and below Kishuna. The runes closed, taking Kishuna away and with it, the oppressive aura. I was left staring at an empty room while the sound of soft leather boots grew louder.

Someone’s arms wrapped around me in a hug and they spoke, but their voice was muffled. I continued staring at the empty room, blinking and shaking my head to see if Kishuna would reappear, or if this was all just a crazy dream. But Lyn’s voice finally broke through my stupor.

“Mark? Is everything okay? What are you looking at?”

The pain in the back of my head was smoldering again. It started as soon as I laid eyes on Kishuna. The being was familiar… like a relation I could not comprehend. And if I couldn’t comprehend it, neither would anyone else. I smiled in apology to Lyn. "Sorry. I thought I saw something in that room, but I think it’s just the strange aura in these tunnels."

"Speaking of the magic seal…" Pent said, looking around as the rest of them joined us. "It's returned to normal.” He snapped his fingers, and a wispy flame sprouted on his fingertips. “The magic seal has fled."

"Then I did see it," I said, pointing into the room with the torches. “There was a person in there. It appeared to be human, but… it didn't feel human. I think they may have been the seal."

No one said anything for an uncomfortable moment. I didn't expect anyone to. No one else had seen what I'd seen. But they all had felt the seal. That despotic sensation… It had done nothing to hinder those of us who didn’t wield magic, but I could only imagine what it had done to Pent. He had hidden his physical discomfort well. But he couldn’t hide that twitching like there had been some parasite crawling through his veins. No doubt the magic seal.

"…That was a creature of heresy," Ninian hissed with a tone as cold as I currently felt. Her fists were clenched and her normally docile eyes were alight with a rage that darkened her demeanor. "It's existence makes ruin of nature's most basic laws."

Eliwood came up alongside her, pushing his fingers through her hand to open it and interlace his fingers in hers. "Ninian?" His own expression was disturbed, though he kept his tone low and even to hide it. It wasn’t what Ninian said that unnerved him, but Ninian herself. The usually timid and quiet Ninian was bristling with anger we’d never thought to see from such a pure girl.

But Eliwood’s gentle call banished the rage, and she met him with apologetic eyes. "Ah, Lord Eliwood. I…"

The fire above Pent’s fingers went out. "In this world, there are many mysterious things that fall beyond the realm of understanding," His tone was equally cold, but then he turned to us with his usual bright smile. "I know where we are now. Come, let us leave this place. A living legend awaits us."

"Ah…" Eliwood turned back to Pent with newfound excitement. "Yes!" He was the first to follow Pent through Kishuna's room. Hector followed him, and I followed Lyn, but as we passed through, Hawkeye lagged behind with Ninian and Nils.

"…Daughter of…" Hawkeye’s voice was too low to hear everything.

"Hm?" Ninian hummed in confusion.

"Be strong…"

"Ah…"

We didn't travel far after exiting Kishuna's room. Another dark hallway (mercifully free of those gooey enemies), and then we were in a spectacular chamber. A still reflective pool that mirrored the intricately carved ceiling above it surrounded a single blue pathway. The path led up to a marble throne where a man sat. A woman with her hair tied in two braids of differing size stood next to him, a silver bow hanging on her shoulder. The serene expression on her face was as striking as Pent’s countenance, flawless as the stone around her.

As for the man in blue robes sitting in the chair…

His wizened face betrayed the long years of his life, and a great white beard, unkempt from a motivation he lost decades ago, grew as far as his chest. Tense veins snaked their way under the skin of his wrinkled hands like a network of rivers viewed from the top of a canyon. Yet, they still had the girth of a capable fighter. If he so desired, he could probably strangle me. But I doubted that would be his manner of attack by the gnarled wooden staff with a misty blue orb in the peak, resting against his seat. If the word "wise" had a human form, he was it. This man could be none other than the legend we had come to find.

"I've brought them," Hawkeye called out.

The legend smiled at us with as much benevolence as the woman standing next to him. "Welcome, children of Roland."

The four of us exchanged glances over his strange greeting.

Hector spoke first. "We've come from Lycia, old man. Do you understand?

Respectful as ever, Hector.

"What does he mean children of Roland?" Lyn asked.

"I think I know," Eliwood replied. "Thousands of years ago, man and dragon fought on this continent."

"Yes," Lyn said. "Mankind won, and the dragons fled this world."

"That's correct,” Eliwood said. “Man against dragon… The war we know as the Scouring. And you know of the Eight Legends, the heroes who led men to victory?"

"Yes, we've all heard the stories of the Eight Legends. I was raised in Sacae, so I know of Hanon, the horseman."

Hector nodded. "Sacae is where Hanon was born. Our country, Lycia, was founded by the hero Roland."

Lyn looked back at our host. "That's why you called us ‘children of Roland,' right?"

“That is correct, daughter of Hanon and Roland.”

"Who are you?" Eliwood asked.

"He's Athos," I said, remembering what I had read about the Eight Legends in my research. "The archsage who traveled out into this desert after the Scouring."

"Quite so, young tactician," the man said with a soft chuckle. “Though many choose to simply call me archsage.”

"Athos?!" Eliwood said aghast. "It can't be…"

Lyn raised an arm in disbelief "Huh? What?!"

"Archsage Athos was one of the Eight Legends." Hector raised his voice to call out to Athos, his skepticism apparent in his tone. "If you really were him, old man… you'd have to be over a thousand years old."

"The world is full of mysteries," Athos said, absently gazing away from us. "Solve one, and along comes another… Before I knew it, I'd grown distant from my fellow man." He shook his head with a tranquility that came from certainty. "Hunger… It knows no bounds."

"A thousand years…" Lyn said, awestruck. "That's a long time."

"Yet, thanks to such longevity, we're meeting here today," Eliwood said in the same manner.

I turned to Hector. "This is what your brother meant by meeting the legend."

"'Living legend'… Now I see it."

Athos pushed himself out of his chair and took his staff. Even after a thousand years, he seemed capable of moving on his own with only a little aid from his staff. "You're here because you want to stop Nergal, aren't you?"

"Yes," Eliwood said, approaching the throne so the archsage did not have to travel as far. "Did you receive word from Marquess Ostia?"

"No… I am aware of most things that occur on the continent. However, knowledge is not enough for me to prevent disaster."

"Nils said something similar to that before," Lyn said. "‘With my special power, I can sense danger coming, but I can't do anything to stop it.'"

"Nils…" Athos looked around us. "One of the children of destiny."

"He's here with us," Lyn explained, "but something outside caught his attention."

Athos caught her gaze and nodded knowingly. "I'm sure something stopped him…"

"Hm?" Eliwood was as confused by that statement as I was.

"Let's talk about Nergal," Athos moved on. "How do we stop him?"

"Yes," Eliwood latched on to the subject. "What can you tell us? What wisdom can you share?"

Athos bowed his head, leaning on his staff a bit more. "Mm. Your foe is, like me, no longer…altogether human. It will be difficult to slay him through traditional means. He wields terrible power. His endless strength stems from an ancient, forbidden magic… To defeat him, you will need a suitable response."

"Response?" I repeated due to his vague word choice.

"While he is resting, you must find the power to oppose him."

"Tell us what it is!" Eliwood said. "We'll do anything!"

Athos serene countenance suddenly turned heavy with solemnity. "It will be harder than you can imagine. Great trials await you. …As does great despair. You may regret your decision. Will you stay the course, children?"

Eliwood did not respond right away. No doubt the archsage's sudden severe stare caught him off guard. "…Our will remains fixed."

Athos tilted his head. "This is a road from which you cannot turn back."

"We've known that all along!" Hector replied.

Lyn nodded to Athos. "We can overcome anything. You'll see. Together, we are strong."

"Turning back now will spell doom for all of Elibe," I said, trying to match Athos's weighty tone. "We have no choice but to continue down this road."

Athos stared at me a moment longer—long enough that I could tell he was examining me. Then he smiled again. "Very well. Your first task will be to travel to Bern. There you must find the Shrine of Seals. From it, we can gain a power to oppose Nergal. Take Hawkeye with you. Add his skills to your own." He turned to Pent and the woman who had been with him when we arrived. "And you? What will you do, Pent and Louise?"

"Nergal," Pent said with that foreboding tone he had after the magic seal fled. "A magic user who rivals you, Lord Athos… And the return of the dragons. An intriguing story." His mien suddenly brightened as he turned to us. "Ah! Forgive the late introductions. I am Pent, Count Reglay of Etruria. This is Louise, my wife."

"It's nice to meet you," Louise said with a bow.

"Count Reglay?" Eliwood said just as surprised as when it was revealed that Athos was among us. "You are Count Reglay?"

"Who?" Lyn asked again. "Is he someone special?"

Hector nodded. "He hails from the most prominent noble house in Etruria. He's known as the Magic General. What has brought you to this place?"

"Bern's successor will soon have his coming-of-age ceremony," Athos explained. "Pent and Louise are to attend as representatives of Etruria. In fact… That might prove beneficial to our cause. Pent, Louise, I assume you mean to join this group?"

"Yes. Bowing to the dictates of fate, my wife and I feel we should join you if we may."

"Well, of course," Lyn replied, looking at me. "That's fine, right Mark?"

"Will you send word of your mission to your associates in Etruria?" I asked.

"There's no reason to, and if we did, who would believe us? Besides, it's not unusual for us to remain absent for long periods. I doubt anyone will be surprised by our absence. Right, my dear?"

"You're right, my love," Louise said with a giggle.

Eliwood leaned over to whisper to me. "Not unlike a certain young noble we've heard of…"

"That's great!" Hector said as I quietly laughed with Eliwood. "Thanks a lot!"

"Then you all should discuss your plan together while Hawkeye is retrieving the rest of your company in the ruins," Athos said. "There is not much time, but before I send you all off, there are some things I must discuss with your tactician. Mark, was it? Come, let us speak in private."

Athos and I walked a ways down the pathway from the lords and our new companions, who had begun discussing what they faced on Valor and Nergal’s plans. As we walked, my mind raced with so many questions I wished to ask this legend. If this man was indeed the wise archsage that had lived for over a thousand years, surely, he could answer these questions I had been carrying with me for so long.

"I know you have many questions, Mark," he said, no doubt reading my mind with his power. "Ask what you wish, I will answer what I can."

"Who am I?" I asked without missing a beat.

Athos' chuckle was so earnest that hope burst within me like a light breaking through the clouds after a thunderstorm. "I had a feeling you would ask that. Yet, I'm afraid the answer to that is as hidden away from me as it is for you. I only know of your exploits in Lycia helping to reunite a family, aiding the young marquess in finding his father, and now your mission to defeat Nergal. Other than that, your identity remains clouded to me. But if you can search your memories for any possible sources, I will tell you what I know."

I shook my head in defeat. "I can't remember anything from before meeting Lyn. And what I've found out since has only left me with more questions. Nergal needs me for something."

"Needs you?" Athos' tone had regained that severity from when he asked if we were willing to continue fighting Nergal.

There wasn’t any point in keeping anything a secret from the archsage. "I've been possessed multiple times in our travels. Each time has been in aid of Nergal in some form. One instance happened on our first trip to Valor. I was losing myself, and a voice kept telling me to bring Ninian to him. I know now that it was Nergal's voice. Since Valor, I have not been possessed, but I also discovered that I have been in Nergal’s company for a time before meeting Lyn."

"I see." Athos did not say anything else, but I could feel his eyes, which were far stronger now that I could see them up close. They were colder than before, like a frozen plain stretching onward to leave me empty and hopeless of ever finding warmth again. It was the kind of look I probably should have expected considering what I had just told him. He knew just as well as I what being under Nergal's influence could mean.

"I know he needs me. Just as Nils and Ninian can open the Dragons Gate, I can call the dragons forth."

"Is that so?" Athos asked in surprise, which brightened his demeanor slightly.

"Yes," I said, seizing anything to avoid having that cold glare fall upon me again. There were few things as unsettling as one of the eight legends viewing you as his enemy. "They told me about it after we returned from Valor." Something popped into my mind. "Do you know who Nils and Ninian are? Is it possible we are the same?"

Athos tilted his head away from me. "Hm. I cannot determine who any of you are. You are all tainted by Nergal's dark magic to some degree, you more so than them. All I can sense from you all are your powers. I sense that power to call the dragons within you like their ability to sense danger." He paused for a moment. "…There is one more thing I can sense within you. It is an old familiarity… I cannot be certain whether that is good or ill." He turned back to me. "You said you have not been possessed since your first journey to Valor?"

"That is correct," I answered.

"And you are determined to help your friends defeat Nergal?"

"Yes."

Athos finally smiled at me again. "Good. I sense no treachery in your answer. You are as you say, and the only danger is from Nergal. Fate blows a strange wind in your direction. Much rides on your shoulders and in your abilities in addition to the burden you already carry. I want you to take this." A hand grasping a small blue vial filled with a liquid appeared from under the folds of his robe. "Should you start to feel Nergal's influence coming over you, consume this liquid. Be warned, though. The liquid is a powerful sleeping draught. It will shut down your body's functions, and you will fall unconscious for a full day's time, so be sure you are not in physical danger. This is also the only one I have to give you, so you must use it wisely. Only consume this as a last resort."

I gratefully took the vial from him. It wasn't a panacea, but it would at least prevent one possession. My only concern was how terrible a position I would have to be in to use it. I tried not to dwell on the thought and just hoped that such a situation would never happen. "Thank you, Athos. I appreciate all the assistance you have provided for us."

Athos hummed and nodded. "I would not be living up to the title of ‘living legend' if I did not aid you along this dark path. Let us return to your friends. I will use my powers to send you all back to Lycia. From there, travel to Bern and find the Shrine of Seals.”

“Send us back to Lycia? How will you do that?”

Athos chuckled in that way wise old men loved to whenever they were asked innocent questions. “Teleportation, of course! Returning to the surface would prove quite difficult without magic, I assure you.”

“If that is so, then I must request that you teleport us back to Missur. The rest of our company is waiting for us there.”

“Once Hawkeye has returned with your allies that fell into the ruins, I will go to Missur myself and send the rest of your company along. For now, we will warp you and your friends—Eliwood."

"Yes, Lord Athos?" Eliwood responded as we returned to the group.

"Your territory is the closest to Bern, is it not?"

"Yes. The border lies in the mountains."

"Very good." Athos pushed his hands out from his sleeves. "Now please envision a nice, wide place in Pherae… Next, think of the name of a person you might meet there."

"As you say…" Eliwood closed his eyes.

"Now, children of Roland, it is time to say farewell. Please shut your eyes. You must reach the Shrine of Seals. There, your destinies' doors will open wide before you." Athos's voice faded away, and so did the rest of the world around us.

"My beloved…" An unfamiliar woman's voice echoed in my head. "I cannot believe you are gone. Every time I close my eyes, I see you at my side. Your memory haunts me, and I am filled with sorrow…"

Was this another premonition? Unlikely. All I could see was darkness at the moment.

"…Elbert…" The woman continued. "If by some chance you can hear my prayer… Please look after our son."

Elbert? Our son? Could it be…?

"Mother…" Eliwood's voice spoke out.

"What?!" The woman said. "Eliwood? Where- Where are you?"

The darkness finally faded, and we were now standing in the middle of a throne room. An extravagantly dressed older woman with purple hair gasped as she came into view.

"Mother!" Eliwood cried out, running ahead of the rest of us. "I'm home! I've returned!"

Eliwood's mother collected herself and ran into the open arms of her son. "Ah! Eliwood! Is it really you? Oh, how did you… You startled me so!"

"Forgive me, mother. The Archsage sent us."

Lady Eleanora brushed aside her son's hair so that she could examine his face. "You look so tired. Have you lost weight? Oh, come closer and let me see your face."

Eliwood's head fell aside. "…Mother, about father…"

She waved a hand between them. "I heard his last moments were glorious. Though he's gone, he will ever be my life's joy."

Eliwood nodded. "I know."

Lady Eleanora looked over her son's shoulder. “Your companions are with you."

"Yes," Eliwood said, turning to us as we approached them. "Hector joined me not long after we left Pherae. And you remember Lady Lyndis?"

"Yes," she said, bowing to Lyn. "I am very thankful to you both for assisting Eliwood."

"You're welcome, Lady Eleanora," Lyn replied, returning the bow. "Your son helped reunite me with my grandfather. It was only right that I repay his gracious aid."

"And how is your grandfather, my dear? I heard he suffered a terrible injury."

The question caused my heart to jump. I wondered if she knew I was the one that caused that grievous injury.

"He is doing much better, I am told," Lyn said without any hint of my involvement.

"That is wonderful news!" Lady Eleanora looked at me now. "And you must be Mark."

Thinking that her reason for bringing up Lord Hausen was to also question the safety of her son with me around, I started to defend myself. But before I could get a word out, I was answered with arms thrust around me so tight that, at first, I thought she was trying to attack me. But it was merely a hug filled with a mother's gratitude.

"I have heard so many things about you.” She stepped back to bless me with eyes full of appreciation. “You have no idea how much your willingness to help my son these past months has put my troubled heart at ease. My late husband had considered hiring you before the conflict here within Lycia rose up. And Eliwood has had nothing but praise for you ever since you joined him. You have my deepest gratitude for all you have done for my family. Please. If there is anything that I can provide you with, you need only ask for it."

I bowed my head low in respect to her kind offer. "It is no trouble at all, milady. Your son helped Lyn and me during the Caelin conflict, so I, too, felt obliged to offer my assistance when I heard of Lord Elbert's disappearance."

"You are too kind," Lady Eleanora replied benevolently, patting my shoulders. "Then, at least take some time to recuperate here. Come. Let us make everyone comfortable. You all look in need of a rest."

"I'm sorry, mother. We must hurry onward…"

"I know that!" Lady Eleanora exclaimed pressing a desperate hand to her son. "But for one night… here in the castle… Eliwood… just for tonight."

"Mother…" Eliwood began to protest.

"One night's not going to hurt us," Hector broke in. "Who knows when we'll be back this way?"

"Yes, let's do it." Lyn feigned being on the verge of collapse. "I am so exhausted."

"We just finished traveling through a desert, Eliwood," I added. "The rest of the company is going to need some rest once they arrive. As the commander of this company, I'm ordering a mandatory rest for the day."

Eliwood smiled along with his mother. "My friends… Thank you."

As if Lady Eleanora's hug hadn't expressed her gratitude enough, she had given me probably the grandest room in the castle. Two large pictures of what I guessed to be the previous rulers of Pherae covered the full vertical length of the walls they hung from. A thick rug that I could not feel the bottom of hid most of the floor. I occupied a sofa embroidered in an extravagant red cloth that gave off a lustrous sheen in the light of the fire, crackling in the hearth so large that half the bed could probably fit in it. And that was the one aspect of this room that had given me pause for thought.

It was the largest bed I had ever seen. Twice the size of the one I had seen in Lord Hausen's room in Caelin. The curtains of the canopy were drawn back, but even tied up, I could see that they were impenetrable by light. Eight pillows were arranged with pain-stacking precision for aesthetic appeal, and the blankets were puffed up like the belly of a tavern patron who lived at the bar rather than his own home. All of it was too much for just one person to sleep in, but two?

My eyes glanced over at the wall between the bed and the fireplace, which seemed comparably naked to the rest of the room. No furniture to occupy the space, no door to a closet. Not even a picture that could most certainly fit in the ample space. And of all the things to be there, a picture seemed the most appropriate. As I stared at the wall, my eyes caught on something peculiar. Two small holes could barely be seen evenly spaced apart an adequate distance up the wall. If there hadn't been fancy wallpaper with a repetitive design that made the holes stand out like vagabonds at a royal banquet once you noticed them, I wouldn't have seen it. But now that I did, I felt almost sure that there had been a third portrait on that wall, but was taken down. When? I could only guess. My mind instead speculated at what the picture had been and, in turn, to whom this room belonged.

A knock at the door interrupted my wandering mind. I set my drink on the tray and went to the door. When I opened it, I found Hector in noble loungewear rather than his bulky armor, but still taking up the entire doorway, staring at the floor before looking up with the oddest look on his face. Like he had some terrible news to tell me…

"Ah good. I'm glad you're still awake, Mark. Do you mind if I come in and talk with you?"

"Of course." I stepped aside to let him in. "Is everything all right? Did someone not make it out of Nabata?" A part of me had feared that someone had run off for some arbitrary reason and had been left behind when Athos warped the company.

"No, no. Marcus reported that everyone is accounted for," Hector said, coming in and walking straight to the fire. He stood there for a long time, staring into the flames as they danced around the logs. I had never seen the dire seriousness currently set on his face. Even when I shut the door, he didn't say anything else, so I sat back down on the sofa and refilled my drink.

"Would you like some of this wine? Either I'm out of practice, or there is something strong in this because I'm already losing myself. I feel I shouldn't drink too much more in case enemies attack, but it's quite palpable."

"No." Hector grunted.

His mood was obvious enough. This curtness wasn't his normal kind of rough conduct. I was about to ask him what he wanted to talk about when he continued.

"…Mark, I owe you an apology."

"Hm?" I asked in reflex. Those were definitely not the words I expected to hear tonight, especially by Hector, the man who had called one of the eight legends "old man" to his face, of all people.

"You remember. When we first met… I doubted your abilities and said some things… I was wrong. You know what each of us are capable of, and you direct our hands based on that knowledge. And now we are about to go into Bern. I have been dreading setting foot across the border ever since I left Ostia to find Eliwood. If it weren't vital to our mission, I would dissuade the course of action with absolute obstinacy. If Bern finds out what is happening, war could break out. We must be careful as we travel… But I know you are already aware, and that fact puts sets to rest a great many anxieties. Whether it's assessing a field of battle or deliberating what to do about your possessions, you are always fully aware of the urgency of whatever situations we find ourselves in. We are lucky to have a tactician like you leading us. I understand that now, and I need to thank you for your selfless service to this company." He turned around to face me, and he still wore that same weight on his face. "Mark, after all of this is over, Ostia could use—what? Did I say something strange?"

I, on the other hand, was not wearing the same look. My drink was held inches away from my mouth, which gaped open in pure shock. "Did you even hear yourself?"

Hector thrust his arms out. "Why does everyone think I've got nothing nice to say?!"

"Hector…” I leaned forward, knitting my eyebrows together in dire sincerity. “I need you to come clean with me right now. Are you possesssahHAHA!” I failed to suppress my laughter at the end.

"Outstanding…" Hector said, folding his arms. "The man whose hands we have put our lives into is drinking himself silly. Maybe I spoke too soon."

I gulped down the rest of the wine to help quell my laughter despite how much I appreciated Hector providing me with such mirth. The wine slipped down the wrong tube, and my laughter turned to coughing. "You're probably right," I said hacking out the words with the wine. "But Hector, it's not so much what you said that is strange, but why you are saying it. By the eight, Hector! Please tell me you have not been carrying this guilt around with you all this time. You certainly had me fooled."

"Well, I was talking with Flor-" He suddenly silenced himself. "Someone. And they pointed out how much they admired your ability to persevere and keep leading us even though you risk hurting the people you care about. They said it was because of your strength in the face of overwhelming opposition that they had gained so much confidence in their combat ability."

"Wow, Florina said all that about me?"

"It wasn't Florina!" Hector responded too hastily.

I tilted my head and curled an exaggerated brow to communicate his failure to fool me.

"She came up and started talking with me."

"Okay, so she said that?"

"Yes, and it got me thinking how I've taken you for granted. So that's why I came in here. You've led us this far, even after all the pain you suffered in the process. I can't even imagine how awful being possessed by our enemy must be for you."

I took another sip of my drink. "Well, I can tell you this wine is certainly helping."

"And there you go! Before, you were asking us to kill you because of your possessions, and now you're making jokes. That's incredible!"

"You're giving me too much credit, Hector," I said, shaking my head. "Believe me. My possessions have been some of the most terrifying moments in my life. And maybe I'm just drinking away my sorrow as an alternative to offing myself, which probably isn't a great alternative. But I must be honest with you, Hector. While the threat of being possessed at any moment looms over me constantly, it is yours and Eliwood's and Lyn's continued faith in someone who is more of a threat than a boon to you that truly frightens me."

"Don't do that to yourself, Mark. If you believe that, then you truly have no idea how much the entire company values you."

"Maybe so. But Marcus told me something a while ago that I feel describes our current affairs. ‘Not many men would keep a sword at their neck, and fewer still would not be the ones holding it’. And in this case, Nergal is the one holding that blade. Excuse the bluntness, my lord, but that’s highly imbecilic of all of you."

"You see yourself as a sword," Hector said with a smirk. "But the rest of us see you as a shield. I can tell you I speak for most in the company when I say no matter how menacing our mission may become, we have the confidence that we will succeed because of you. I'm sure Eliwood felt the same pressure from Athos that I did when he told him what we would be facing. But I know that conviction Eliwood had in his answer was because of you. And whether or not you believe that is irrelevant. We need you—now more than ever. We're all counting on you. We won't give up on you, so don't give up on us."

Maybe it was the wine, or maybe it was the words that were coming out of Hector's mouth instead of Eliwood or Lyn. But I did not have a tactical dispute for that. I did have another question, however. "So what else did you and Florina talk about?" I asked giving him a goofy look.

His confident gaze leveled out, and Hector strode over, grabbing a glass and the wine off the tray. "You know, I think I will have a drink."

Chapter Text

DISCLAIMER: I hate that I even have to put something like this before the chapter, but unfortunately, this is the internet. This chapter contains situations dealing with people in positions of power. This chapter was written back in 2018 and also follows the original story of the Fire Emblem game this story is based on, and is not in any way referencing any current events in the real world.

Chapter 14

I had never worked for Bern in my time after the Caelin campaign. I had heard rumors that they were looking to hire me after helping an Etrurian navy company escort a noble through pirate-infested waters. And after that, I had spent time in an Etrurian library researching Bern to better sell my services. Out of all the nations, Bern had the most formidable military, which would make them a lucrative choice for work considering my talents as a tactician. Beyond that, it also seemed like a probable origin for my life before my amnesia. With the intention of gaining access to their royal archives, I planned to offer my services to the royal family, but it was while en route to Bern that I learned of Eliwood’s father’s disappearance.

During our night in Pherae, Hector and I had discussed what we should be expecting from Bern. Lycia and Bern had always been on amicable terms. But as of late, the current ruler, King Desmond, had begun to flaunt his military strength, and Lycian immigrants no longer had the freedoms they once had within Bern. It was clear that Bern now held a grudge against Lycia for some reason. Because of this, I decided we should enter Bern in small groups disguised as simple travelers. Pent and his wife Louise were to attend the Prince of Bern’s coming-of-age ceremony. All of Bern was preparing for the celebration, so we would be able to blend into the festivities while we searched for the shrine.

"…Incredible," Eliwood said, staring at the group of villagers setting up colorful streamers on a house. "Even in a remote village like this, they've heard announcements of the prince's coming-of-age ceremony."

"Well," Lyn replied, smiling and thanking the little boy that handed her a flower. "Prince Zephiel's ceremony is only ten days away. There's no helping all the excitement."

"They've no idea what's happening…" Hector grunted. "Carefree fools."

I turned to Hawkeye. "I mean no disrespect to your master, but it seems odd that Lord Athos would send us deep into enemy territory without any direction. Did he intend for us to meet someone, or did he at least tell you of the shrine’s location?"

"I've heard it's north in Bern," he said looking off toward some mountains in the distance. "But the location of the shrine itself is secret. I doubt anyone outside the royal family knows how to reach it."

"So, if we want to reach the Shrine," Lyn said, "we'll have to contact the royal family, is that it?"

Hector raised a brow at the notion. "Without revealing our identities or our motives?" He shook his head. "There's got to be another way to find where it is."

"Hector's right," I agreed. "As tense as relations between Lycia and Bern are, we can't afford Bern discovering our intentions."

"I can provide you with its general location," Pent said. "I'm privy to the highest secrets of military information in Etruria. When we learned of the shrine's existence, we investigated. However, none of our operatives returned. Bern's defenses are formidable."

"So," Hector said less than eager, "even if we reach the shrine, we're as like as not to be captured?"

"Most likely," Pent said. "And if your identities are discovered, Bern will see it as an excuse to invade Lycia."

"Which must be avoided at all costs," I finished.

"That's where I come in," Pent said, bowing as a servant would to their employer. "Duty demands that I attend the post-ceremony festivities. However, I will greet the queen privately before the ceremony."

"Privately?" I asked, feeling hope starting to sprout.

"Queen Hellene was born in Etruria," Louise said in the same altruistic tone as her husband. "She and I are related, albeit a distant relation."

"Is that so?" The hope continued to grow within me.

"When we meet," Pent continued, "I will discreetly ask about the Shrine of Seals. Most likely, she'll not say much, but anything will help, will it not? Rest assured, even if I fail, I will not reveal your presence."

"Lord Pent!" Eliwood exclaimed. "That's-"

"If we do not return by tomorrow," Pent continued before Eliwood could argue further, "return to Lycia and come up with a new plan. Understood?"

"You make it sound as if your failure is assured," I said before agreeing. “I would be remiss not to ask what your plans are should you fail.”

Pent's smile did not falter. "Everything will work out. It wouldn't be a bad life. Abandoning my position…" He looked over to his wife. "Living on the run with Louise…"

His wife smiled back with elation lighting her face. "If I'm with you, my lord Pent, I care not where we go."

The careless consideration of their future did not satisfy me. "I appreciate your willingness to do this dangerous task, but you are still members of this company, and as important as this task is, I would be happier with better odds of success. We have other options. And the one I see resulting in the highest chance of success is for me to accompany you two to meet with the queen."

"What in the!?!" Hector babbled out.

Lyn gave me a probing glance. "Mark, they know you work for Lycia."

"We can't risk you being captured by Bern," Eliwood said.

I bit back an irritation at the lords once again placing too much stock in my abilities and not their own.

Pent raised a deterring hand. "Forgive the argument against your tactics, Mark. But I agree with Lady Lyndis. It is quite probable that Bern knows your association with Lycia. Your presence would only generate more suspicion."

"Not so," I said. "Though most of my work after the Caelin campaign happened within Lycia, I have been hired to work in other nations as well. One such contract was with an Etrurian ambassador. He’d heard about me from some associates of his in Bern who were looking for a wandering tactician who had returned a Sacaean girl to her noble house. I had intended to travel to Bern for more work after my job with the ambassador. But I heard about Eliwood's father going missing en route to Bern.

"My intelligence sources confirmed for me before we left Pherae that Bern is unaware of our group and what we have encountered. If they did, they would have marched on Lycia by now. So I would doubt they know I work for Lycia. If anything, the last Bern has heard about me was that I was traveling into the Nabata. They have no idea that Lord Athos teleported us back to Pherae. They have no proof that I am working for Lycia, and the same applies to Pent and Louise. With that in mind, Nabata is near Etruria. I'm sure Pent can come up with a story of how he came across me in Etruria and wished for me to lead his escort on their way here to Bern. He was impressed with my work, so he brought me to the ceremony to extol the tactical prowess Bern has been craving. And with it being Prince Zephiel's coming-of-age ceremony, I'm sure the queen would be interested in hiring me to teach her son, to which I would be honored in exchange for information on the shrine, of which I have taken a scholarly interest in."

"Laying it on a bit thick, aren't you, Mark?" Hector teased.

Pent’s complexion brightened to a significant degree that banished the worry he’d been hiding behind his confident smile. "You continue to surprise me, Mark. I don't think I will need to pretend to praise your tactical genius for it is indeed prodigious. You made a fantastic alibi, and your offer may be just what we need to loosen Queen Hellene's lips."

"Are you sure about this, Mark?" Eliwood asked. "Even if they don't find out you are working for Lycia, asking about the shrine might be a terrible taboo. And losing you would be a critical blow to this campaign."

"I'm never sure about anything, Eliwood. We shouldn’t rely solely on my abilities. That is why I intend to accompany Pent and Louise. We need to find this Shrine of Seals, and I know Bern has been looking for me. I can be powerful leverage for locating the Shrine of Seals. As for losing me, that could work in our favor. Joining Bern’s military rival after being ousted would appear perfectly natural. If I’m not ousted, but instead imprisoned or killed, then…"

"Then we'll pray for your success," Hector cut me off.

"Please be careful," Lyn said. Her tone was weighted down with concern, but I could see her confidence in me deep within her green eyes. "Come back safely. We'll be waiting for you."

"Let us proceed then!" Pent said.

I urged Ajax to follow them. But we had only moved a short distance away when Hawkeye came running up to Pent.

"…Pent, hold on."

"What is it, Hawkeye?"

Hawkeye pulled out an orange stone with an unfamiliar design embossed on it. "I was holding this for the master."

Shock tightened Pent's features as he took the stone from Hawkeye to examine it closer. "It's a… Heaven Seal!"

Hawkeye nodded. "There are only three in existence."

"What is Archsage Athos' plan?"

"I'm to give it to them when the time is right."

"I see." He handed the stone back to Hawkeye.

"I…" Hawkeye did not move to take the stone back. "I might not know the right time when it comes. I want you to take care of it."

"Alright," Pent said, bringing the stone back to examine it again. "Thank you, but what if we do not return?"

"You will." His tone was as firm as his chest. "You and Louise…" His eyes shifted in my direction for a brief second. "…and Mark… without fail."

"I understand," Pent replied.

"Lord Hawkeye," Louise spoke up. "We… we will most certainly return."

There was more to their words, but what exactly it was, I could only guess. I didn't question it. My mind had become obsessed with that stone—that Heaven Seal—which Pent continued to stare at, only breaking his gaze away to stare off aimlessly, but neither toward his wife or me. And after ten minutes of traveling like such, my curiosity had hit its limit.

"So what is that Heaven Seal? Is it meant to help us defeat Nergal?"

"In a way, I suppose,” Pent said, still enamored with the stone. “These seals are said to contain great power within them and can bestow that power upon an individual if they are found to be worthy. It seems Lord Athos believes your lords might have the potential to use this, but…"

"But what?"

"I am like Hawkeye. I do not know when the right time to give it to them might be." He looked at the seal one more time, then extended it to me. "But you might."

"Me?"

"Of course. You have known those three for far longer than Hawkeye or I. As their tactician, you have the greatest insight. It only makes sense for you to give this to one of them whenever you feel the time is right. Please, take it."

I slowly reached out, tentatively moving my hand over the stone. There were only three of these in existence, and Pent now trusted me with one of these valuable artifacts. Even as I took it, I could feel the power radiating from this stone. "Is this really to be used for one of the lords? What about you? You're Count Reglay: the Magic General. I feel as if you might be the one to use it."

"Oh, I know I cannot use it."

"You do?"

Pent reached into his pocket and pulled out—to my sudden surprise—another Heaven Seal!

"Indeed. I've had my own since I first met Lord Athos several years ago. Though, it seems that I am not worthy of its power. It is said that the seals know whom they are meant to aid and will extend their power when found by the ones meant to find them.” He gestured to the stone in my hand. “Apparently, Athos believes one of those lords will prove worthy of that one. We'll just have to wait until the time is right."

"What about the one you have? Did he say who would be able to use that?"

Pent stared at the Heaven Seal he was holding. "Athos is wise, but he is not omniscient. At first, he believed I would prove worthy. But now it seems he believes that one of the lords will prove worthy of one of these. And pardon my candor, but I do not intend to give this seal to you or your company. Since I could not use this seal, I am planning to gift it to Queen Hellene for Prince Zephiel's ceremony. It was my original leverage before you made your argument to join us. Hopefully, with both you and the seal, the queen will be obliged enough to provide us with what we wish to know about the Shrine."

"That would be ideal," I said putting the seal away in my pack and directed my attention to Louise. "What can you tell me about the royal family?"

"Hellene and I have been close since we were very young never minding the distance between our relation," Louise explained. "Despite being Countess Reglay, I was not born into the high class of nobility like Hellene was. My family had no nobility other than being distantly related to nobles like Hellene's family."

"You were not a noble from birth?" I raised a intrigued brow at the revelation. From what I had learned about the nobles of Etruria, like most other nobles in Elibe, they only married other nobles. "How did you and Pent meet?"

The two of them smiled at each other, and Pent started up.

"I had just turned eighteen and Louise, only fourteen, was brought in with about twenty other women for me to consider. All the other ladies sang and danced, played lovely music or recited eloquent poetry, anything they thought suitable for a wife. But all they did was remind me of my sisters or my dear mother. My sweet Louise, however…" He reached out and took a bundle of her long blonde hair in his hands, gently twirling it around his finger. "She did not sing. And she did not dance. Instead, she demonstrated her skill with a bow. Oh, what a sight it was to behold such beauty and elegance gracing a deadly weapon. I could not pull my eyes away for a single second. And when she finished, she became as stiff as her bow, turned to me with a face flushed so beautifully, and said, ‘My sweet lord, if you choose me, I will protect you to life's end.'” Louise giggled at his impression of her, and he continued, “Her boldness was absolutely captivating. I had never met a girl whose heart was so clear."

"That's-" Images of Lyn flooded into my mind. How bold she’d been to ask me to teach her to wield a sword, how insistent she’d been to travel together, and how supportive she’d been in our journey to reach her grandfather and… the feelings she’d generated for me… for some crazy reason. I had to shake my head to regain my focus. Thankfully, Pent and Louise had become lost in each other's eyes that they didn't notice. "That's a lovely story."

Louise clutched her husband's hand and kissed him. "Yes, but poor Hellene's marriage was not as blissful as mine. She was arranged to marry King Desmond for political reasons. Though Hellene accepted the marriage without dispute, King Desmond despised the arrangement as he was already in love with another woman.” Louise’s gaze left Pent’s, and her expression turned downcast. “Oh, she used to be such a compassionate girl. But with what she has expressed in her letters… it saddens me greatly to imagine what it must be like for her to live in that manse away from the king."

"Manse? You mean we are not bound for the castle?"

"Indeed, we are not." Pent pointed down the path to some lights that peeked through the trees. "Even after fathering the Prince Zephiel through Hellene, King Desmond continued to love the woman he had before, bringing her to live with him in the castle instead of Hellene and his son. Their union brought about a daughter, the Princess Guinivere, and additional malice from Hellene. Desmond's uncouth vindictiveness and Hellene's jealousy are why we are fearful of the trouble asking for the Shrine of Seals might cause. Prince Zephiel is still the rightful heir to Bern's throne; as such, Hellene has been indefatigable with ensuring the ceremony takes place, while King Desmond has tried to make the audacious claim that Guinevere's husband will be the next king. And despite all this infighting between his parents, Zephiel is a remarkably gifted child of high intellect and an excellent swordsman."

"I've also heard the people of Bern adore him," I added, remembering the gossip I’d gathered in taverns on my way to Bern. "He seems greatly suited to rule, maybe even more so than Desmond. A son who is vastly superior to you and was born from a woman you do not love is meant to surpass you…? I understand he feels threatened, but I don’t understand why. He’s the king’s blood. Speaking pragmatically, he couldn’t have asked for a better heir." I pinched the space between my eyebrows and let out a deep sigh. "I mean no offense to either of you. But I pray that I am not actually of noble birth. The politics of you nobles is truly bewildering."

They both gave me good-natured laughs.

"I share your anxiety, Mark,” Pent said. “It can be dolefully exhausting at times. The more we discuss this ridiculous situation, the more relieved I am that you have joined us. Offering your assistance to Prince Zephiel could be just the sort of honey we need to gain the information we seek."

"Let us hope that is the case," I said as our horses trotted on to the path leading up to the manse. The villa could not have been more out of place. Nestled deep in a forest with the mountains reaching up behind like the thick bars of a prison cell, stifling all hope of escape—the lavishness of this estate only further demonstrated its true purpose. The building was meant to hide away something without outright imprisonment. And the more I stared at the manse, the more thankful I became for deciding to aid Eliwood rather than be enlisted by King Desmond. Someone so insecure as to lock away a wife and son because they exposed his shortcomings left me with a new bias. Though learning the location of the Shrine of Seals was our primary reason for being here, a part of me now wanted to actually uphold my offer to teach Prince Zephiel. No doubt the prince had suffered much from the neglect without cause, and King Desmond was responsible for Uther and the Lycian Lords having to maintain the guise of a united front in the midst of their nation’s turmoil. For the good of Elibe, Zephiel needed to be king.

We passed through a gate into the courtyard, and a stable boy came up to us to tend to our horses. I followed Louise and Pent to the entrance. And before we’d even stepped through the door, one of the servants stormed into the foyer, one hand on his hip while the other pulled on his gray mustache. He spun toward the stairs, taking the first step before stopping and turning back around and finally noticing us.

"Lady Louise! You are here? We were not expecting you until after Prince Zephiel's ceremony."

"I apologize for my unexpected arrival, Maxwell. I wished to see Queen Hellene before the ceremony. Is she well? You appear rather distressed."

Maxwell pulled so hard on the end of his mustache that it pointed diagonally up. "I would say not. She just finished with a visit from King Desmond. Their conversation did not end well."

Louise nodded in understanding. "If that is the case, then please take me to see her."

"As you wish, my lady," the butler bowed and then led us up the stairs and down a hall to a door where I could hear a woman in the midst of profound weeping within. Maxwell knocked on the door and then stepped into the room. "I beg your pardon, your highness. You have a visitor…"

"I will see no one." Vindictiveness choked her tone. "Send him home."

"Your Highness, I…"

Louise put up her hand to Pent and me and then entered the room. "It's all right. You may go. I will take care of this."

"Yes, my lady." Maxwell sauntered out of the room, mumbling something about the state of his job as he went.

"Lady Hellene," Louise spoke softly. "It's been far too long. It is I, Louise."

"Louise!?" Hellene’s voice cracked. The venomous tone she’d had moments ago disappeared. Now, she sounded especially exultant to see Louise. "Is it truly you? Ah… Louise…"

"What is it? Your eyes are so red. It's a shame to see such beauty marred by tears."

"There is something… I…"

"If it pleases you, I would hear your troubles. My husband is here with me.

"Lord Pent is also here?"

"Yes, and we have brought someone I think you will be equally joyful to meet. Perhaps he will be able to offer his aid in fixing whatever has troubled you."

"I see… Let me… meet him."

Pent entered the room, and I followed in after him. Hellene was in Louise's arms. Despite Louise saying she shared a distant familial relation with the queen, the resemblance was nearly impeccable. One could’ve mistaken them for sisters. Her face was as lovely and elegant as the ravishing red dress she wore. A great deal of time had gone into making it so. But now it had been bathed with black streaks from her weeping, and if not for Louise holding her, she might have been talking to us from the floor. Her gaze went to Pent first, and her smile grew bigger.

"Lord Pent…"

He waved his cape aside and bowed low. "It is a pleasure to see you again, Queen Hellene."

The queen's gaze fell upon me next, but I did not receive a smile as Pent did. "And is this the man?"

"He is," Louise replied. "I'm sure you've heard of him before. This is Mark: the Wandering Tactician of Elibe."

Queen Hellene's eyes grew so big that I could see how hard she had been crying. "This is the Wandering Tactician? I was told he was last seen entering the Nabata desert."

I gave the queen a tilted nod of good humor to throw on the façade. "Your spies are good, your highness. But my resources are better. I've heard that Prince Zephiel's coming of age ceremony is approaching, and Bern has tried to hire my skills in recent months. My own sources have informed me of the turmoil within the royal family. King Desmond isn't too fond of Prince Zephiel, is he?"

"How did you know that?" the queen asked sharply.

"I have exceptional resources," I played. "And I’ve learned a great deal about your son. To tell you the truth, I would rather offer my services to Prince Zephiel instead of King Desmond, and I am hopeful you will not mention this to the king."

"You wish to help my son instead of the king?" There was a tremor of hope in her words.

"I do. I am fully aware of your son's popularity with the people of Bern as well as his benevolent personality. In my professional judgment, I believe he will be a grand successor. And seeing as he will be the future ruler of Bern, I wish to help him as he grows into his position. However, with the king's aversion to your son, I did not know how to extend my services to Prince Zephiel without provoking the king's wrath. That is until I found Count and Countess Reglay and they told me of your tragic isolation from the castle. Though these might be unfortunate circumstances for you, they are, in actuality, a boon, as I believe I can safely tutor your son without the king's knowledge if we are careful. Surely no one will find it strange if I pose as another servant of the manse while the king and his knights are around and then teach Prince Zephiel once they are gone." The queen's complexion improved significantly with each word I spoke. Now was the time to bargain. "All I ask in return is for some information on a venture I am currently undertaking."

A chill shot down my spine when the queen's smile drooped. "Your offer is kind, tactician. But I am afraid the prince's ceremony will not be taking place."

"Is that why you are crying, Hellene?" Louise asked. "What happened?"

"Bern has had a long-standing tradition of the symbol of the heir, the Fire Emblem, being given over to the prince that will become king. It is the heart of the ceremony. The ceremony cannot take place without it." Hellene's tone suddenly became cold with allegation. "And the king came all the way out here to inform me that someone stole the Fire Emblem. He despises his son so much that he hired some villain to steal the ceremony's icon and prevent Zephiel from being made his heir."

"You're sure it was the king who orchestrated the theft?" I asked.

The queen put that cold tone into her eyes and glared at me. "I'm sure of it."

Whether or not her allegation was correct was irrelevant. I had an opportunity for a new course that would almost certainly provide us with what we sought. "Then I believe we can help each other, your highness."

"Are you sure about this, Mark?" Pent asked when we were away from the manse, and I was sure no one followed us.

"We have no other choice. The ceremony will not take place without the Fire Emblem. Tutoring the future king of Bern will be useless if he does not become the next king. You saw how sanguine she became when I offered to find the Fire Emblem for her. There isn't a doubt in my mind that she will give us the shrine's location in exchange for recovering the Fire Emblem.

Pent inclined his head toward me. "Though I agree with your estimation, Mark, such an endeavor will take time. We do not have any leads on where the Fire Emblem is or the thieves who took it."

"Yes, we do."

Pent popped his eyebrows. "We do?"

"Yes. Queen Hellene said that the king arranged to have it stolen."

"I understand your suspicions. But it is more than likely the queen was caught up in paranoia. Such circumstances as Queen Hellene's would stretch anyone's mental stability."

"Bern has the strongest military in Elibe and the castle rests in the mountains patrolled by Wyvern Knights,” I said. “Do you truly believe even an organized group of criminals could infiltrate the castle and not only steal the most important item in Bern’s royal succession, but only that and nothing else?” I shook my head. “The queen may have been enraged and quick to point a finger, but if what you two and she told me was true, my first assumption would be the king, too, especially since he showed up to the manse to tell Hellene the Fire Emblem was stolen. Even if he didn't, our best bet on finding a lead is at the castle since that is where the royal family housed it."

"So we will be infiltrating the castle then?" Louise asked.

"Yes, you two have been there before so you can show us where they keep the Fire Emblem, and we might be able to-"

A girl’s scream filled the air.

My head snapped in the direction of the scream. “Where are we? Was that from someone in our company?" Worry blazed through my mind. Had Bern already discovered us? We hadn't even been on the trail for three minutes. The company shouldn't have been anywhere near here.

"I don't think so." Louise pointed ahead of us through the trees where a cabin could barely be seen amongst the foliage. "It came from that house."

I pushed Ajax to gallop to the house and dismounted him before he came to a stop. A desperate voice came from within the house, but I could not make out the words. I threw my hand against the door. The same voice yelped frightfully. The house went silent. No one moved or said anything, so I knocked again.

Someone took careful steps over to the door. It opened just to a crack. A frightened teenage girl with short green hair peered up at me.

"H-hello? Can I help you?"

"I was passing by when I heard someone scream from this house. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I have an injured man here. So please keep your voice down."

"An injured man? Do you need help?"

"No, you'll just upset my patient. Now please leave!"

She started shutting the door, but I put a foot in before she could close it. "Wait!"

"What?!" She flinched away and a hand went under her cloak likely readying a dagger. "Please, just leave us alone. He'll be fine. I can take care of him."

"I'm sure you can," I reached into my bag and pulled out a blue container. "Take this."

She took the container, and her frightened eyes filled with amazement. "This is… an elixir. You’re giving it to me? Why?"

"You have an injured man. I'm sure that could help him. That's the only reason I need to give that to you."

She stared up at me with eyes full of tears. "You…" She wiped away her tears and smiled at me. "Thank you." She shut the door without another word. I waited a few seconds in case she changed her mind and wanted more help. But when I didn’t hear footsteps returning, I stepped away from the house.

"That was quite generous of you, Mark," Pent said as I came back to them. "To give something like that to a complete stranger is not only kind, but noble as well. You are unlike any tactician I've become acquainted with."

"Surely, it isn’t that odd,” I said climbing up into my saddle. “Are you telling me you would not have done the same?"

"Without hesitation, I assure you. But you so easily parted with such a valuable resource when most other tacticians I've known would have kept it for their soldiers. It is the strategically proper thing to do, after all, considering what we mean to face."

"And it's not just your generosity," Louise added. "You were absolutely proper in our meeting with Queen Hellene. From the beginning, you conducted the exchange with decency and patience. And though we did not achieve what we meant to, you are not deterred by the setback. You have incredible perseverance. I agree with my beloved. We have never known a tactician like you before."

I was about to admonish them for getting sentimental with me instead of each other when another shout filled the air with Eliwood's name. And these voices were definitely familiar.

"That was Hector! Come on. Leave the horses. We’ll ambush the enemy from the tree line."

I led them in the direction of the voice and halted as soon as Eliwood came into view. He, Lyn, and Hector were in a clearing. A more ragged man with messy blonde hair had taken Eliwood hostage with a sword just inches from his neck. Though it appeared that Eliwood was the healthier fighter of the two, the swordsman could end Eliwood with a single flick of his wrist. But his back was to us. I had Louise prepare an arrow to kill the man.

"Peace," the man said before I signaled Louise. "I've no plans on fleeing with a hostage. After I deal with you, I'll let the rest of them go."

The words struck something familiar within me. I had heard those words somewhere before.

Eliwood had too. "Uhai said the same thing."

"What?" The man was dumbstruck by Eliwood's response and loosened his grip.

"We battled your comrade Uhai on the Dread Isle…” Eliwood stepped out of the man’s grasp and turned to face him without drawing his weapon. “He told us that he'd do nothing so cowardly as taking a hostage. He fought with honor." Eliwood relaxed his posture and stared grimly at the ground. Not something I would have recommended he do, but Louise was ready to pierce this man's skull should he take advantage of Eliwood. "You Black Fang are not evil by nature. So why is it that we fight?"

"Uhai…" The man said still dumbfounded. "You spoke with him?"

"Yes. He told us how to find the Dragon's Gate before he died."

"I see…" The swordsmen let his weapon swing to his side. "Go. Don't worry. I, too, have my honor. I will not attack you again."

"Will you join our cause?" Eliwood asked.

"No…" The man replied. "However, something is amiss. You have been granted a brief reprieve until I have my answers."

Eliwood was about to say something, but stopped himself and thought for a moment before speaking again. "Tell us, what is your name."

The man sheathed his blade. "I'll tell you the next time we meet. Be seeing you. Watch out for a woman named Sonia." The man bowed to Eliwood and then ran off.

"That was close," Hector said going up to Eliwood, and Lyn joined them.

"All clear then," I whispered to Pent and Louise while I moved back into the forest.

"We're not going to them?" Pent asked.

"Not yet. I want them to have that for themselves."

"For themselves?" asked Louise.

"You two aren't the only ones who praise my work. Those three have done the same on multiple occasions. So much so that I fear that they are becoming too dependent on me. They’re strong fighters, but the way they praise me worries me sometimes. They're always telling me how we couldn't have come this far without me leading them. I know that's not true, so I want them to feel confident in their abilities whenever I'm not around."

Pent and Louise exchanged a glance and then Pent said, "I feel you misunderstand your comrades then. I'm sure it's not that they cannot fight without you, but your assistance provides them with peace of mind. You’ll remember they handled themselves just fine when we became separated in the ruins under Nabata."

"That's…"

True.

I had forgotten about that. But they had been so happy when we found each other in those ruins. Was it merely because they were worried about me? That was illogical. Why would they need to worry about me when I could handle myself just fine? I had come a long way from being almost useless to Lyn when we fought those two bandits outside her Yurt. I had recovered and could hold my own in a fight now. And… I guess so could Lyn, and Eliwood, and Hector. But why keep praising my work for them? I didn’t praise them every time they followed my order.

“You appear perplexed, Mark,” Pent continued. “Think about this. You did not come along with us to meet with the queen because you felt we could not handle the mission. Nor was our praise for you because we could not have achieved what we did without you. It's your willingness to help and the benefit you bring that is cause for commendation, Mark."

"And your friends see it the same way," Louise added. "Though they can handle themselves in battle, your guidance provides them with more confidence. Do not doubt their resolve. They do not fear losing you because they need you to achieve victory; they fear to lose you because they care for you as you do for them."

"Maybe…” I still could not wrap my head around the absurdity of the lords praising me and worrying over me because they cared about me. “All the same, let us return like we did not see anything." We retrieved our horses, and then returned to camp.

"Lord Pent!" Eliwood called as we came through the brush. "Lady Louise! Mark! You all have returned."

"Sorry to have kept you waiting," Pent replied, dismounting his horse.

A giant man in silver armor stomped up to us with Lyn.

"Wallace!" I exclaimed when I saw him. "What a surprise! What are you doing out here in Bern?"

"Oi! Well met, Mark. My time fighting for you and Lady Lyndis was short, but call me nostalgic, that's all it took to reinvigorate me. So when I heard that our dear Lady had left Caelin to assist you and Lord Eliwood with locating Marquess Pherae, I thought to lend my axe to your company once again." He slid a hand behind his head and grinned wide. "I apologize for not arriving sooner, but uh… I got lost on my way to you all."

"We had a run in with some Black Fang members,” Lyn said. “He assisted with guiding the company while you all were away. I did not think you would have any dispute about him joining us, so I approved his enlistment."

"Excellent. I am relieved to have one of Caelin's great generals in our ranks once again."

"How did everything go with the queen?" Eliwood asked.

"Well," I put my hands on my hips, trying not to think about their encounter with the swordsman. "I can't say it was a complete failure, yet…"

"What do you mean?" Lyn asked.

"We've a task to perform," Louise said pulling off her bow and quiver.

"What do you mean?" Hector echoed Lyn.

"An important item has been stolen," Pent replied. "The Fire Emblem. It is required for Queen Hellene’s son's coming-of-age ceremony."

"So if we find it," Hector said, "she'll tell us the location of the Shrine?"

"That's the hope," I replied. "We have until the morning of the tenth day from today."

"Then we'll do it." Eliwood replied, bringing on a determined mien. "It is most certainly a test we were destined to take."

* * * * *

"We've finally arrived," Hector said as the giant spires of the castle came into view. "I can't believe they built a palace in these mountains."

Compared to the manse, the castle was quite the spectacle. Up on a cliff in the side of the mountain range like a monstrous creature sleeping in its lair. And we would have to approach the castle with the same type of caution. With most of the military being made up of Wyvern Riders, a single jagged path snaking its way up the mountain was the only way to reach the castle on foot. Unlike other castles I had seen, the structure itself was not heavily fortified. There were no defensible walls or ramparts, not even a gate. I could see the courtyard clearly from here. The beast that never knew invasion left its mouth open wide.

"Bern still employs Wyvern Riders for its soldiers,” I said. “It makes perfect sense for the castle to be built into the mountains."

"I agree," Lyn said. "Look at the path leading up the mountain's face. It would be impossible to scale that in a direct assault."

Hector nodded while he scanned the scene. "Defenders positioned higher up would have a clear advantage. Even the best soldiers would be taken out with ease. Hm… Look at that." He pointed to the top of the path. "They don't have any sentries posted. They must have a lot of faith in their defenses."

"Look at these surroundings!" Eliwood exclaimed, motioning to the craggy peaks around us. "They probably make do simply with patrols within the castle while sending their Wyvern Riders out to deal with any threats. The mighty Bern. I'd not like it as an enemy."

"And yet, from this impregnable fortress, a treasure was stolen," Lyn pointed out. "Perhaps the king is responsible for all this. It's hard to imagine any thief cracking Bern's defenses."

"Or someone else within the castle," I replied, pondering the idea further. "I must admit that it seems rather strange for the king to allow thieves into his palace to steal a family heirloom even if he did wish to prevent his son's ascension. Regardless of who is responsible, we need clues. The three of us, along with Pent and Louise, will sneak into the castle. They will be able to show us where Bern housed the Fire Emblem."

"Just five of us?" Eliwood asked.

“And you’re bringing Hector with us?” Lyn added.

I smirked at her. “Are you willing to stay behind with him?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Then there’s no way I’m going to convince Hector to say behind either.”

Hector slapped a fist to his chest. “That’s right!”

"Besides, if we are discovered, I want to have one of our armored units with us. The rest of the company will remain here while we go in. But we must be careful. If I think it’s too risky or we get separated, leave the castle immediately and return to the company."

"Got it!" Hector said, raising a determined fist.

"Of course," Lyn nodded.

Luckily for us, Bern's Wyvern riders weren't out on any patrols. The path up to the castle would have been as quiet as a graveyard if it were not for the vicious wind that cut straight through the skin. After a strong argument with tactical points, a bit of stubbornness, and some prodding from Hector with the silly notion that someone in the palace might hear her teeth chattering, I convinced Lyn to take my thicker cloak so that she wouldn't be shivering all the way up.

Once we had reached the top of the path, just like the skies, the castle entrance was left unguarded. I found it rather strange that they didn't have at least one guard posted around here, but I didn't waste the opportunity, either. Pent took the lead as we entered the courtyard, guiding us through well-trimmed hedges and budding trees stretching over the entryways to other parts of the castle.

"This is… an inner garden?" Lyn stopped suddenly and brought her voice down to a whisper. "Over there! Someone else is here."

"And someone else is coming this way," Pent added, coming to a stop as well.

"Here! Into this thicket!" Hector called under his breath.

We plunged over a collection of thick hedges and kept ourselves low just as a second person entered the garden. It was a girl, no older than seven or eight with rich blonde hair that bounced with each skip she took. She was almost to the center of the garden when she noticed the other person.

"Brother!" she called out. "Hello, Zephiel!"

The person who responded to her was a handsome adolescent man in royal attire about Nils’ age who wore a small crown. When he saw the girl, his face lit up and went to her.

"Ah, Guinivere. Have you been well?"

"Uh-huh!" she said as he picked her up. "I've been fine. But if you would come to see me every day, I'd be even better! Much, much better!"

"Every day? Well, that's an awful lot, but I'll come by as often as possible." He poked her nose. "All for you, dear sister."

"Yippee!"

"Guinivere!" A gruff voice resounded into the garden like a cacophonous echo in a narrow cave. "Guinivere! Where are you, lass?" A large man entered the garden from the same direction Guinivere had come from. The regal attire he wore must have been freshly tailored. It flowed so smoothly as he walked. His golden beard was groomed to a healthy length and shimmered as brilliantly as the crown that sat upon his head. The expression he wore contrasted all of that, though. Thick brows shot downward above his eyes. The man probably smiled as often as Rath did by how rigid his frown was. It was a face that knew little joy or reserved that joy for those that had earned it.

"Here I am, father!" Guinivere said as she went to the king. "Welcome home."

"Ah, there you are." Despite his curt voice, his tone was still surprisingly kind. "Were you a good girl while I was gone?" He opened his arms, and a sliver of a smile appeared for the one he deemed worthy of it. "Come, give your father a kiss. You're as adorable as ever."

Guinivere giggled and jumped into his arms attacking his cheek with rapid kisses.

"Well met, Father," Zephiel said coming up to them.

Desmond's warm disposition shifted like the flame of a candle going out, and his voice went as cold and sharp as an icicle. "Zephiel," he grunted. "You take the same unpleasant tone as your mother."

"What?" Zephiel said taken aback. "I… I…"

"Silence. What brings you to my castle?"

"Ah yes…" Zephiel collected himself and glanced over his shoulder. "Murdock."

"Yes, my lord." A man dressed in heavy purple armor with a giant double-bladed axe on his back appeared next to Zephiel. There was something moving under his cloak he had draped over his arm.

"We were hunting in the forest earlier," Zephiel said. "We found this and thought Guinivere might like it."

Murdock pulled the cloak from around his arm to reveal a small orange creature with pointed ears and a white-tipped tail.

"A baby fox!?" Guinivere squealed with delight. "How cute! It's so very cute! Is it for me? Really?"

"Do you like it?" Zephiel asked, taking the fox from Murdock and handing it to Guinivere.

"Yes, I do! Thank you. I do love you, brother!"

Desmond didn't say anything during the whole exchange. Zephiel and his retainer were visibly unnerved by the king’s stillness. Even my blood was starting to run cold watching them. Anyone would be by that glare he was currently shooting at Zephiel.

"…Guinivere," he said with clear effort to soften his voice while he set his daughter down, "go play for a while."

"Ok!" The girl jumped out of her father’s arms having been too enamored with the pup to notice her father's daunting mien. "Come on, let's go! You lovely little fox!"

Desmond and Zephiel watched her go until she had disappeared around a towering hedge wall, and then that glare was back on Zephiel even fiercer than before. I thought for sure Desmond intended to strike the prince.

"I've told you to stay away from the castle."

"Yes…" Zephiel said, filling his words with as much regret as possible. "I know… I beg your pardon. I heard that Guinivere was ill, and I was… worried."

"Hah," Desmond spat. "You mean you came to see if she would die, don't you?"

"Father…" I noted the fact that Zephiel showed no surprise at all for his father's accusation.

"I beg your pardon, your majesty," Murdock spoke up. "That-"

"Hold your tongue, Murdock! Do not forget whom you serve! The King of Bern!!"

Murdock bowed his head in obedience.

"It's all right, Murdock…" He stared straight at his father, trying to combat him with steadfastness. "Father, I would never want to see Guinivere harmed in-"

"You and your mother think of nothing more than stealing my throne. You plague me. Return to the manse!"

"…As you wish," Zephiel said, bowing low, giving no more argument. Father or not, the prince’s devotion and patience to a man who scorned him was staggeringly commendable. "I beg your leave… Father."

Desmond watched as the prince and his retainer left the garden, and then waited several more seconds before growling out an exacerbated sigh. "…No matter how I warn him, he comes. Why is it that the very sight of him tries my patience so? He is truly of my own flesh and blood, yet…"

A seductive laugh echoed from the shadows behind the king. "It is jealousy, my king." The voice dripped with a beguiling allure that left me with an alarmingly familiar feeling. The back of my head started to ache.

"Eh? Who's there?" Desmond turned around, and a black-haired woman emerged. She wore a darkly licentious dress that appeared to just be dangling on to her enchanting figure, held tight enough by a golden chain around her waist. Two black gloves ran up most of the length of her arms, and a crimson sash the same color as her bewitching lips tied the dress around her waist beneath the chain. But her golden eyes struck me with dreadful familiarity. I had seen eyes like those before.

"It is I, Sonia."

The king relaxed as she approached him. "You… Well? Is the Emblem safe?"

"Yes. I have it in my possession. It is all as we planned."

Mystery solved.

"It is unlikely, but… The queen might attempt to win the Emblem back. Are you prepared?"

"I will not fail… It is secreted away within the Black Fang's fortress."

"Keep it concealed until dusk of the tenth day, then return it to me."

"As you will, your grace." The woman bowed her head to him and started back into the shadows.

"And what of my other request…"

A wanton smile curled on the woman's cheek like a snake preparing to strike. "One of the Four Fangs will tend to it. There will be no mistakes. However, General Murdock, the man protecting the prince… He is young, yet well respected. Shall we finish him, too?"

"…Murdock…" The king set his hands on his hips, staring off in the direction the prince and his retainer had exited. "His birth is low. And yet his combat skills have won him the title of Wyvern General. It would be a great blow if Bern were to lose him. I'll think of something to remove him from Zephiel's side. Will that do?"

"Yes. It would be a great help." Sonia's head jerked in our direction. "Wait!"

The king took on the same alertness. "What? What is it?"

"I… sense someone."

"Where?"

I could feel my blood chilling as the woman's head slowly tracked over to the area where we had taken cover. And as I watched those eyes scan the garden, I finally realized where I had seen those eyes. Ephidel's eyes had been the same golden color, peering out from underneath his purple cloak when I had attacked Lord Hausen. And the pain in my head escalated when I realized there were more of them.

"Father! Brother!" Guinivere's voice called into the garden from the entryway next to us. "Where are you?!"

The king tilted his head back to Sonia. "Do not worry. It's my daughter."

"Of course," Sonia replied with a nod. "Do not forget the Black Fang's role once we are successful."

"Of course. Now begone. Quickly."

"Farewell." Sonia's form melded back into the shadows just as Guinivere came running into the garden with her baby fox.

"Zephiel! This kit, it… Hm? Where is my brother?"

"He had an errand to perform and left." The King said bending down to her.

"Oh no!" Guinivere jumped up and down in vexation. "No, no, no! I wanted to play!"

"Come, Guinivere." Desmond held out a hand to his daughter. I will play with you."

"No! I want to play with him, not you! I'll go and call him back. Here, hold my fox." She picked her fox up and dumped it in Desmond's outstretched hand, and then she dashed out of the garden.

The king stood back up with the fox and stared at it for an agonizingly quiet moment while the kit stared back at him, wagging its tail.

"Attend me!" Desmond roared.

A soldier appeared in the garden immediately. "Yes, my lord."

Desmond went to him and all but threw the baby fox at the soldier. "Take this beast and kill it! Do not let Guinivere know what you do."

"Understood," the soldier said with a salute and left.

"Zephiel," the king snarled, "you knave. Trying to steal my Guinivere's love… You will learn your place!" He stormed out of the garden, and we were finally alone.

"That was close," Hector whispered after ensuring that we were clear of being discovered. "I was afraid they'd catch us."

"This is worse than I'd imagined," Eliwood said.

"Yeah," I replied. "The king is going to have that poor baby fox executed! We have to rescue it."

"Hector!" Lyn growled under her breath. "I mean…"

"What did I do!?" Hector responded before Lyn could correct herself.

"Nothing," Lyn grumbled, giving me an irritated look. "I just usually expect the jests to be coming from you, not Mark."

"I wasn't trying to be funny," I defended. "The kit is in serious trouble."

"Guys! Another time!" Eliwood cut in. "The Black Fang has already reached the king."

"Their plans for Lycia failed," Lyn said, "and now they're targeting Bern."

Hector tightened a fist. "If a country as powerful as Bern moves, peace knows no hope."

"What Nergal desires is powerful quintessence," Eliwood said. "Calling dragons back… Does he wish to embroil the world in chaos?"

"Whatever his plans," I said, "we must stop him at all costs!"

"Right," Hector agreed. "Find the Fire Emblem and return it to the queen. We do that, and she'll point us toward the Shrine of Seals."

Lyn gazed out of the garden into the mountain range in the distance. "If we go to the Black Fang fortress…"

"That's our goal," Eliwood said, heading back out to the path down the mountain. "We must meet with everyone and seek out their fortress."

Everyone followed after Eliwood, but I remained behind, taking one last look at the castle. I couldn’t leave yet. "You guys go ahead. Louise, would you come with me?"

They all stopped, and Louise complied, albeit with a bit of uncertainty.

"Mark!" Lyn called. But Louise and I were already back in the garden following the path I’d seen the soldier take. After rounding a corner, I skidded to a stop. The soldier stood over the baby fox that was unaware of the man’s intentions even though he held his sword before the creature. He was hesitating to kill the innocent kit, and for that, I decided to let him live.

“Maim him,” I whispered to Louise and charged. An arrow whisked by me, lodging in the unarmored portion of his leg. The soldier howled in pain, falling to the ground to pull out the arrow. He rolled over and his face lit with shock right before my boot slammed into his head. The soldier sprawled unconscious.

“What was that?” A voice came from further in the garden.

“It sounded like Gerald,” another voice said.

Blast!

It was too dangerous to take the baby fox with me. I shooed it while I backstepped away. Thankfully it seemed to take the hint and ran off, but I could only hope it would make it safely away from the castle. Louise was already running back toward the courtyard entrance, and I sprinted up behind her.

“Hey you!” one of the voices from before shouted. “Halt!”

I kept myself between Louise and the guard. They didn’t know who I was, but there was a good chance the guards might recognize Louise if they caught a glimpse of her. The two of us were out of the palace and sprinting down the path. The overhang of the cliff provided cover from the guards, and while we ran, I could’ve sworn I heard the guards saying not to chase us. Letting a trespasser go seemed unusual for a royal guard, but I didn’t dwell on the details.

"That woman," Louise said, slowing down once we were near the bottom of the mountain. "Sonia. She's the one that Black Fang member mentioned."

"Yeah” I said, “and his behavior was similar to the Black Fang member we encountered on Valor. They knew each other. He said things changed when a woman showed up. That must be her."

"Oh! Mark!" Louise pointed to the sky. "A wyvern rider is approaching!"

I followed her finger to the brown speck descending from above like a seagull diving for a fish. I could just make out a woman with cropped blonde hair on the back of the wyvern.

"She's coming closer," I said. "Has she seen us?!"

"No," Louise replied," it's not us she's seen. It's…It's Nils!"

"Nils?!" I shouted out my bafflement as I gazed down into the valley. Sure enough. Nils was out in the middle of the valley, all alone for some odd reason. "What is he doing out here?!"

Lyn was already sprinting toward them, with Hector, Eliwood, and Pent not far behind. But the woman had already landed in front of Nils before Lyn was even halfway to them. However, she did not move to attack nor did she attempt to capture him. She leaned forward against her wyvern and appeared to be conversing with Nils, and I could see the astonishment on his face at the woman's appearance. But something bothered me. Nils could sense dangerous situations. He had to have known that woman was coming for him.

"C'mon, boy! Scream!" The woman screeched, grasping Nils' arm. "Call your friends to you! I grow weary of waiting. I am not known for my patience!"

"I'm the one you're looking for!" Lyn drew her blade and sprang for the woman. "Unhand the boy!"

The woman released Nils and pulled her wyvern to spin and swat its tail at Lyn. She maneuvered her sword to block the tail and backflipped from the strike while the rest of us joined her.

"You've come!" The woman flashed a grin as crooked as the scar on the left side of her face. "I've been looking forward to this!"

"Looking forward…?" Eliwood said. "What do you mean?"

"The chance to crush you! Then hand the children over to Lord Nergal."

"Nergal?" Hector prepared his axe. "So you're one of his dogs, are you?"

The woman's grin fell into an aggravated scowl. "I'll not be called a dog by you, blackheart! True, we have a contract with the Black Fang, but… I am Vaida, and I am loyal to one master only! He who sits on the throne of Bern!"

Eliwood didn't believe her. "Then why are you in the employ of the Black-"

"There's been far too much talking," she cut him off. "Let's get started, shall we?" She pulled on the reins of her wyvern, and it leaped into the air, showering us in a cloud of dust, and let out a sharp whistle. A cacophony of high-pitched shrieks reverberated in the mountains around us. From the crags, a great multitude of wyverns rose to blot the clouded sky like blisters on alabaster skin.

"I've long hungered for someone to test my strength against," Vaida bellowed at us. "Make this last awhile, will you? I want to enjoy this!!" She pushed her wyvern higher into the air, where her comrades hovered, waiting for her. "Listen up, everyone! It's playtime! The palace has promised to stay out of this! Be as wild as you will!"

"We're outnumbered," Eliwood shouted over the hooping from Vaida's cohorts. "We've got to return to our allies."

"They're not going to let us out of here," I replied, watching as our foes circled us like ravenous buzzards waiting for their prey to breathe its last. "I had Marcus keep scouts watching for us, though. We have to hold them off until they arrive."

Fending off a brood of wyvern would not be so simple. For one, they were all wyvern riders, and that meant most of them were wielding lances, putting Eliwood, Lyn, and I at a disadvantage. Hector would be able to handle any attackers with his axe and his armor, and unlike pegasi, wyverns had poor resistance to magic. Pent's tomes would be able to bring down any of them. But our most considerable advantage would be Louise with her bow. Bowmen were the bane of all flying units. Unfortunately for us, Louise was our only one. If we just had Wil or Rebecca here, the odds would be more in our favor.

A loud screech filled my ears from behind, and I instinctively dove out of the way just as a rider came in to try and catch me when I wasn't looking. It had been a hasty attempt, however, as Hector stepped up and cleaved through wing and rider. I returned to my feet, and something heavy swung in my pocket. Brilliance hit me like a splash of water. I reached into my pocket and wrapped my fingers around the Heaven Seal. Pent said this stone contained a great power that a worthy individual could harness. And right now, only one person came to mind.

"Lyn!"

Lyn jumped back from a wyvern that swooped down for a quick strike before turning to me. After all we had been through together, we did not need to exchange more words in the middle of battle. Our eyes said everything as I tossed the stone to her. Lyn snatched it, and as soon as it made contact with her hand, a bright light burst out and started spreading over her entire body like fire following a trail of fuel.

"Ah!" Lyn cried in surprise as the light in her hand intensified to a blinding level. "Mark, what is this?!"

"An upper hand, I hope," I said, coming up to her after the light had faded away. "Do you feel any different?"

Lyn stared at the now subdued stone in her hand. "I… do! What happened, Mark?"

"The Heaven Seal found you worthy. You've gained its power."

"I did? Why did you give this to me?"

"I'm gambling. You are a master of the sword, but you have the blood of a people who are unmatched with a bow. Do you think you can wield one?"

"A bow?" Lyn's eyes widened. "I… yes… I think I can!"

"Excellent." I twisted my head around. "Louise! Can I borrow your extra bow and quiver?"

"My bow?" A wyvern screeched, drawing Louise's attention back, and she fired an arrow straight into the chest of its rider, tearing him from his mount. Then she picked up the spare bow and quiver off the ground and ran them over to us. "Here you are. What is it for?"

Another round of screeches filled the sky in front of us. Louise spun, swinging her leg out wide and dropping her stance. Her arrow found its mark through the eye slit of a helmeted rider before she finished turning—an incredible curved shot! But there were three of them, and Louise had only been able to take out one wyvern. Her second arrow was nocked and slammed into another rider. She reached for a third arrow even though she knew it was useless. The last Wyvern was too close. I stepped forward in an attempt to block the rider’s incoming lance. But the wyvern reeled backward and crashed into the ground, crushing its rider in the landing. Lyn stepped up next to Louise, pulling out another arrow.

"That's why," I said stepping away to give them room. "Have at them, ladies."

I started making my way over to Eliwood to give support to him. Since we would be the ones at a disadvantage, it would be essential for us to watch each other's back. I went to him, but as I did, I spotted something big moving toward me out of the corner of my eye. There was no time to move out of the way, so I dropped to the ground just as a lance sliced through the air inches from my head.

One of the wyvern's back claws clamped around my leg, and my sword fell from my hands as I was hoisted into the air with them. If we moved any higher, the wyvern would release me, and I would plummet to my death. I threw my upper body forward and hugged the hind leg of the wyvern.

The creature cackled in confusion, releasing me. When I didn’t fall, it started to buck its leg to throw me off. I held on tight until it slowed its thrashing. Then I grabbed a strap on the saddle and pulled myself up further. The rider noticed me and twisted around to jab at me with his lance, but the thrashing of his wyvern caused his strike to go wide. I seized the lance before he could pull back and yanked it to the side, heaving him off the saddle. His screams echoed away, and I hauled myself the rest of the way onto the seat and grabbed the reins to bring the Wyvern under my control. The wyvern obeyed my urging and finally stilled to hover in the air. Secure at last. I exhaled my relief and rested against the wyvern's neck.

Never… again… please…

"Say, excuse me! Yes, you, the poorly dressed one!"

Poorly dressed?

The voice belonged to a girl with short blue hair flying her pegasus up to me. "You're really pushing yourself, taking on all these enemies."

"Not like we really have a choice," I replied to her lenient view of the situation. "Who are you?"

"Me? I came out here because I heard I could make some gold doing mercenary work. What a joke! Bern has enough wyvern riders at its disposal that they think they can get away with paying freelancers like me a piddling amount! Skills like mine do not come cheap."

"Awfully confident, aren't we?"

The girl slapped an arm across her chest in a fashion that reminded me of my first meeting with Sain. “I am Farina, a mercenary attached to the Strongwings, Ilia's 3rd division of Pegasus Knights. No doubt you've heard of me!"

"I'm familiar with the Ilian mercenaries. Supposedly they never betray their employers." All things considered, it wouldn't hurt to have another Pegasus Knight in the company, especially at this moment since we were surrounded by Wyverns. "How much would it be to hire you?"

"Ah, so you've an appreciation for true warriors after all? Let me see…" She leaned in close to me with a focused gaze. "I like your eyes. They're the color of my favorite thing."

"Huh?"

"Tell you what; I'll give you a discount. I'm yours for 20,000 gold."

"20,000 gold!?!" I nearly fell off the wyvern out of astonishment. "Are you mad, or just terrible at conning people? I wouldn't charge anyone that amount for my tactical knowledge. You are not worth that much!"

"I beg to differ," she said still brimming with confidence. "Your journey is a long one, is it not? More than one battle surely. That requires a special contract, special arrangements. Not to be morbid, but there are sympathy payments to my family in the unlikely event of my death, for example. Not to mention bonuses and hazard pay, medical treatment…"

Every point she listed off made me question if I might have been charging too little for my own services. "Okay, I get it. So all of that is what your fee covers?"

"Ah, so you understand?" she asked, becoming even wilier. "I'm so pleased. Well, what'll it be? Will you hire me?"

"Sister! You… Why are you here?" Fiora came flying up to us with Florina.

"Farina? Is it truly you?" Florina asked.

"Florina! Fiora! It's been so long. How have you been?"

"Sister?" I did a double take on the Pegasus Knights and realized that if this new girl grew out her hair, she might look like the other two. "You all are related?"

"That's right," Fiora said. "Though we haven't seen her in two years after she ran away from home."

"Ran away? I didn't run away."

"But…" Florina squeaked. "Fiora, she… she said you weren't coming home again…"

Fiora folded her arms and scowled at Farina.

"Well, uh…" Farina rubbed the back of her neck that had turned bright red and was working its way up her face. "You know, sisters fight sometimes. I said things; she said things… It's in the past now."

"Sister…" Florina couldn't hold back the tears any longer. "Ahhhh!"

Fiora and I both screamed out of terror.

"Hey! Careful!" Farina reached out and caught her sister, who had attempted to embrace her sister midflight. "We're still up in the air, dummy!"

"I… I'm sorry… I've missed you sister! I didn't think I'd… I'd ever see you again!"

"Jeez, will ya stop crying over me? I'm here now, aren't I? And your tactician here was just about ready to hire me to fight with you, so we'll be working together for a while, okay?"

Fiora turned to me in surprise. "Is that true?"

"Well, I…"

"Mark!" Hector hollered up at us. "Fraternizing with some women in the middle of battle, and in front of Lyn? I thought you had more class!"

A hot sweat broke out on my face. "I AM DISCUSSING A PROFESSIONAL CONTRACT!"

"Well, can you hurry it up? We are in a rather dangerous predicament, in case you've forgotten."

I wiped my hand over my face to rid me of some of the embarrassment. And I also noticed that none of the Wyvern Riders had attacked us during this exchange. They seemed intent on taking down the Lords over us. "Fine. You're hired. Help us deal with the rest of this opposition, and you will get your payment."

"Wow!" Farina exclaimed.

"What now?” I threw up a hand of impatience. “That's what you wanted right?"

"You surprise me. You didn't even try to negotiate… Just accepted the deal up front! Who… Who are you?"

"Someone whose patience is starting to reach its limit! Do we have a consensus or not?"

"Ah! Of course! I accept! Pleasure doing business with you, sir!"

"Great…"

"Oh, and there are weapons and vulneraries, too. All of my current possessions are included in my fee. Anything new, you pay for. I never cover those expenses. Never!"

Another screech filled the air. Heath had arrived and was fending off four other wyvern riders. Though he was outnumbered, he handled his wyvern with great skill and managed to smack one rider from his perch with the butt of his lance before driving the top end through another. His expertise did not surprise me since he was a former Bern soldier. He knew how these men fought, but even he would not be able to handle the five other riders that he had garnered the attention of.

"Whatever. Time to start earning your price. That green haired rider is one of ours. Go and assist him. Fiora, Florina, you help him too."

The sisters nodded and compelled their pegasi toward Heath. As for me, I took stock of the rest of the battle. Lyn and Louise had spread out below so they could better cover their allies with their bows along with Pent's magic. With three dangerous foes who could attack at range, the Wyvern Riders were making fewer attacks. Hector and Eliwood stood next to them ready to cover any foes that came in too close, and they all had made a circle around Nils. But it is what I spotted off in the distance that brought me relief. Rath was riding with our cavaliers and our paladins, bearing the rest of our archers and a few of our casters with them. Their bolstering would overwhelm the Wyvern Riders.

"Withdraw!" Vaida ordered. "All forces pull back! And move quickly!"

The remaining wyvern riders that had not engaged with anyone directed their mounts back toward the mountains. Heath and the pegasus sisters finished off their current adversaries, and then they glanced at me for further orders when they saw the rest of the enemy forces retreating. I sliced my hand horizontally through the air to signal them not to pursue. There was no reason for us to stay around here. We needed to retreat and regroup ourselves. I shook the reins of my wyvern and directed it toward the ground. When it landed, it turned its head around to me and gave me a curious look that didn't appear to contain any malice.

"Sorry for dropping your rider," I said, cautiously pulling the reins off its head and unlatching the saddle. "But you're free now. For both our sakes, I hope we never reencounter each other."

The wyvern shook its long neck and let out a soft screech, and then it took off for the mountains away from the castle.

"I guessed that worked out," Eliwood said coming up to me. "Are you okay, Mark? That was quite the trip you took."

"Just fine," I lied.

"Lord Eliwood!" Ninian came running up to us, but she had not arrived with any of the cavaliers. So where had she been?

"Ninian," Eliwood went to her. "Are you well? How is Nils?"

Nils had become severely downcast. "What shall we do, Lord Eliwood? Nergal's power… it's returning bit by bit."

Cold dread shot through me at his words. "What do you mean?"

"That woman you faced…" Ninian's face had become as dark as the overcast sky above us. "She was protected by Nergal's magic. We couldn't sense her!"

"What?" My head started to ache. "Nergal was empowering her?"

"Yes," Ninian nodded. "It won't be long before he's active again. With all his power restored."

"We must hurry," Nils replied, "and gain the power to oppose him!"

"We have to recover the Fire Emblem," Eliwood stated. "If we can do that…"

Hector stepped in and grabbed his friend by the shoulder. "Come on! The palace is in an uproar. This is our chance to slip away!"

"Wait!" Lyn said, moving in front of them. "I have an idea. Let's follow them."

"Lyndis?" Eliwood pulled Hector back.

I caught on to what Lyn was implying. "You can track them to the Black Fang's fortress."

Lyn nodded at me in appreciation. "Leave it to me."

Chapter Text

Chapter 15

We would've risked losing our enemies' trail if we waited for the rest of our company to join us, so I sent Sain back to inform them of our direction, while Lyn led us due south from the castle. The trail was vanishing quickly, but Lyn's tracking skills proved exemplary as she led us through the hills of eternal winter. Snow covered everything in its embrace, and within these mountains of white, the Black Fang was lurking.

"This way," Lyn said, beckoning us along through the deep snow. "The signs are fading… they've really been moving. But it appears they've met up with some infantrymen. I can still track them at the pace they've been keeping."

"Are you sure?" Hector pushed a heavy foot through the snow sending up a cloud of white powder. "Really?" His doubt stood out as clearly as his dark armor. "If you are wrong, then we are wasting valuable time in this frozen swamp."

"Remember, I'm from Sacae." There was a rumble of irritation in her voice.

"Bern's foot soldiers are slow and clumsy… And to a Sacaean, men are easier to track than rabbits."

"How much further would you say they are Lyndis?" Eliwood asked, taking slow steps so that he could keep Ninian sheltered in his cloak.

"It should be just…" Lyn walked over to the edge of the tree line. "Over here!"

We joined her to find a castle partially hidden in the snow. It was in ruin, and most of the original structure had been demolished in one way or another, leaving smaller buildings that had been repurposed and restructured into separate shelters. Off in the distance, black smoke cut through the white sky like a nasty scar.

"That smoke means someone is here," I whispered, stepping out to examine our surroundings for any of our foes. "Let me go in and-"

A piercing screech filled the air. I threw myself back into the tree line to hide my presence as a Wyvern Rider ascended into the sky from behind the building with the smoke.

"That Wyvern Rider…" Eliwood said watching as she disappeared behind the mountains. "That was the same woman we fought earlier. That proves that they took this mountain path."

A smile curled on Lyn’s face. "Now that they've come this far, they've let down their guard. You can see the tracks of their soldiers in the snow as plain as day."

"Your skills honor your people, Lyn," I said, brushing off the clinging snow. "Well done."

Against this white setting, I could see Lyn's cheeks turning red. "Hee hee… Thank you, Mark." She set her hands on her hips and turned around. "Anything to say, Hector?"

"Ah… uh…" He slapped a clump of snow off his shoulder. "I was wrong to doubt you."

"At least you admit it." She folded her arms, but not out of smug satisfaction or draining anger. Lyn did her best to hide it, but I saw a shiver run through her. I thought to give her my cloak again, but Lyn had been really stubborn about taking my cloak going up to Castle Bern, and we didn’t need a silly argument to draw attention to us.

Instead, I observed the ruins again for any patrols. "I don’t see any watchmen posted. This probably isn’t their main base and just a meeting spot. But that rider’s presence has to mean they’re here, and she claimed to be working for Nergal. There’s a high chance we can find some lead on the Fire Emblem"

"Let's sneak in and see what we can find!" Lyn said.

"Right!" Hector said in a loud whisper. "Follow my lead!"

"…Why do those two seem to be having so much fun?" Eliwood asked me as Lyn swiftly crossed the snow passing up Hector's initiative.

My restless sigh was visible in the frigid air, reaching out as if to catch Lyn and Hector and pull them back. "If I had to guess, it's because they're trying not to show that the cold is getting to them. I'm sure trudging through this deep snow has been wearing Hector out in that heavy armor of his. And Lyn… Her resistance to this cold impresses me, but I've seen the goose skin on her legs ever since she started tracking our enemies." I nodded my head toward Ninian. "I wish she would be a little more willing to accept aid from others like Ninian, and just take my cloak."

"L-lady Lyndis is a strong woman," Ninian said.

"She is," I said, returning my gaze to her and Hector as they peered into a window of the closest building. "By the eight, she really is. But there's a difference between strong and stubborn. I really wish she'd understand that."

"I'm sure she's just anxious," Eliwood said. "We all are. Nergal is regaining his power, so we're running out of time. She understands we need to find the Shrine of Seals as soon as possible." He turned to me with a goofy smile. "Or else she risks losing you again."

My face became warm, and I averted my gaze from him. "Now's not the time, Eliwood."

"Ha ha! Who's really the stubborn one here, Mark?" He led Ninian over to the rest of our group. "Marcus. Wait here with Ninian and everyone else. Be ready to escape at any time. I'm counting on you!"

"Yes, sir. I will not fail." He saluted his lord and led Ninian further into the forest, and Eliwood went to join Lyn and Hector.

I started to go to them as well, but a firm hand caught me.

"Commander…" Oswin's face was so pale that I thought he might have contracted some severe illness.

"Oswin! What is wrong? Are you succumbing to the climate here?"

"No, my physical health is not in jeopardy. Could I speak to you for a moment?"

"Of course," I said relieved, yet still unnerved by Oswin's demeanor. He was usually as stoic as a lonesome statue, but something had cracked the stone. "What's happened?"

"I received a message from Ostia while you and the lords infiltrated the palace. Lord Uther passed three days ago."

My stomach stumbled over his words. "Ah… I see… Was it his illness?"

Oswin gave a solemn nod.

"That is disheartening to hear. Do we need to return to Ostia and prepare for Bern?”

Oswin shook his head. “Lord Uther created a council once he discovered his sickness knowing it could take him any day. They will maintain order in Lycia, and with Marquess Laus’s no longer threatening an uprising, they are able to present a united nation. But only for so long. Our most important mission next to stopping Nergal is protecting Lord Hector at all costs. He is now head of the Lycian League.”

“I understand. Do you need to take some time to mourn?"

"I have already shed my tears." Oswin glanced over to where Hector was doing his best not to create noise as he and Lyn moved up to another ruined building. "It is my lord that I am concerned about. I felt it necessary to tell you this news, but I also wanted to ask that you do not reveal the marquess' passing to Hector right now."

"This information is not for me to convey to Hector. I will defer to your judgment on when to tell him and let you be the one to do so. And should you or Hector become debilitated by this, I will alter my strategies accordingly."

"Yes, sir." Oswin saluted me. "I appreciate your understanding."

"But allow me to say that I do not believe you should withhold this information from Hector for long. Hector noticed his brother's strange health when we met with him back in Ostia. I am sure he has worried about his brother for some time now. It would be better to let him hurt now and be over it than for him to continue to carry that worry."

Oswin nodded, but did not say anything else. I parted with him and joined the lords, who were moving down the alley between two of the buildings.

"Do you hear that?" Hector said as I came up to them. "It's little more than whispers, but I can hear human voices."

Lyn pointed to the building with the smoke rising from it. "It's coming from over there! Let's go take a look."

We slowly made our way over to the building, moving at a slow pace as to not be heard. To my surprise, Hector managed to be almost as silent as Lyn when he tried to be. He could even keep pace with her, which was astounding considering how deep the snow was. But the voices never altered their tone or mentioned hearing something as we arrived at the building.

Peering in through one of the windows would be too risky. My head would stand out like the smoke in this whiteout. So, I quietly moved to the door and bent down to peek in through the keyhole. Three people were standing around a fire in the middle of the room. Sonia was present, hanging on the arm of a husky man who held a giant axe in his other hand. A thought crossed my mind that this man might have been Brendan Reed by the way Sonia clutched his arm. But it was the third person that had caught my attention. The young green-haired girl from the cabin we had come across on our way back from the manse was here.

"Really?" The girl asked breathlessly in utter disbelief. "You're giving me a mission? Really and truly!? Mother!"

Mother!? That woman was the girl's mother? I couldn't believe it. The girl seemed so sweet and innocent, while Sonia seeped with toxic malice. Even Brendan Reed didn't look like he could be the girl's father. Sure, the Black Fang had changed according to some of its former members, but this… I just couldn't accept this as reality.

"I am, Nino. And it's a very big job at that." I could understand how Sonia was able to seduce the Black Fang. She had an exceptional ability to alter her voice to manipulate people. She almost sounded motherly with that tone. "It's for the king of Bern."

Nino gasped. "The king!? Such an important job… for me?"

"Sonia," Brendan spoke up. "I'm against this. Giving such a dangerous job to this child?"

He might as well have hit Nino with the flat side of his axe with that statement. "Father?"

"You're right," Sonia said, laying a hand on his rugged chest. "This really is a job for your sons. However, we've seen nothing of them since their last report."

"Lloyd… Linus…" Nino said quietly.

"So my daughter will do this. And I will have no complaints from you about it."

Brendan's eyes were solid with caution.

"Ah! Father…" Nino tried to reach for her father.

"You may do as you please!!" Sonia shrieked flicking her hand at her daughter, and then stepping in front of Brendan as if to protect him from Nino. “But we will not aid you.”

Nino retreated. "But… I don’t know if I can…"

Sonia reaction to Nino trying to touch her father was rather odd. Brendan’s hands were almost as big as his daughter’s body. And Nino didn’t appear to be an assassin. She looked to only be about fourteen or fifteen years old and outside of her plain white and blue garb, she wore a purple cloak that seemed a bit too big for her. Yet if she was a member of the Black Fang, I should expect her to be an assassin. Probably one of the best if she often used her innocent appearance to fool people.

Sonia relaxed her body and her tone. "You will not need to carry out this mission alone. First, business! Jaffar come!"

A man with blood-colored hair that poked out of the top of the black cloth that covered his head stepped out from behind a pile of crates at the back of the room.

"Jaffar!?" Lyn said under her breath. "That man! He was at the Dragon's gate."

"Nergal's henchman…" Hector murmured. "No question about it."

Nino dashed over to the man. "Jaffar! Should you be up? Don't your wounds hurt?"

Wounds? Her words gave me pause for thought. Nino had been caring for an injured man when we heard her scream. Could Jaffar have been that man? I focused on him, and I could see that he did indeed appear to have some injuries on him that had not completely healed. It clicked why Nino had been so obstinate to accept my help. Had I known that Jaffar was the injured man she had been caring for… What would I have done if I had seen him?

"Must you be so discourteous?" Sonia rebuked him for his silence. "It really is quite irritating. You heard the king's request, did you not?"

"Prince Zephiel…" The man said completely lacking in emotion. "He wants him assassinated."

"What?" Nino asked looking at her mother and Jaffar. "The prince? The king wants to kill the prince? He's his son, isn't he?"

"Nino! Be quiet." Sonia snapped.

"Ah…" Nino recoiled and bowed her head. "I'm sorry."

"Jaffar, this mission is yours… and you're to take Nino."

Jaffar's expression twisted with disapproval. "You're not serious…"

"Yes, I'm serious," Sonia replied matter of factly, injecting her words with that tender sweetness from earlier. "This girl is my daughter. She must prove herself as soon as possible."

His mien contorted further. "Don't do this. This is too much for her."

Sonia removed herself from her husband and strode over to Jaffar leaning in close to his face with her own glare of irritation. "As long as you're with her, there should be no problem. I'll brook no disagreement. We must have the king in our debt. Those are Lord Nergal's explicit orders."

Jaffar did not respond.

"Nino!" Sonia turned on her daughter. "You understand the consequences if you fail, don't you?"

"Um…" Nino nodded. "Yes."

"Then we're off to investigate the prince's manse. I'll provide more details on the way there."

People started leaving the room through the doorway at the back. Jaffar went first with the other Black Fang members, then Brendan, and Nino followed behind him, but kept her distance. Sonia remained behind, however, watching as they left. Once everyone was gone, she turned back toward the fire.

"Kenneth! Jerme!"

Two men came in through the doorway the others had left through. One of them was a rather large man who carried a bright tome in his arms and a smooth golden staff with a red orb fixed at the top—a Priest I guessed by the clergy robes he wore. The other man looked as ragged as Jaffar did, and I spotted two curved daggers hanging from his belt. I didn't think it would be a far cry to assume he was just as dangerous as Jaffar.

"Yes, Lady Sonia," they said together.

Sonia looked at the bigger man. "Kenneth, where is Brendan? He just left the room."

"He's outside with Jan."

"I wonder what he's about…" Sonia said placing a hand under her chin for a moment then waved it. "I'll deal with it later. Listen, Kenneth, Jerme. You two are in charge of the guard while I'm gone. Do not let anything happen to the item."

"In charge of the guard?" Jerme spat on the ground. "Bah! I was top dog until that cretin Jaffar showed up."

"Jerme!" Sonia was not in the mood.

"I know, I know!"

"Rest assured, Lady Sonia," Kenneth said, giving her a respectful bow. "We will guard it with our lives."

"Good, then I will depart from here."

The three of them left out the way they had come. I put a hand up to keep the others from talking. I wanted to make sure we could speak freely. We did not move until the cold had set deep within us, and when my own hand started to shiver, I finally put it down.

"Do they seriously mean to assassinate the prince?" Eliwood questioned.

"It would seem so," I replied. "After what we witnessed at the castle, I wouldn't doubt it."

"On the orders of the king, no less," Hector said. "Unbelievable…"

Lyn looked around at the other buildings. "The Emblem is essential to the prince's ceremony, right? Having the Emblem becomes useless if the prince is dead!"

"We must stop the assassination," Eliwood exclaimed. "The girl, Nino… If we speak to her, she might understand."

"I agree," I said. "She seemed hesitant to carry out the mission. It's possible we could dissuade her."

"Jaffar is a dangerous man," Lyn reminded us. "But we have no other course of action. Let's go."

"Hello, trespassers!"

We turned around to find the two men Sonia had charged with guarding the Fire Emblem standing before us.

"I bid you welcome," said the Priest before turning to his associate. "Imagine, the stronghold of a guild of assassins infiltrated. Quite amusing, isn't it, Jerme?" He let out an irksome cackle.

The other man pulled out one of his daggers and licked the blade. "Ahhhh! How delicious! My blade shall feast well tonight."

"You shall not leave," Kenneth replied. "Sonia has given us authority while she is away."

"You…" Eliwood said to the Priest in disbelief. "You're a holy man. What are you doing in this place?"

Kenneth croaked out another irritating laugh. "Are you referring to my relationship with the ‘gods'? Are you still held in the thrall of such a concept? You've met Lord Nergal, haven't you? Then there is something you must know. Gods are lies created by the weakness in all mankind. …If a god truly exists, then it is my lord Nergal. Only him."

Jerme pulled out his other dagger. "Now, which…one…first? Wait! Hold it!" He looked at me. "There are some nasty ones mixed in with the rest. Mustn't get one of them. Might ruin my blade's appetite. You don't mind, do you? If I do it this way?"

Eliwood stepped back in repugnance. "That's…"

"Eliwood," Lyn shouted drawing her sword. "There's no reason to treat with this heretic or the freak. We must find an exit…"

"You! Woman!" He began to approach her licking one of his blades again. "You have beautiful skin. If I sliced you into lovely red ribbons with this, would the pieces be as soft and delicate as silk?"

Lyn took a step forward with blinding speed. Jerme had only just pulled his tongue off his dagger when it was knocked from his hand and spun over one of the buildings. He watched it soar away, then turned back to Lyn with shock marring his countenance.

"You'll never know."

"Marcus! Bring the others!" I shouted.

There was no response.

"Marcus?"

Kenneth's laugh assaulted my ears again. "Nothing is more beautiful than the suffering of men. When I'm watching, I'm afloat in an ocean of pure bliss… The barrier will not allow you to escape from here, nor will your friends be able to come to your aid. I will watch you for a long, long time."

The sound of rushing broken glass filled my ears, and the two of them vanished into runes of light.

"…Gone." Eliwood said checking to make sure they hadn't teleported behind us.

"That Priest said there's a barrier," I said probing the rooftops. "No doubt he is the one projecting it, which also means that they are still around here. Stay on guard and find him. The only we're getting out of here is by defeating him. Eliwood and Hector, you two check the buildings to the east. Lyn and I will move north. Shout if you find him."

"Understood!" Eliwood replied.

"Got it," Lyn said coming to me.

We separated, and Lyn and I moved between the houses north of us. The only sound that we heard was our boots crunching through the snow. The barrier had even cut off the wind. The silence could prove beneficial in finding Kenneth. All we'd need to listen for was his obnoxious laughter. My gaze traveled over to Lyn. The barrier may have cut off the blistering wind, but it had done nothing to warm this place. Her usually graceful movement had become stiff and slow in this cold. She took another step and stumbled into a rather deep patch of snow that took her a few seconds to free herself from—seconds that could cost her her life if Jerme got the jump on us.

"Lyn, this cold isn't good for you. Take my cloak."

"I'm fine, Mark," she replied, giving me a blunt glare. "You don't need to keep worrying about me."

"Well, in case you have forgotten, it is my job to be worrying over the wellbeing of the company. And you are part of that company. So forgive me if I disagree."

"Now is not the time for this, Mark. We need to find that priest and get this barrier down before Jaffar and Nino get too far."

"And we'll only be impeded further if you suffer frostbite. Now, will you please quit arguing with me and take-"

"RRARGH!"

I had just passed a door when it burst open, and a Brigand wielding an axe charged me. I only just managed to get my blade out and duck under the brutal swing, driving my sword into his side. But as my enemy fell, he revealed a Warrior standing inside the building with an arrow drawn to fire. I tried to dive aside, but the arrow caught my shoulder. The Warrior had dropped his bow and moved to finish me off with his axe. But he had only just exited the doorway when Lyn stepped out from behind the door and brought on a flurry against my aggressor. Each strike landed true, and the Warrior collapsed to the ground as Lyn stepped aside to let the body tumble right on top of me.

"Argh! What the heck, Lyn!?"

"You're lucky I don't give you a black eye to go along with that wound. I told you I was just fine. Don't ever doubt me again." She bent down and wiped the blood off her blade on the Warrior's tunic, glowering harshly at me. "Especially since it seems you will need some help to get that corpse off you."

"Hyaaa!"

A dark form sprung out of the building, tackling Lyn into the snow, leaving her sword on the entryway.

"I'm going to use your skin as a blanket!" Jerme cackled as he tried to push his dagger into her face.

Lyn struggled to throw her attacker off while keeping his dagger away from her. But he had her legs pinned under his own, and each time she fought, that dagger got a little bit closer. I thrashed violently under the Warrior's corpse, but the arrow in my shoulder prevented me from being able to use both my arms to free myself. I kicked out with my feet trying to push myself out from underneath, but I only plowed through the thick snow, throwing it around to deter my legs further. The sound of a blade piercing skin froze my heart, and I tilted my head backward.

Both Lyn and Jerme had become motionless. However, there was a third person with them—a man with long black hair whose own sword protruded from Jerme's chest. The newcomer removed his weapon while Lyn pushed the assassin's corpse off of her, and he extended a hand to her.

"Who… Who are you?" Lyn asked taking the man's hand.

"Karel."

"You're a…swordfighter from Sacae," Lyn said looking the man over, specifically avoiding lingering too long on the split in his shirt that showed off his chest. "Are you fighting the Black Fang as well?"

Karel nodded. "The Black Fang is gathering recruits. I want to hone my blade on them." His tone was incredibly similar to Jerme's.

Lyn appeared somewhat disturbed by the man as well. "Why would you…? Do you have a reason to?"

"My sword is my life. My sword is my reason. You are… So beautiful…"

Lyn blinked absently. "Pardon?"

Seriously? Another Sain?

"Your blade and mine are different," Karel replied, "yet… your swordplay is truly beautiful. The way you cut down that Black Fang thug…how your blade spun and twirled, cutting him down effortlessly. It was a phenomenal display." He folded his arms with a humored grunt of approval. "Very well. I will join you."

"You're going to help us?" Lyn raised her eyebrows in surprise. "But… why?"

Karel turned from her and walked over to me. "Someday you will be a renowned swordfighter." He reached down and pulled the warrior's corpse off of me. "Losing you here would be a waste. I must see you… stronger. I will wait for that time with much anticipation."

Lyn did not respond as Karel delicately set a hand around my wound and broke the shaft of the arrow off, and then he helped me up. "Can you still fight?"

"Yes," I replied, rolling my arm to try and endure some of the pain. But after a sharp prickle, I decided it would be better to just use my sword in one hand.

"Good, then we should make haste.” He pointed down the snow-covered path toward the ruined wall. “I saw a group of Black Fang enter a tower not far from here."

“Either that’s where the priest is,” I said, “or more likely it’s another trap.” The sounds of weapons clashing against each other sounded to the east. “I’d bet on it being the latter. Let’s bring Eliwood and Hector so we’ll have better odds against an ambush.” I started to move in the direction of the fighting, but pain ripped through my injured arm. I hissed and grabbed the injury as if to pull it off.

"You’re in no condition to fight," Lyn replied, moving past me. “Karel, please look after Mark. I will return with our lords.”

I was about to remind Lyn of how I received my injury, but I had no desire to subject Karel to our argument, and now was not the time or place for it anyway. After all, an argument is how I ended up with this injury. I made a mental note to address issues when we weren’t in danger… wait. That mental note was already there. I did that with everyone in the company because it was the most tactically sound. So why hadn’t I waited to bring it up with Lyn? After she moved between a pair of houses, I made my move. I headed in the direction Karel had shown us. And to my surprise, without a word of dispute, Karel followed me.

The silence was like a warning shot fired from an oncoming ship. Why wasn’t he questioning me or trying to stop me? My first thought was he was a Black Fang member leading me into a trap. But if that were the case, why a trap? Why not kill both Lyn and me when we were beset by Jerme? He could’ve easily stolen the glory after killing his comrade. Perhaps he intended to kill Kenneth as well and then kill us to report everyone’s deaths to Sonia, but why wait to kill us? Was he really here to kill the Black Fang members? Those questions kept me walking; I needed to discover this man’s reasons for being here. “Do you remember where you saw the Black Fang enter?”

“Yes. It’s the tower down there.”

The building was eleven meters down from where we were at. “Can you handle the foes in there?”

“I intended to ‘handle’ all of the Black Fang here until you and your lords arrived, springing their trap…”

Movement to the left alerted me. “Left. In the rubble,” I said.

With a twist of his wrist, Karel rotated his skinny blade through the cracks in the stone piled in the corner of the broken building. Someone yelped. Karel brought his blade back, slick with blood.

“An excellent strike,” I said once I confirmed the ambusher was dead. “I see you’re not lacking in confidence when you swing your blade.”

“You hold confidence in my abilities,” Karel replied. “That is why you alerted me of the danger instead of trying to take it on yourself. I repay such respect.”

“Can your sword find the foe behind the door?”

The door let out a shocked “huh?”, and Karel thrust his blade through a gap in the wood, regarding me with a toothy smirk. “You are quite perceptive, Mark. So much so that I find it strange you did not see the Warrior that injured you.”

“I was distracted,” I admitted. “Though I’m still not sure why. I’m usually focused in battle."

“You don’t?” His smirk flattened. “You were arguing with your ally. How is such a distraction lost on you.”

“It’s not what distracted me, it’s why.” I nodded to the other side of the rubble.

Karel nodded at my signal and glided to the side of the building, stopped, and spun around the corner with a war cry. There was a heavy thump, followed by a trail of blood in the snow as Karel returned. “Perhaps it is the skill your friend displays with her swordsmanship. She is one of my people and the way she handles a blade has stirred my appetite as well.” His eyes narrowed as a sly grin curled up. “Her time to be tested will come, but time is up for these assassins.”

I glanced at him and noticed he did wear a Sacaean tunic, but it was hanging open instead of tied up like Lyn and Guy’s. And his statement of Lyn growing in her swordsmanship so he could eventually challenge her to what I could only assume was a fight to the death made me want to run him through right now. But with my injury, I’d end up dead. For the moment, he didn’t seem ready to attack Lyn, so I could warn her after we finished here.

Karel lunged in my direction. I fell backward to dodge his sword as it flew out of his hand. Another howl of pain rang in the air. I sat up and turned around as Karel walked past me to retrieve his sword that was lodged in the chest of a Mage. “Were you thinking about her again?”

I sighed out of resignation. “I was. But this has never happened before.”

Karel grunted. “Are you truly so blind?”

I cocked my head to him. “I don’t have eyes in the back of my head, and that Mage was silent.”

“That’s not what I meant.” He extended a hand and helped me back to my feet. “Clear your mind of thoughts of your companion and let us be done with the enemy here.”

I took a deep breath and refocused my thoughts. The building was just ahead. Keeping my eyes up and my ears open, I moved to it with Karel behind me. There were four people inside. A Mage, a Shaman, and a Myrmidon watching the plump Priest that had trapped us, flipping through a book.

“My dear Lord Nergal,” the Priest said through an arrogant chuckle. “Once we have killed the lords, please bestow-”

The door crashed open with a wave of snow blowing in. The Mage and Shaman threw up their arms to shield their faces from the snow. They didn’t even see Karel as he cut through them both with a single strike. And before they had even collapsed, Karel was already turning toward the myrmidon who was pulling out her sword.

“Pathetic.” Karel thrust his sword through her while kicking the tome out of Kenneth’s hands. The Priest fumbled for the book, attempting to chant his incantations. Karel swung his blade at him, slicing through his hands and his thick robes, turning the chant into a cry of anguish.

He fell to his knees with his robes in bloody, gangling tatters, and Karel slid in behind him, brushing the tip of his sword along the priest's neck. The Sword Master’s eyes were as wild as the twisted grin on his face that begged Kenneth to give him a reason to brush his sword just a little bit closer. When Kenneth saw me enter, he cackled feebly, but it still caused an irascible twinge in my ears.

"Does this…mean…that I… lose?"

"It's over," I said. "Drop the barrier, and we will let you live."

Karel's smile flipped, and his eyes flashed to me. "Let him live? You're joking…"

“He has been defeated," I said. "And he’s not even a swordsman. Why dirty your blade further?"

"Failure to the Fang means death,” Kenneth croaked. “And this barrier is tied to my life. I will die, and you will continue to run on to your deaths, you foolish children. Lord Nergal will bring this land into a new age of-GUH!"

Karel's sword flashed across Kenneth's neck. "Be silent. We will suffer no more lunacy." He produced a cloth and wiped off his blade as the Priest's body fell forward.

I dropped my head and gave a tired sigh. That man, a holy Priest, was willing to die for Nergal… The thought brought up my own unknown past, and I wondered if I had been as devoted to Nergal when I’d been seen with him before. Was everyone in the Black Fang like that? What about Nino and the man she… Something shiny caught my eye. I reached down and picked up a small golden object that had fallen out of Kenneth's robes. The object barely filled my palm, so I had to bring it closer. It appeared to be an orb of some sort, the color of fire, with a golden dragon encompassing the globe to reach around and bite its tail.

“Mark!” Eliwood called. He, Lyn and Hector entered the building and glanced around at the mess. “Are you alright?”

“Yes,” I said, turning to him and handing him the Fire Emblem.

"It can't be…" Eliwood said, staring at the tiny item. "The Fire Emblem?"

"So this knave had it all along?" Hector asked in irritation. "Let's take it and go!"

"Hold on," I said. "Eliwood, Hector, take the Fire Emblem, regroup with the others and return to the manse. Be prepared to defend the prince from Black Fang assassins. Lyn, Karel, I need you to come with me."

“Who’s Karel?” Hector asked.

I spun around to find that Karel had disappeared.

“He was a swordsman who helped Mark and I earlier,” Lyn said. “Did he help you kill Kenneth as well?”

“He did,” I said, moving out of the building. “But if he’s gone, he’s gone. We don’t have time to wonder where he went. Come with me, Lyn.”

"Where are you going, Mark?" Eliwood asked.

"The girl with the green hair, Nino. She seemed hesitant about murdering the prince. The poor girl is being manipulated, and I don’t believe she’s the only one. If we can talk to her, we might be able to convince her not to follow through with the assassination and prevent any more Black Fang members from dying to a lie. I will need Lyn to help me track them down."

"What about that Assassin?" Hector asked with grave severity.

"I trust that Lyn and I will be able to handle him should he become a threat." That was a lie. Jaffar was far more dangerous. But I didn't want to reveal what I truly thought about him to Hector right now. "There is no more time to waste. They've already gotten a head start on us. Get moving!"

The Black Fang hadn't expected someone to trail them, as even I could easily follow their tracks. However, it was still a wise decision to bring Lyn along with me. The injury I had suffered back at the ruined castle started to pang once we had gone a few miles, and I was drinking down an elixir while we pursued to dampen the pain.

"You should’ve gone back with Eliwood and Hector," Lyn said, disapprovingly watching as I took another sip of the elixir. "You need to see a healer, and the rest of that arrow needs to come out. I can handle talking to Nino."

As much as I wanted to remind Lyn that her stubbornness in taking my cloak was how I ended up with this injury, I held my tongue and made a different statement. "Can you handle convincing Jaffar to leave the Black Fang?"

"What? You mean you intend to try talking to that Assassin? I thought we were trying to talk to Nino."

"Do you think we will get anywhere close to her without Jaffar ready to slit our throats? I intend to talk to both of them."

Lyn folded her arms. "What makes you think he would be willing to drop his loyalties?"

"Did you see the way he reacted when Sonia told him to bring Nino with him?"

"He didn't want to. She would likely get in the way.” Lyn threw out a hand. “That doesn't mean he's not hesitant to kill the prince."

"Maybe not, but I think he owes Nino a debt. That’s why he was willing to do the job in her stead. And if we can get Nino to talk to him, there might be a chance to stop him…"

"A debt?" She slowed her pace.

"Have you talked with Legault?

"The Black Fang member from Valor? No, but I heard he joined us because he didn’t like working for the Fang anymore. You think that Assassin feels the same way?”

"I don't know about that, but I talked with Legault back in Thria. He told me that the Black Fang had changed, and one of those ways is that they started killing off anyone who could not serve the Black Fang."

"That sounds like something they would do."

"Yes, and did you see Jaffar back at the ruined castle?"

Lyn raised her eyebrows.

"He was injured. And I have a feeling it was much worse before Nino tended to him."

"Nino tended to him?"

"Yes, that was not the first time I had seen Nino. When Pent, Louise, and I were on our way back from the manse, we heard her shrieking from a cabin. We went to see what the commotion was and found Nino there. She said she had an injured person with her but was adamant not to let us into the cabin. Now that I see that Nino is actually part of the Black Fang and Jaffar was injured… Call it a gut instinct, but I feel like Nino went against the Black Fang's new code and saved him, and so Jaffar owes her his life."

"But that doesn't mean Jaffar won't carry out the assassination for Nino."

"No, but if we can convince Nino not to assassinate the prince, maybe she can stop Jaffar as well."

"Mark… that's…"

"A bit hopeful?" I chuckled. "I know. But even you can't deny that not everyone in the Black Fang is as cold-hearted as Nergal or Ephidel. Legault, Uhai, that man you all encountered while I was gone. They aren't all evil. Nergal corrupted them. And if we can convince them to join our side, then that's just more power we are taking… saving… from Nergal."

Lyn graced me with her benevolent smile and began to say something but stopped and crouched when we heard some familiar voices. I let Lyn take the lead as we stuck close to the thicker foliage until we came upon Nino and Jaffar talking with Sonia alone amongst the snow-covered trees.

"You know your role, yes?" Sonia said to Nino. "The plan must be carried out tomorrow night."

Nino nodded, but did not look at Sonia. "Mother… just once… if only for a little while… may I… hold your hand?"

"Nino," Sonia scowled, rolling her head. "You know how I abhor such displays."

"I… I know. But… I may not get another chance… And I thought…"

"…Very well."

Nino's head shot up. "Huh?"

"If you complete this mission, I'll hold your hand as often as you like. I will even hug you and stroke your face."

Nino's countenance beamed brilliantly. "Oh really!? Then I must do my best! I will! I will succeed!! Wait for me, Mother!"

"I will. Be careful!"

"All right!" Nino jumped excitedly and ran off, waving back to her mother. "I'll be back!"

Jaffar began to follow her as well, but Sonia grabbed his cloak tail.

"Ah, Jaffar, wait here for a moment."

He obeyed.

"It's about the mission."

"What is it?"

"Once you've killed the prince, kill Nino, too."

Jaffar must have felt that same cold sting at Sonia's words that I did because utter astonishment washed over him. "What!?"

Sonia remained utterly indifferent to both him and her own words. Her tone was devoid of the tenderness she had just used for her daughter. "The assassinations… Both come directly by the king's request. The prince is well-loved, and his death will trigger much chaos. If the assassin is not caught and hanged immediately, the chaos will engulf Bern. A scapegoat is needed. Do you understand?"

"Nino is your daughter!!" Jaffar protested but still under his breath.

"She is trash," Sonia snapped back like the blistering wind that blew through the trees. "Garbage. Human refuse. I'm just happy at last to have found a use for her. She did say she would do anything to please her loving mother, did she not? Her death will please me more than her living ever did."

Jaffar did not respond, but his body language made it clear he was not happy with the order he just received. Sonia could see it.

"What is it?" She spoke the words like a threat. "Do you have something to say?"

"…This has nothing to do with me."

Sonia scoffed. "Lord Nergal does not give second chances.” She said those words knowingly. I picked up on it. She knew what Nino did for Jaffar! “Do not forget."

Jaffar's stance did not change, but he did not argue further. He simply turned from her and went after Nino.

"That disgusting witch!" Lyn breathed through gritted teeth, she started to move toward Sonia, but I caught her arm and pulled her back.

"Lyn!" I hissed under my breath. "Now is not the time for that. We have to follow Jaffar and Nino. This is the perfect opportunity to convince them not to carry out the mission. Come on!"

Lyn took one last look at the woman, and I feared her anger would overtake her. But she huffed out the rest of her frustration, and we chased after the other two. Although Sonia was gone, I thought it best if we did not approach Nino and Jaffar outright. Jaffar may not have been happy with the order to kill Nino. But considering the blackmail Sonia held over Jaffar, it would be jeopardous to presume that he would have the same troubled ethics as those of the "Old Fang." Our best bet would be to approach Nino when Jaffar was absent, try to get her to come around and use her to convince Jaffar to abandon the contract.

Easier said than done, of course. There were many problems with this entreaty attempt, two of which were glaring obstacles. One, we had to convince a little girl, who wanted nothing more than her mother's affection, that her mother didn't actually care for her, and that she gave the order for Jaffar to kill her. Second, if we could succeed in dropping that ballista bolt without immediate hostile reaction both before and after, we would then have to get her to convince Jaffar not to carry out the contract either. And I could not trust his loyalties. Those two issues aside, now there was a third major problem we faced, Nino and Jaffar had rendezvoused with a large group of Black Fang members.

"Jaffar," one of the men greeted them. "You have arrived. Lady Sonia said we are to accompany you for the prince's assassination."

Jaffar did not respond. Instead, Nino stepped up to him

"Thank you, Reis. Have you all been well fed? The manse is a long way, and we will have a long march ahead of us tomorrow."

Reis looked down at Nino bewildered. "Uh… yes, we are, Miss Nino. Forgive my inquest, but are you accompanying us to the manse?"

"Yes," Nino replied with increased cheerfulness. "My mother put me in charge of the mission. I have to do my very best for her and my father."

"I… see…" He glanced at Jaffar. Jaffar nodded. "The men are prepared, Miss Nino. We will assault the manse and draw the attention of the guardsmen while you kill the prince.”

"Yes… kill the prince…" Nino inclined her head and said something under her breath that I could not hear.

"You look tired, Miss Nino. Perhaps you should turn in for the night." He motioned behind him to a large tent at the back of the camp. "We set up a tent for you and Jaffar over there."

"Ah! Yes…" Nino shook her head quickly. "I think I will. Thank you, Reis."

She ran toward the tent, and Reis watched her until she disappeared behind the flaps. Then he turned back to Jaffar apprehensively. "Can she do this?"

"Yes," Jaffar said as he walked past him.

"Looks like we're going to have to wait until tomorrow to try talking to Nino," I whispered, staying crouched as I backed away from the camp. "Let's find somewhere to lay low for the night, and we'll follow them to the manse."

"I saw a cave nearby," Lyn said.

I followed Lyn back the way we came to a cave bored into the base of the mountain.

"It's a bit close to their camp," I said, examining it. "But there's enough foliage around here that we should be okay if we stay toward the back of the cave."

"Alright, then come over here and sit down." She grabbed my arm and led me over to a flat rock next to the cave. Then she reached down and picked up a stick. "Bite down on this. That arrow has to come out, and you were too stubborn to go back and get a healer."

"Lyn, we don't have to do this now. We can wai-it!" The stick was shoved sideways between my teeth before I could finish.

"No, we do this now. If we don't dress the wound, it's going to get worse overnight. It comes out now." She pulled aside my cloak and tunic around the arrow carefully until they were clear of my shoulder. "It looks like most of the blood has dried. But it will start bleeding again as soon as the arrow comes out. How much of that elixir do you have left?"

I reached into my pocket and pulled out the container that was a little more than three quarters full and showed Lyn.

"Good. Take a small drink now, and then let me have it."

I complied, removing the stick and letting a small gulp into my mouth before handing it over to Lyn and biting back down on the stick. She cupped her hand just below the wound and slowly poured a bit of the elixir out so that it ran over the wound and into her cupped hand, which she then rubbed onto the gash. There was some minor stinging when she touched the wound directly, but the elixir did its job of numbing the pain.

"Okay. Now do your best not to scream. Remember that the enemy is nearby." She gripped my shoulder tightly with one hand, and then with the other, she pushed a finger into the wound. A stronger pain assaulted my body, but I managed to groan quietly and let my nostrils flare out my discomfort. Lyn removed her fingers quickly. "Well, it didn't penetrate the bone. But it's still deep."

I mumbled as she pulled her pack around to rummage through it. "Ryn, rar gu gur gat ee gan't-"

"Yes, Mark, I'm sure we can't wait. This brumal climate is not going to help you heal. There's already some discoloration around the wound. It's coming out now." She pulled out two tools and a thick cloth. One of them looked like two sticks tied together with leather on the end and a small latch in the middle. The other one was a pair of small metal tongs. "This is going to be rough, Mark. I've removed many arrows when I lived with my tribe, but it's never been pleasant for the patient. My tools will make this process much quicker, and hopefully, the elixir will mitigate most of the pain. I'll work as fast as I can. Ready?"

No.

I put on a strong face and nodded to her.

"Here we go." She plunged the two sticks into the wound, and my entire arm flared up like a lightning tome and a fire tome had struck me at once. The cold air that was sucked in through my flaring nostrils went straight to my head to leave me dizzy. But it was only the initial sting. Lyn flipped the latch and the sticks sprang apart, pushing the wound open. The burning surge that coursed throughout my entire body generated a yelp that would've been louder had I not suffocated it with a tormented exhale. The tongs were in the wound seconds after it opened, and I could feel them clamp around the arrowhead and begin to pull it out. Lyn was being delicate as she pulled on the arrowhead, but with each centimeter it moved, another pang shot through my body. It was all I could do to keep my whimpering from getting any louder.

"There," Lyn said with one final tug. She tossed aside the arrowhead and grabbed the sticks out of the wound. Agony still baked within my shoulder, but Lyn poured more of the elixir over the injury to douse it, and then she brought the container to my lips so the sweet relief could flow through the rest of me.

"Are you okay?" she asked, placing the cloth against the newly bleeding wound.

"Yeah," I said, taking another sip of the elixir. "I don't want to imagine what it would've been like if you weren't Sacaean and I didn't have this elixir." I took a bigger swig before my thoughts could venture into that dangerous territory.

Lyn took the elixir from me to pour onto the wound again and put the cloth aside. Then pulled some bandages out of her pack to wrap my wound. "Well, maybe next time you will go to the healers and get it properly treated."

A new pain throbbed on my forehead. She wasn't going to get away with that statement. "Well, maybe next time, you won't argue with me, and I will be able to hear the enemy coming and retaliate instead of being left vulnerable to being shot."

"Don't you dare blame me for this," Lyn snapped back, purposefully pulling the bandage tight on the round of wrapping she was on. "You're the one who thinks I can't take care of myself and that I needed your cloak."

"You did, Lyn! You could barely walk through that snow when we were at the ruins. Even now, I can see you trying to repress your shivering."

"I… I am not!" She exclaimed, becoming still and making her endeavor to hide how cold she was even more apparent.

"Lyn…" I grabbed her wrist so that she would look me in the eye.

She did for just a second before looking away crossly. "I don't need you to take care of me all the time. I hate it when people doubt my abilities."

"Doubt your abilities? What are you talking about Lyn? Staying warm isn't an ability."

"First, you forced me to take your cloak on our way to the castle, which I only did so your continued insistence wouldn't alert someone. Then you didn't seem to think I could handle the wyverns on my own, so you gave me some stone for more power. After that, Louise was constantly telling me how to use the bow in the middle of the fight like I had no idea, even though I was hitting just as many targets as she was. And as usual, Hector had to go and doubt my abilities while we were tracking the Black Fang, and let's not overlook that for a second time, you didn't think I could handle the cold!"

"Lyn, have you gone daft? First off, when have you ever used a bow before?"

She avoided my gaze and returned her focus to wrapping my wound.

"Uh huh. I gave you that stone because I had faith that deep down you did have the ability to use a bow, and using a bow against the wyverns would have been far more effective than taking them on with just your sword. That's why I took a chance on you with the seal, and it considered you worthy of its power, so I'm not sure how you consider that a doubt of your abilities. While we're on that subject, there are only three of those in existence, so you shouldn't be upset about me giving you one. As for Louise, I'm sure she was just trying to help you since we were in the middle of a chaotic fight and it was the first time you used a bow. You know what it feels like to fight in battle as opposed to training. Moods change, people get tense. You all often leave the thinking in the middle of battle to me, but we do what we can to help each other. And why do you keep letting Hector get to you? You know he's just jealous that you're a gifted plainswoman with an aptitude for more than just using a sword."

Lyn's mouth twitched upward for a brief moment.

"And me trying to give you my cloak wasn't because I doubted your abilities. Handling the cold isn't a skill. Your attire isn't exactly designed for this climate, Lyn, and it was showing. I tried to give you my cloak because I was worried about you."

Lyn gritted her teeth. "For the last time, I don't need you to worry about me, Mark!"

"Too bad! That's my job. And you don't get to say that after you sit me down and force an arrow out of my shoulder when I tried to tell you to wait."

"That's different, Mark."

"How is it different, Lyn?"

"I am not in danger of dying from the cold."

"You're not? Set aside the danger of hypothermia for a moment. I think the foes who attacked us and could have taken advantage of your foot getting stuck in the snow would beg to differ. And you almost did get yourself killed when you got distracted with whatever absurd statement you were making after you let that warrior fall on me."

Lyn scowled as she finished the wrapping and tied off the bandage, pulling it tight so that it caused me to wince. But as I examined her expression, I could see a darker anger seething deep within her. It wasn't me she was mad at, nor Hector or Louise.

"Lyn…” I eyed her as I pulled my tunic back on. “There's more to this than just people doubting your abilities. What are you really angry about?"

Lyn let her arms fall to her sides and I saw her fists clench up. "That woman," Lyn said, injecting her words with her contempt. "Sonia… Such a vile woman. The way she treats her daughter… It's repulsive." She turned back to me, and her eyes were alight with rage that I almost fell off the rock. "All Nino wants is to hold her mother's hand, and that witch just ordered her execution for it!" Tears started to slip out from underneath her eyes. "What kind of mother does that to her child!?"

I wiped a solemn hand over my face. "I feel the same way, Lyn. My heart broke when I heard her order. She reminds me of Ephidel, working from the shadows for her master, willing to take a life without a hint of remorse, even delight in their malevolence. She's not a mother; she's a monster, just like Nergal. And poor Nino believes she must win that monster's affection. She's nothing but a tool for Sonia to be used and disposed of. That's why we have to convince Nino not to assassinate the prince. We have to get her away from that woman."

"I know…" Lyn took in a deep breath and stood back up. "Let's just… Let's gather some firewood."

"Firewood!?" I stood up a little faster than she did. "Lyn, we can't start a fire. That cave isn't deep enough. We'll be spotted by anyone in the Black Fang camp the moment the flames go up."

Lyn looked at the cave and then dropped her head into her hand. "Ugh. You're right. Think we could go back to the ruins?"

"That's their fortress, Lyn. Just because we killed a bunch of them in there doesn't mean it's going to be vacant. If anything, that's where Sonia is, and when she finds her henchmen dead and the Fire Emblem missing, she's going to be on high alert, likely even searching for us. We have to spend the night in that cave without a fire."

"You're right," she replied quietly. "Let's go get settled then."

Although the cave was small, it was at least clear of loose rocks and dirt, and the ground smoothed out more near the back and elevated a bit. A couple crusty mice skittered away into the cracks in the wall, but other than them, I didn't see any signs of larger animals taking up residence here. Lyn took her pack to the back, and I set my own pack nearby. I also took off my cloak and held it out to Lyn.

"Take it. And don't argue with me. We can't start a fire, and we don't have our bedrolls with us. You need this"

Lyn eyed the cloak for a moment, then me, and finally sighed. "Fine." She grabbed the cloak and wrapped it around her shoulders but left it open with her arms spread like an eagle. "Alright, come here."

"Huh?"

"You need this too. I'm not just taking your cloak and leaving you to suffer in the cold. It's big enough that we can share it, so that's what we're going to do."

Warm blood invaded my cheeks. "I… Uh… It's fine, Lyn, really! I've got enough clothes on that I will be fine." I had completely forgotten Lyn's lack of shame. She didn't find what she was suggesting weird at all.

"Don't argue with me, Mark. We both need it, so we're both going to use it." She strode over and threw the cloak around me as well. "We are sharing this cloak even if I have to tie us up to keep you in here. She pulled the ends of the cloak around us, and when her arms touched my shoulders, her head shot up in fright. "Mark! You're so…"

"So what?" I puffed. I had taken a deep breath to try and slow my heart, which was steadily racing like Ajax in an open field.

"So… warm!" She pulled a hand out of the cloak and placed it on my forehead. "Are you sure you're okay? Do you feel weak at all?"

I took a moment to let my body feel itself. I didn't feel sick. The wound still throbbed a little, but not so much that I felt like there was some infection. I was fairly confident that my warmth was due to Lyn's proximity to me and how she was suggesting we spend the night together in this cave. But I wasn't about to reveal that embarrassing fact to her. "I feel fine. Honest."

"That's so strange…" Lyn said, moving her hand from my forehead down to my chest. "I can't tell if you are sick. Your whole body feels like you've just been sitting next to a fire. You’re sure you’re okay?"

"Quite sure. I've been sick with a fever before, so I know what I would feel if that were the case. But I feel just fine, I assure you." Aside from the growing awkwardness.

"Okay…" She grabbed one side of the cloak and moved it back around me. Then she turned around and pushed herself into me.

"L-Lyn!" I said, bounding back. "What are you doing?"

"If you're sure you're fine, then I won't need your cloak. Your body is as warm as any fire. If I sleep against you, then I will be warm throughout the night. My father and mother would always hold me between them during the colder nights, and many in my tribe would do the same thing with each other. If you're still worried, I'll at least pull the end of the cloak over me as well."

She reached behind her and grabbed my arms to pull me up to her, and then down to the ground. It had to be the blood rushing through my veins that was causing my body to become so warm; I could feel myself growing hotter with every second that my cloak might become unnecessary in a little while. Lyn stretched out on the ground, pulling her pack underneath our heads, and then she grabbed my arm, which had become stiff with nervousness, and the edge of the cloak to pull over her as well. We lay on the ground in silence for a while. The entire time, I slowed my breathing to keep my heart from racing. There was no point in trying to argue this situation with Lyn. If I did, it would make the situation even more embarrassing, and I doubted I would be able to form a coherent sentence. My heart had managed to return to a steady rhythmic pace when Lyn finally spoke.

"Mark… I'm sorry I took my anger out on you. There were so many things happening to us today, and other people had irritated me, and hearing what Sonia said about her daughter… I let myself become overly emotional and took it out on you. I know you were only worried about me. I'd forgotten how much we've been looking out for each other since we left the plains." She tapped a finger against her head. "Ugh. Why does this always happen to you? You don't deserve my malice. It was just a silly cloak!"

"It's alright, Lyn. I just hope you know that I have absolutely no doubts about you as a swordfighter. I trained you myself, after all. I've watched you grow from a timid girl with barely any confidence to hold a sword into a fearless champion who is now felling foes with a bow as well as a blade. I'm sure Karel wasn't trying to court you (at least I hoped not) when he said your form was beautiful."

"You think so?"

"Are you kidding? Your fighting style reminds me of the wind: swift and elegant, rolling over the grass in an open field. And in battle, you’re as deadly as a cyclone of steel. Your combat abilities are always a splendor to behold. All of that is only matched by your compassionate and selfless character that saved the life of this drifting tactician."

"Wow… Mark, that's… do you really mean that?"

"Of course I do. I truly fear where I might have been today if you had never found me in the fields. You're important to me, Lyn. I'm sorry if you don't like it, but that is why I worry about you."

Lyn interlaced her fingers around mine, causing my heart to jump. "You're important to me too, Mark. Though I didn't really prove it back at the fortress, whenever you're in danger… something triggers inside of me, and I have an unquenchable desire to protect you."

"Really? Is that why you were so averse when I asked you to take my cloak?"

"I guess so… Letting that Warrior's body fall on top of you might have been a bit much, I'll admit."

"And incredibly stupid," I reminded her. "We were supposed to be watching each other's back."

"Yes," she conceded, "But, Mark, I don't know if you've noticed. Whenever we're in battle, you become like a stone wall to any objections. I guess that's another reason I became frustrated. Getting angry was the only way I felt would get you to listen to me."

"This is the first time I've heard any objections."

"Most of the time, your strategies are sagacious, and I've never had any reason to argue your orders. But there have been times a few of us have taken umbrage, and you've dismissed it like you did my issue of asking pirates for aid, which I realize was unfounded, but Eliwood also mentioned how he had to pull you away from strong-arming the shipwright."

"We're not always given a plethora of choices, Lyn. Because Eliwood didn't want to try and pressure the shipwright is the reason we had to resort to dealing with pirates. I can't please everyone."

"I understand that now, Mark. And I'm sorry I provided you with such opposition. But the problem is you often only see things your way. Like with your possessions. The other times I've had issues with your orders, we've been in a situation where I couldn't voice my disagreement, like when you asked me to kill you on the ship during your possession or when you challenged Uhai to a Ru'so jan."

"Those decisions have been my choice with my life that I felt needed to be done for the good of the company as a whole. I can't be giving orders to others to put their lives in danger if I'm not willing to put my own first."

Lyn gripped my hand tighter. "That's the problem, Mark! We all face the same danger. So why do you always feel the need to put your life on the line before others!?"

"Because I've been a threat to others! Why do you always feel the need to argue about what I do with my cursed life?"

"Because if I lose you, I will lose myself!"

The words hit me like a tsunami, drowning me in silence.

"Did you not just hear me say that you're important to me? Do you think I'm just saying that because I'm the one who found you in the fields? Yes, I've always felt protective of you since I found you unconscious. You could barely walk, let alone wield a sword… But now it's more than your safety that I consider precious… I need you by my side. If I lost you, then I would be all alone again." She pulled our hands to her chest. "I watched my entire family die to bandits, Mark. I was alone in my little Yurt in the middle of that remote field until I found you, and in less than a day, you filled a void in my life that had been causing me so much pain. You were a lost soul who had no one else… just like me—you were an answer to my prayers. You're the closest thing I have to family now, Mark. The day you left Caelin was almost as hard as the day the bandits wiped out my tribe. I was afraid I would never see you again. So I didn't say goodbye. I wanted to hold on to a hope rather than a fear."

"Ahh… that's not true. You still have your grandfather, thanks to Leila."

"And I'm thankful to have him still. But my grandfather didn't stand at my side as we faced bandits on our way into Lycia, my grandfather didn't train me to become a better swordfighter, and my grandfather didn't work tirelessly until I was reunited with my grandfather. That was you, Mark."

Blast! How was I supposed to respond to that?

"I don't want to lose you, Mark. That's the reason I get angry with you when you consider my well-being over your own."

"Lyn, it was just my cloak I was offering you…"

"I know… I know… But with how little value you've given to yourself during this campaign, that cloak looks like your life to me. I'm sorry, Mark. I can't help it. Even though we have so many friends around us, I would shatter if I lost you."

I had a hunch that part of the reason she felt so protective of me was because of the feelings she supposedly held for me. But I was more than that to her. Not just a friend, I was a brother to her. The Sacaeans held family as an important aspect of their culture. Lyn's mother and father hadn't been her only family. Her entire tribe had been family to her all her life. Losing all that and then finding me months later… After all we had been through, how had I never put together this picture before?

And this revelation made me feel even worse about how I had been viewing Lyn. While she had always considered me to be like family to her, my protectiveness of her had been born out of a selfish desire. Uhai had picked up on it before we fought; I was always risking myself to seem heroic to Lyn. But in doing so, I was putting her beneath me. I had completely forgotten all of the training she and I had been through together on our way to Caelin. We had grown stronger together. We had always been equals. That's why she was sharing this cloak with me rather than just submitting to my order for her to take it for herself.

"Okay, Lyn… I hear you. How about we try to be a little more submissive with each other from now on? I'll try to stop being so quick to end myself, and you take my cloak while we travel tomorrow

Lyn giggled. "Okay… Thank you, Mark. Good night."

"Good night." I closed my eyes and let sleep engulf my mind.

The sun was already peeking over the treetops when I finally opened my eyes again. "Oh, blast! Lyn, wake up! We overslept!"

Chapter Text

Chapter 16

Picking up the Black Fang's trail was simple enough in the snow, but according to Lyn, they were at least five miles ahead of us. And as we moved out of the mountains, the deep snow started to melt and would suck on our boots. By the time the ground had firmed up again, the sun had passed its peak and Lyn and I were fairly drained. We had to consume our emergency rations for a meal. I could only hope that the sludge and the long march had slowed down the Black Fang as much as it had us. The sun had already set for several hours by the time we arrived at the manse.

"This is the manse," I said as we stepped out of the trees.

"The lights have been doused," Lyn said. She paused. "It's too quiet. Do you think we're too late?"

"I don't know…"

I began to move toward the manse when a woman called out from inside. "Maxime!"

"Yes! I'm here!" said another voice within the manse.

"Take your men and block all the entrances. Your targets are Prince Zephiel and the two traitors. Finish this before we draw attention to ourselves. Go!"

"Mark!" Lyn exclaimed.

"They didn't go through with it!" I said, charging toward the manse with my hope rekindled. "The prince is still alive. We need to get to him."

"What about Nino and Jaffar?"

I put my shoulder down and plowed through the back door. "If we can find them, we'll try to help them, but our priority is the prince."

The back door took us into a small storage room, and through that, we ended up in the kitchen. It wasn't until we passed into the dining room that we found the Black Fang. Not Nino or Jaffar; just a couple Fighters. Lyn and I moved first taking either side of the table, and our foes followed. The one that came at me decided to get creative. He pulled out a chair from the table and hurled it at me. I had to dodge low to avoid the flying furniture, and as I suspected, the Fighter tried to take advantage of my vulnerable position.

Pushing off the wall, I sprang forward staying low. The Fighter had attempted to catch me in a vertical chop with his axe, but my sword was quicker, and I slashed through his leg as I dove past him. The Fighter growled in pain, dropping to his good knee, and I pivoted back thrusting my sword through his back and wrenched it sideways. Lyn had already dispatched her Fighter and engaged a Mercenary.

A Hero rushed in from the main hall to try and overwhelm Lyn by charging her with his shield while she was fending off the Mercenary. I ran toward them tapping my sword against the table as I passed it. Lyn heard my signal and rather than block or parry the Mercenary's next strike, she jumped back to cause the attack to miss her, and left him open for me to tackle him. The impact knocked the Mercenary's weapon away, allowing me to finish him. The Hero’s vision had been blocked by his shield and he stumbled over me. When I looked up, Lyn had maneuvered behind the Hero and I saw five Lyns ripping apart his back with rapid slashes before ending him with an aggressive blow that sent the Hero enemy onto the table. I blinked thinking I was drunk or suffering another headache, and Lyn returned to a single person.

Where have I seen that before?

There would be time for that later. We moved up the stairs next, and I ran toward the hall where I had met with the queen. I had only been in the queen's chambers while I was here but I had a feeling that as much as she cared for her son, the prince's room must be close. I turned down the hall ready to strike down any more enemies. There was only one, and he flailed wildly to try and put out the flames that engulfed him. It was a fruitless effort; his screams faded with the fire. His body crumbled to the ground and Nino stood on the other side, dropping her outstretched arm.

"I'm so sorry…" She sobbed. "Reis…"

"Nino!" I said, running up to her.

Her head shot up at the sound of my voice. "You! Are you from the palace? The prince is in his room!" She pointed down the hall. "Save him! I'll take care… Wait…" Her eyes widened. "It's you. What are you doing here?"

I ordered Lyn to the prince's room while I continued to explain the situation to Nino. I did my best to keep my explanation concise, deciding to reveal how Nergal had taken over the Black Fang and was using it to fulfill his dark agenda. I did not mention anything about the dragons, however. I wanted her to believe my story after all. But when she asked me how I knew the things about the Black Fang that I did, I told her how Legault had left the Fang and joined us, and her eyes lit up.

"You know Legault?"

"Yes, he joined us after our first trip to Valor, he's the one who told me about the Black Fang."

The brightness of her face dimmed again. "But… you must be lying…" Her words conveyed distrust, but I could see that she had some belief in what I said by her dejected mien.

"I'm sorry, Nino… But you know what I'm saying is true. The Black Fang has changed. This villain, Nergal, has taken your family and twisted it to suit his scheme."

The tears started to fall. "Mother… …It can't be…"

"I know this is hard to take in right now. But you don't have to face this alone. I know you're no assassin, Nino. You still hold to the traditions of the original Black Fang. Come with me. With your help, we can reveal the truth to those that can still be saved, and put a stop to Nergal.

Nino just sat there staring at the ground. A part of me regretted how much I had told her in such a short amount of time. I could see that she believed me to some extent, but to find out that her mother, whose affection she had striven to win I could only guess for how long, did not love her and instead considered her worthless… I had just shattered this poor girl's world. But her perseverance was astonishing. Though tears still slid down her face, she stood up and grabbed my hand, pulling me back into the foyer.

"Please. I have a friend here. He defied the Black Fang as well. They want to kill him too. Help me convince him to join us."

"I know about Jaffar as well. I will do what I can to at least have him see reason, but if he attacks me, I will have to defend myself, Nino."

"He'll listen… He must…"

We were crossing the upper walkway to the other side of the manse when another voice called out to me.

"Mark!" Eliwood was standing at the bottom of the stairs with Hector and some others from the company. "Apologies for being late. The prince's guard was traveling to the castle, so we had to take a route around them."

Just as the king had said.

"You're just in time, Eliwood. Spread the company out into groups of three and move throughout the manse. You and Hector take Pent and Louise and go to the Queen's chamber and protect her."

"The queen is safe," Pent called to me. "She and the rest of the manse's servants went with Murdock to the castle. The prince is the only one here."

So the king made extra good on his promise of the prince's isolation.

"Very well. Lyn is with the prince right now. Go and help her."

"There's more Black Fang outside," Hector added. "They're trying to move into the manse, but the company is keeping them away."

"Bring the rest of the company inside. Our goal is not to defeat our enemy. Defense is our priority. Use the halls as bottlenecks and keep the Black Fang from moving inside.

"Right!" Hector shouted, exiting the manse while Eliwood headed up the stairs. As he passed me, he handed me an unlit torch.

“They’re hiding in the shadows. Be careful.”

Nino and I continued to the other side of the manse and turned down another hall to find Jaffar rushing our way with a group of three Black Fang between us. My eyes almost missed it, and part of me didn't believe it. The first attacker hadn't even gotten his sword above his head when Jaffar brought his daggers diagonally across his chest, moving around him to catch his second assailant in an uppercut. His opponent fell backward, and Jaffar used his body as a springboard to launch himself above the final enemy. The bowmen struggled to aim at the soaring assassin, but Jaffar twisted his body and swung his arms out, striking the archer in the back of his neck before landing on his feet.

When Jaffar looked up, he saw me standing with Nino, and his face contorted into the mien of a snarling predator. I pulled out my blade to fend him off but Nino ran out in front and threw up her hands.

"Jaffar, don't! He's here to help us."

Jaffar came to a halt in front of her, but his fierce expression did not change. "I told you to flee."

"No, these people came and helped me! Hurry, Jaffar! Come with us!"

"Go," he said with complete indifference. "There's no need to save a life without worth."

"Jaffar…" I could hear the shock in Nino's tone, and it hit me too.

"I am a corpse. I have been dead since the day I was born. Leave me…"

"No!" Nino stamped her foot. "If you're not coming, then I'm staying! I do not want you to die, Jaffar!"

"Do not waste your life on a dead man," he said with more force.

"She isn't," I spoke up. "She's putting herself on the line for a friend."

Jaffar looked up at me apparently surprised that I was talking to him by the astonishment on his face. "What?"

"You think your life has no worth. And yet Nino saved it. I found her taking care of you in a cabin a few days ago. She was supposed to kill you, but instead, she saved your life. Why would she so easily throw you away now?"

"You do not understand who we are," Jaffar replied. Even his tone chilled me.

"Maybe not all of you. But I think I have a good understanding of who you are, Jaffar. I overheard your talk with Sonia the previous night when she ordered you to kill Nino after this mission. You know that woman is a manipulative witch. Sonia promised her daughter she would show affection to her if she completed this mission in order to use her for her scheme, but she had no intention of doing so. She wanted Nino dead."

I spotted Jaffar's eyebrows furrow for a brief second when I said those words.

"You were ordered to kill Nino, but you didn't. You, who believes you're nothing but a corpse or a tool for the Black Fang… You chose to defy Sonia. You chose to defy Nergal. I don't know what sort of falsehoods Nergal filled your head with when he found you, but tools and corpses don't get to make choices. You not only went against the order to kill Nino, but you also spared the prince's life. Why?"

Jaffar did not respond. I didn't expect him to. I already knew the answer.

"Your life isn't over yet, Jaffar. Don't throw it away now. You are not a slave; you're a person. You have worth. Come with us. Help us defeat your former master. And for once in your life, actually live."

Jaffar remained silent, but he looked down at Nino. I couldn't see Nino's face, but I had to imagine she was pleading with Jaffar not to give up his life—that or giving him that ultimatum from earlier. Either way, it seemed to break through Jaffar's dispassionate shell, and his face softened. Only for a second, though, and his glare was back on me.

"I will go with you as long as Nino is with you all. I choose to protect her, not you."

"I can live with that," I said with a nod. "We're pretty good at taking care of ourselves. You all are still in danger here while the Black Fang is around. You can either fight with us or find someplace to hold up. I won't make you fight if you don't want to, but we have to stay here until we drive off the Black Fang." I turned back to head to the foyer.

"Ursula," Jaffar said.

"What?" I said, turning back to him.

"The Blue Crow. She's one of the Four Fangs. She leads the forces. Kill her. The enemy will crumble."

"What does she look like?"

"Blue hair—dark, like midnight. Uses magic from a horse."

"A Valkyrie. Understood." I headed out into the foyer.

The company had followed my orders and moved into the manse. Isadora and Marcus kept the main doors to the manse covered with their armored horses, while Wil and Rebecca took shots out of the windows on the second floor. There were plenty of people defending the prince, so I went downstairs and examined the scene. Most of the company had taken up positions down each hallway and was readily able to dispatch any enemy forces that came through. The only problem was that the enemy seemed to be limitless. I didn't remember there being this many Black Fang at the camp last night. I spotted Dorcas, Guy, and Canas defeat two mercenaries, and then two more appeared around the corner. We could probably have continued to sit here defending the prince until dawn, but that risked fatiguing our forces and someone getting killed.

There was a loud crash combined with glass shattering followed by Rebecca’s shriek.

"Rebecca!" I shouted running halfway back up the stairs. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Rebecca called back, slightly dazed as Wil moved her away from the shattered window.

"That was a Bolting spell!" Erk called from a nearby room. "There's a powerful spellcaster outside."

It had to be Ursula. "Everyone stay away from the windows and doors," I ordered. "The torches will give away your positions, so use them to throw off the enemy. Hang a torch somewhere; trick them into thinking you are somewhere you are not. Let the enemy get in close, and use the manse as cover to take them out when they try to move in."

I knew that would only be a temporary solution, so I moved around the staircase to another hallway. I needed to think of a way to get out to Ursula without alerting most of the Black Fang. This hallway appeared to be free of any Black Fang members because there didn't seem to be any doors that led outside. However, there was one room open about a third of the way down the hall. I pushed open the door to find a library with a gaping hole in the middle of two of the bookshelves. I scrutinized my surroundings before moving in further in case of an ambush, but I was the only one. I lit up my torch and ran over to the hole to find a set of stairs leading down into a tunnel.

A cool breeze rolled up the stairs, which meant that this tunnel had to lead outside. A secret exit meant for escape if the prince had been aware of the siege on the manse. But more likely this was the secret entrance Nino and Jaffar used to infiltrate the manse. Strange that none of the other Black Fang had noticed this, but I guessed that Ursula and her forces hadn't meant to join Jaffar and Nino if they were now attacking them.

I followed the tunnel along, but after a minute, the ground shook, and I wondered if another Bolting spell hit the manse. After another minute, I saw moonlight pouring in through a hole in the ceiling to illuminate a ladder. I set my torch on a dry patch of ground before I climbed up the ladder, and when I emerged onto the surface, I found that I was behind the tree line.

A horse nickering moved me back down the hole a bit. And there she was: hair as dark and elegant as the navy dress she wore astride a regal horse. Ursula rode along the edge of the forest a little way before coming to a stop and watching with a sneer of twisted pleasure as her men assaulted the manse. And as I glanced around, I could now see why the enemy forces seemed limitless.

More and more men were coming out of the forest near her. They were strange, though. Their faces were blank, and they all had golden eyes and red lips that were hauntingly familiar of someone in particular. There was no telling how many more of these Black Fang might be waiting, but what I did see was that there were not any near this hole. Additionally, there was enough coverage with the darkness and the trees that I could have moved right up to Ursula without anyone noticing until I was close enough to make an attack.

However, there would surely be more Black Fang waiting in the trees behind her. It was too risky to attempt a sneak attack in melee range. But if I brought one of our archers with me, we could take Ursula down without anyone noticing. I climbed back down the ladder and ran back to the library. I was about to move through the door to head back to the foyer when I heard the sound of horses galloping in the hall, and a collision of metal. I slowly pushed the door open and peeked through. Kent and his horse were at the end of the hall where a large hole to the outside had been blasted in the side of the manse. An enemy Paladin lay motionless on the floor with a lance wound, and his horse trotted off outside.

"Kent!" I called, coming out to meet him.

His red head spun around. "Mark!" He commanded his horse to me. "There you are. I was worried we had lost you to our enemies."

"Come on, Kent. You know me better than that. I've just been scouting out a possible end to this fight."

"And did you find anything?"

"I did. There's a secret passage in the library back there. If I can bring one of our archers with me, I'll be able to take down their leader, and the enemy forces should retreat."

"Who's their leader?"

"A woman with dark blue hair. Ursula. She's a Valkyrie. But she's so engrossed in the assault on the manse that she's not watching her back." I turned and started heading back to the foyer. "All I need to do is get-ARGH!"

Return to me…

"Mark!" Kent said, leaping from his horse in order to help me. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

If my sword had already been drawn, Kent would not have had enough time to see me pull it from its sheath and swing at him against my will.

"Stay back!" I shouted. My arm lashed out on its own again. "It's him… He's possessing me again!"

"He is!?" He spun his lance to deflect my next strike. "What do you need, Mark? Should I get a healer?"

I was about to agree with him when something heavy bounced in my cloak pocket. "No." Using, what little strength I still had, I took control to force myself to the ground. Then I dug into the pocket and extracted the blue vial that Athos had given to me. "I just need to take this, and I'll be okay."

Kent aided my fight by stepping on my sword and bent down with me as I popped off the stopper. "What is that?"

"It's a sleeping draught," I gasped after consuming the liquid. "It will put me to sleep for a time. I don't know how fast it works, so listen to me carefully. Go and get one of the archers. There's a tunnel in the library there. Send them through. They can kill Ursula from the forest."

"Okay. How long will the draught last?"

"I don't know. Just get moving. I'll-AAAAARGGGHHH!" My head erupted in heat, forcing my hands to try and find the source of the pain. I thought the sleeping draught was taking effect, but I did not pass out. And the pain only escalated as the voice in my head grew louder.

Come back to me!

"No!! I…. I woooon't! Leave me alone!!!"

YOU ARE MINE!

"Mark!" Kent's voice fluctuated between loud and barely audible. "Hang on!"

"There you are."

Kent turned aside to reveal Ursula standing in the hole next to her horse, her dark blue eyes focused on me.

"You!" Kent stood back up, preparing his lance. "Stay away from him!"

"Kent, don't!" I screamed at him. "Leave me! Get out of here!"

"My master wants that man," Ursula said slowly. She was giving Kent the chance to leave. "He does not want you." Her smile grew even more crooked. "Tell me… Are you afraid to die?"

"You tell me!"

"Kent, no!" I tried calling him as he charged her.

But there was nothing I could do. Fire burst from Ursula's hand. Kent did not burn; he exploded. The inferno hit him with full force, throwing him back in a violent blast that I had to shield my face from. When I looked again, Kent's body was next to me. There were still embers burning in the cracks of his charred skin, and his armor had been turned black. But worst of all, he was unmoving.

"Kent… Kent, no… no…"

I poured all my strength into reaching out to him, but the sharp heel of a purple boot came down on my hand. Blood seeped out from underneath the heel, but I didn't feel a thing. I didn't even feel the pain of my possession anymore. All my focus was on reaching Kent. I balled my other hand into a shaky fist, and I dropped it on the boot to try and free myself. Again… and again… and again…

"Do not mourn for the foolish," Ursula reached down to grab my face and turn it up to her wicked sneer. "He ran straight into his death."

My fist landed on the boot once again, and this time I tried to pry it off me. But I had no strength left. I could barely even speak. "You're going to d…" My words declined before I could finish saying them.

"What was that?" She pulled my face closer to her ear.

"You're going to die," I said with success this time.

Ursula blew out a low, fiendish chuckle. "You’re not in a position to say such things. I can see you’re barely holding onto yourself as it is."

"Not tonight. But if you take me away, I will regain control." I pushed my head closer, and her smile wilted. "And when I do, you will be the first one I kill."

"Tsk." Ursula hissed, throwing my face away. "Insolent worm. My master needs you alive, but I’m sure he’ll understand that I had to detain you by force." She lifted her hand and lightning started to spark in the cusps of her palm. “You know not who you threaten.”

I did not turn away. If she was going to take me, she'd have to earn it. Lightning curled around her arm, intensifying at her shoulder and lighting up her wicked smirk with sparking light. She clenched her fist, turned toward me, and then shrieked in pain. The lightning disappeared as a lance penetrated her side.

"Neither do you," Kent grunted.

Ursula threw her hand backwards at him, and a fireball reformed in an instant, searing straight through Kent's armor and throwing him back to the ground. I would've screamed again, but I was too weak to even moan. The only thing I could produce was more burning tears. Ursula stumbled away from us, pulling the lance out of her, and clutched her furiously bleeding side. "Uww… gaa… This can't…" She nearly fell over as she retreated to her horse and dragged one leg over the saddle before it trotted off with her, disappearing into the night.

Now free of the witch, I searched every inch of myself for a shred of strength to pull me over to Kent. My arms felt as if they had been dipped in tar and clung to the ground each time I lifted one of them. My headache was still excruciating, and his voice continued to try and seize control of me. But I imagined shoving a linen sack into Nergal's mouth and kept crawling. All my focus centered on my friend. "Kent… I told you… I told you to leave me…"

Kent tried to laugh, but his ruptured body caused it to come out as a cough. "Give me… some credit… Mark. I've watched you… closely. Taken your tactics… to heart. Deceived my opponent… Appeared incapacitated when I could still… fight. She never saw my lance… until it was… too late…"

"Kent… you forgot my most important rule. Never enter a battle you don't think you can win."

"What… are you on about? I did win! And it was never about winning… I wasn't going to let that witch… take you."

"You got injured, Kent. I don't ever want you doing that again for me."

Kent’s blistered chest rattled like broken chains as he took in another ragged breath. "There… won't be another chance… I'm afraid…”

"What?” Fear lit adrenaline in me. “No! Kent, hold on!" I pushed myself up. "Healer!"

"You are back in control… You are safe…" Kent's labored breaths were becoming more and more infrequent. "…That's all that matters… The company needs you… more than it needs me… I gladly… give my life…"

"Of all the ludicrous… HEALER! Somebody get a healer here, now!"

"Mark…" Kent grabbed my arm. A violent cough sent blood onto my chest, but he held on as his strength died away with each second.

I clasped his hand against my arm in a useless, desperate attempt to keep him alive. "Shut up, Kent. You are not dying on me! I won't allow it!"

"Mark…" his voice was barely a whisper, but he fought—fought against certain death as he always did—to get the words out, "look after… Lyn…dis…"

The taut fingers around my hand loosened. "No, no, NO! No, Kent. Don’t! She needs you too, Kent! HEALER! Blast it! I need a healer here, NOW!!!"

Kent's grip on me slacked, and his arm fell to the ground with a final, gut-wrenching thunk.

"Kent…" I reached out and took his hand again. He did not respond. "…K-Kent?"

A healer wouldn't arrive. Ursula's forces had made a brutal push on the front of the manse, forcing the company to converge and drive them back. The healers had been occupied with aiding those who had been hit by the initial charge. No one heard my desperate cries from the back hall. No one else died during the havoc at the front, but it did little as a balm for watching Kent breathe his last.

All cheers of victory died when I walked into the foyer carrying Kent's body. Lyn broke down from somewhere on the second floor and ran back down the hall from which she had been defending the prince. Sain approached me. I only knew because I could see the green of his armor as he placed a quivering hand on Kent’s body.

Ah Kent, I thought Sain would say in his jovial tone. Always the stubborn fool who put honor above his own life. He died the way he lived. There was nothing you could’ve done, Mark.

But he didn’t say anything. For the first time ever, Sain was speechless, his jolly disposition lost in despair. All because of me. I didn’t look at him; I couldn’t look at him. I wanted to run away. However, carrying the body of a man who had always stood by my side, sharing his thoughts on my strategies and working with me to ensure the safety of the company ALWAYS OVER HIMSELF left me bitterly paralyzed. In all those war meetings, not once did I believe Kent’s dutybound drive would actually lead to his death. Kent died; he died so that I could live. He died because he believed I was worth more to the company than he was.

Blasted fool!

Sain withdrew and staggered away somewhere. Rebecca followed him and Marcus approached me, holding out his arms in gracious understanding. I placed Kent in his arms but kept my head bowed. The guilt refused to let me look away from my failure.

"Wait, there's still more Black Fang!" Lowen called.

I looked up to see Nino and Jaffar at the top of the stairs. Others in the company drew their weapons, and Jaffar stepped in front of Nino, spinning his daggers in challenge. Duty and desperation pulled me out of my sorrow. "No, they are not Black Fang!” I cried out. “They are with us."

"What!?" Hector exclaimed.

"Peace, Hector," Eliwood said.

"Nino!" Legault emerged from the company and ran to the stairs.

"Uncle Legault!" Nino peeped, bounding down the stairs and jumping into his arms.

"Oh, Nino. I'm glad you're well…"

The rest of the company stood down, and I returned my gaze to Marcus. "Have the healers prepare the body to be delivered back to Caelin. And send word to Lord Hausen that we will hold a memorial for him when we have finished this campaign."

"Right away," Marcus said with deep reverence.

Jaffar watched Marcus go as he approached me, still wearing his brooding stare. "My comrade killed your comrade. Why do you not kill me?"

"Me?" Hector replied on beat. "I'd like to rip you limb from limb right now."

"Mark said you were with us," Eliwood replied.

I stood up to Jaffar, matching his emotionless mien, and pointed behind me at Marcus. "It’s like you said. Your former comrade killed him, not you. And you didn't take the prince's life either. You put your own life on the line to prevent that. So, we will not be the ones to take it. It's that simple."

"So naïve.” Jaffar shook his head. “Do you know how many of your other friends I have killed?"

That pushed Hector over the edge. "You monster! I'll kill you!"

"Hector!!" Eliwood grappled Hector and pulled him away. "Calm yourself!"

"Get out of my way, Eliwood! I'm going to kill him!"

"Stop it!" Nino shouted, freeing herself from Legault to step in front of Jaffar just as Hector pushed off Eliwood. But he didn't get a step closer because I spun and slammed my fist into Hector’s face, throwing him to the floor.

"Gah!" Hector shook off his daze. "Mark, what the… Huh?" He looked past me. "Hey! Why don't you draw your weapon?"

Jaffar had not become defensive. He didn't even look confident. He was just as indifferent as he always seemed to be. If I hadn't punched Hector, he likely would've let Hector kill him just as… just as he had intended to be his fate when he defied the Black Fang.

"I've not been ordered to."

"Ordered to?" Hector said under his breath. The words had dumbstruck more than just him.

Nino spoke up in Jaffar's silence. "Please… Forgive Jaffar. I beg you…"

"Bah!" Hector got back to his feet and stormed off. "You live… for now."

Feeling the hostility, Nino excused herself and took Jaffar outside of the manse. I did not say anything until Nino and Jaffar were out of sight, and everyone else had gone to start their after-battle duties. Then I turned to Eliwood.

"So what do you think?"

"What do I think?" Eliwood asked. "About Hector or Nino and Jaffar?"

"Both…" I glanced at the hall Hector had gone down to expel his anger (I really hoped he didn't find any furniture), and then to the main doors Nino and Jaffar had left the manse through. "The two of them are enemies of the Black Fang now. They will be hunted; Nino is young, and though she will have Jaffar to protect her, they would have both died here tonight along with the prince if we had not arrived."

"I have no objection against sheltering Nino," Eliwood agreed. "But I don't think she will just abandon Jaffar. If she stays, he stays, too. I want those two to live on. I imagine their lives have been so hard, and they have confirmed my feelings. The Black Fang is not all evil. Nergal is manipulating them. Some of them must be fighting against their better judgment.” He brought a hand to his forehead and sighed. “Hector made his stance on them clear, however. And I fear he will not be alone. No doubt Matthew will not be pleased with what the Black Fang did to Leila. And after having lost Kent to the Black Fang-" Eliwood's eyes broke wide when he saw my face at the mention of Kent. "Oh, Mark! I'm sorry!"

"Forget it. It's an important concern. But I think for now we should take them with us. With Nergal's power coming back… We'll need them."

"Mark…" Eliwood grasped my shoulder so that I would look at him. "Are you okay?"

I shook my head, trying to stomach my sorrow. "He died for me, Eliwood. Nergal tried to possess me so that I would return to him. I couldn't even stand because of the pain. Their leader tried to take me, and Kent defended me. He's dead because of me."

"That's not your fault, Mark." His grip tightened on my shoulder. "Nergal possessed you. It's his fault, not yours."

I pushed Eliwood's hand off my shoulder. "And after all these possessions, I'm still getting worse. By Nergal's power or not, Kent is dead because I became a liability. This is exactly what I feared would happen with my possessions…"

"Mark, that's-"

"Um, excuse me."

We turned around to find Prince Zephiel standing before us.

"I was told that the danger has passed. If that is the case, I have an important matter to discuss with you, Lord Eliwood, Marquess of Pherae. And time is of the essence."

Eliwood looked at me with hesitation.

"Go on," I ordered.

Eliwood nodded sadly and went with the prince while I left the manse. With Kent's death, a somber air had fallen over the company. I surveyed the crowd, looking for someplace to go and be alone. More than anything, I just wanted to be alone right now. But Rebecca came running up to me.

"Mark, those Black Fang members went into the forest!"

"What? Are you sure?"

"Yes." She led me over to the woods, where a set of tracks could barely be seen in the light from the camp, heading off into the undergrowth. "I spotted them only a moment ago moving fast. You said they defied the Black Fang, but why run off? Should we follow them?"

"I will. You stay here. And if anyone asks where I or the Black Fang members went, tell them we needed to talk in private."

"Are you sure that's wise, Mark?" Rebecca asked. "They were Black Fang. I know Legault was Black Fang as well, but for these two to just run off like this…"

"They're not setting a trap, Rebecca."

"How do you know?"

"Gut feeling." I eyed her. "Do not come looking for us. Do you understand?"

Rebecca cocked a brow. "You really think I'm going to be able to stop our lords once they find out you've gone missing?"

"Then I guess I'll have to be quick."

"Let me come with you," she replied. "It will be good to have someone watching your back, and I can track them."

I tried to think of an excuse to keep Rebecca here, but I couldn't deny that bringing her along would be a smart choice. Although I had picked up on a little of Lyn's tracking abilities, I wasn't good enough to track people in a dense forest in the middle of the night. But after what happened with Kent… "Very well. But if at any point I feel it’s too dangerous and I tell you to leave me behind, you do so without any argument. Do you understand?"

"What would happen that you wouldn't be able to come with me?"

"There's a multitude of possibilities. And all of them could be fatal for you. If you come with me, you obey me without question. Do you understand?" I made my voice like stone.

"O-okay," Rebecca said, a little more hesitant. "Let's go before they make it too far."

We plowed through the bushes and followed the tracks through the forest. With Rebecca's aid, it was easier for me to follow Nino and Jaffar's trail. I could tell the footprints apart by their size. But Jaffar had a lighter footfall than Nino's, and at some points, I would only be able to see Nino's footprints. I wasn't too worried. If they did split for whatever reason, I'd prefer to find Nino in these woods over Jaffar.

"Will Lady Lyndis be all right?" Rebecca asked me suddenly. "She was greatly distraught over Kent…"

The image of Lyn running back down the hall in tears when I brought Kent into the foyer stung me mercilessly. I didn't want to think about that, but I knew how close Lyn and Rebecca had become since we returned from Valor. Lyn had taken my place as Rebecca's teacher when I asked her. That had been an excellent decision. After our talk about the pirates and Lyn's treatment of them, she had changed her outlook on life substantially, which proved beneficial for helping Rebecca overcome her grievances. Rebecca shared more in common with Lyn than she had with me, and through Lyn's companionship, she had gained a more compassionate attitude toward battle. This had done wonders for both of their overall disposition.

"Lyn lost her entire tribe to bandits six months before she found me unconscious in the plains of Sacae. She and I had decided to travel with each other, and a day later, Kent and Sain found us and told us of Lyn's grandfather. Being the granddaughter of their marquess, they escorted us to Caelin, and Kent always acted as a vanguard for the group. He would always put Lyn's protection as his top priority and worked with me constantly to ensure we came up with sound strategies that would ensure the best results. He was a blessing to have during that campaign, and I was happy to start working with him again on this one. But I… I was mistaken to think Lyn was the only person he would put his life on the line for."

"Sain said similar things, but Mark… Are you going to be okay?"

"I don't know, Rebecca. For now, I just need to-"

The sound of shattering glass rushing past us filled the air, and I grabbed Rebecca's shoulder to pull her behind a bush. Sonia materialized in a small clearing ahead of us along with another person dressed in dark regal clothes that could've been Sonia's twin by the ebony hair, and those golden eyes… Eyes just like Ephidel, just like the forces assaulting the manse. Could she be…?

"Limstella," Sonia said with disdain oozing in her tone. "Why have you come?"

"Sonia," Limstella replied in a completely vacant tone.

"Pah. Take heed how casually you call a human by name, you puppet."

Human? Puppet? The two both looked the same, aside from Limstella having an ambiguous appearance and far more modest attire. And yet, Sonia talked down to Limstella, calling them a puppet, and Limstella didn't appear to react negatively either in anger or terror. Even when Limstella responded, their voice remained apathetic. Their words did not flow naturally. They were monotone and lacking any intonation, even more so than Jaffar or Rath. They weren’t suppressing their emotions; they didn't have any.

"Eliwood is still alive and the tactician has not been captured. Lord Nergal's orders have not yet been fulfilled."

"Silence, you abomination!" Sonia struck her twin, but the "abomination" merely brought their head back still completely placid. "I know that. Though the Four Fangs are gone, I'm still here… I will finish Eliwood and his friends with my own two hands!"

"Sonia!" A rougher voice called from the trees nearby, drawing both of their attention. "Where are you, Sonia?" Brendan Reed entered the clearing. "Sonia, I must speak…" He took notice of Limstella. "Hm? Who's that?"

"Oh, well…" Sonia said, having become bored with the conversation. "I suppose it's best I was done with you anyway. Those annoying brothers were all that prevented me from acting sooner."

Brendan took a step back thunderstruck by her words. "Sonia…you…"

"Yes. I got close to you so that I could take control of the Black Fang. Take a look at them now. Not a familiar face to be seen, is there? I've been replacing them one by one… They're all Lord Nergal's puppets. His morphs!"

Puppet… Morphs… Was that what Limstella was and those strange forces attacking the manse? Was that why Sonia called them a puppet? That would explain why they didn't seem to care about Sonia's abuse. And if Sonia was replacing the Black Fang with those morphs, could it be that she was the one who created them? Was that why Limstella and Ephidel looked so similar to her? The Black Fang really had changed. No wonder its original members seemed conflicted over what their group had become. They weren't the same people!

"So… you've betrayed me." Brendan sounded like a little kid before Sonia.

"You've finally noticed… You're a fool, Brendan Reed! Your own sons suspected me right from the beginning. Every minute I spent with you, every caress… It was loathsome! It was all for Lord Nergal. All to control the Four Fangs. Now it's over."

The pieces finally fell into place, and I saw the whole picture now. There had been no possessions, only seduction and lies. Nergal used Sonia to get close to Brendan and turn the Black Fang into puppet morphs in order to use them for his bidding. What better tools than a group of killers infected by the same black heart as his loyal servant here.

"Die for me now, will you?" Sonia requested. "Die for your beloved wife!"

"Sonia!" Brendan hefted his greataxe and charged. "You inhuman monster!" His weapon found its mark on Sonia's shoulder. But it was only a graze, barely hewing through her skin because Sonia had been faster and launched a swarm of blue wisps as sharp as blades against him, leaving him with severe lacerations all over his exposed chest. "Aaargh… Lloyd… Linus… Forgive your… foolish… father…" His axe dropped to the ground as he slumped to his knees and finally collapsed.

"Ow…" Sonia said, clutching her wound. "He can't just die… Has to be the Black Fang leader even to the bitter end."

"Brendan Reed…" Limstella reached down, waving a hand over the fallen warrior. "What magnificent essence. I will deliver it and Ursula's to Lord Nergal at once. He will be pleased."

"Be sure to tell him that it was I who killed Brendan!" Sonia moved to grab the morph but buckled in pain. "Ooh!"

"You appear to be injured," Limstella said, still lacking any compassion. "Shall I take over your duties?"

"Don't be ridiculous! I will never let a creature like you seize the glory that is mine! I was chosen by Lord Nergal himself! I'm a perfect being! I will take care of Eliwood and his companions. I! Sonia!"

Limstella did not respond further. A dark orb appeared in their hand and Brendan's body disintegrated into the same color. Then a teleportation spell echoed through the air again, and Limstella vanished.

"Com-com… Commander…"

Sonia's head whipped over in the direction of the new voice, and so did mine. A haggard old man was hiding in the trees, and when he saw that Sonia had noticed him, he tumbled backward and scrambled away into the forest.

"Monsters!"

Sonia disappeared in a teleportation as well, and I turned to Rebecca.

"Go back to the camp and alert one of the lords to prepare the company. Tell them to be ready to fight a powerful Sage!"

"What about you?"

"That man is a member of the Black Fang who just witnessed his commander murdered by Sonia. We need him if we hope to save the remaining true Black Fang. I'm going after him."

"But, Mark…"

"What did I say, Rebecca!?"

Rebecca looked like she was ready to argue with me, but she swallowed her dispute. "Fine!"

She bolted through the bushes back the way we had come, and I took off after the man. It was simple enough to follow his trail of broken twigs and half-destroyed bushes. And his age must have been hindering him because he was panting as loud as Bartre snored. After another minute of pursuit, I finally spotted him in the distance tripping over something and stumbling into another clearing. I was about to call out to him when Nino and Jaffar came out of the trees to meet the man.

"Uncle Jan!" Nino exclaimed, running to him. "Is that you, Uncle?"

"Nino!?" Jan blubbered in his panicked fatigue. "Why are you here?"

"I… wanted to speak with Mother."

"Flee this place!" Jan shrieked.

Nino recoiled in fright. "Uncle?"

"The commander is dead! That woman-"

Sonia appeared next to them in the echoes of rushing glass. "What were you going to say about me?"

"Mother!"

"Aaaaah! Soniaaaa!!! Uwaa… Aaaaaaa!!!!" Jan resumed his terrified flight.

"Wretch!" Sonia spat. "I'll smoke you out later." She brought her sullen gaze back to Nino. "First, Nino… You failed again, and you've tarnished my reputation."

"Um… Mother…"

"Shut up!!"

Nino flinched with a squeak.

“All of my plans were ruined because of you and that irksome strategist.” Her head rotated, and she stared straight at where I was hiding in a bush. “Yes, you. I know you’re there. You can never leave well enough alone. Come out.”

I hesitated for a moment but chose to walk out. Sonia intended to kill us all, but she clearly had insatiable hubris. She needed to explain how remarkable she was before disposing of her victims, more so for herself if Limstella’s reactions were anything to go by. And if that’s what she wanted to do, all the better. It would give Eliwood and the company more time to prepare, and me more time to figure out how I was going to get Jaffar and Nino out of here.

“Don’t be afraid,” Sonia said to me. “I have no intention of killing you. I’m sure by now you’ve realized Lord Nergal needs you back, alive and capable.” She rolled a hand and paced past Jaffar, who had taken a step in front of Nino. “I had hoped that disfigured Wyvern Rider and her cronies could handle massacring your lordlings and capture you after I sensed you at the castle. But I should’ve taken the hint when she arrived at our hideout empty-handed. The two I thought to be my most capable lieutenants weren’t even enough to capture you after I sensed you arrive and trapped you within the ruins.” She shrugged. “Alas, it seems all of my subordinates are incompetent.”

“Are they the incompetent ones?” I challenged, sensing the opening to keep her distracted. “Or is it their leader who thought us too weak to overcome her traps?”

“You are nothing but lucky. I doubt even you, with all your militaristic intelligence, could have foreseen two traitors ruining my plans.” She turned back to Jaffar and Nino. “A thoroughly and utterly useless little girl. If only I'd known, I would've sent you off to your true parents!"

Nino gaped at Sonia. "My true… parents?"

"That's right. What can the truth hurt now? Your true family for generations was the most famed house of magic wielders in all Lycia. They alone guarded the secret of the dragons. Thirteen years ago, Lord Nergal and I stole that secret."

"My…family?" Nino’s arms fell limp with despair.

Sonia cackled. "No matter how wise they were, they were only human. I held a child before me as a shield, and they were powerless to act! The father, the mother, and then the child I carried… After they revealed all their secrets…" She extended her hands out, curved like the talons of a hawk. "I slaughtered them with these very hands!"

"I…" Nino sniffled. "I… I'm not your daughter?"

"There were two children, a boy and a girl. One, the mother fought fiercely to save. She held her daughter tight as I killed her. That girl, Nino, was you!"

"No!"

"You were still a mewling little whelp, but we took you with us. Lord Nergal thought you might be useful, so he let you live. I hated the very thought of it, but it was Lord Nergal's wish that I raise you as my daughter. We were so wrong about you!” She flipped her hand at Nino. “Stupid and useless beyond all reason. A worthless piece of offal! All you were was in the way!"

"So that's why you wanted her dead," Jaffar finally spoke. "You're inhuman. Your soul is black and devoid of warmth."

"I never expected to hear such things from you, Jaffar," Sonia said, somewhat astonished. "Once, you killed without hesitation at Lord Nergal's command. What happened to the man all feared, my Angel of Death?"

"Nino has changed me. I am no longer Nergal's killing engine. For Nino's sake…" He pulled his daggers from their sheaths. "Sonia, you must die. And I will kill you!"

"Jaffar!" Nino tried to pull Jaffar back, but he pushed her behind him.

"Stay back. I will take care of this woman."

I prepared my own sword and watched Jaffar. The only time I’d witnessed his combat style was back at the manse, and he was fighting alone. If I was going to help him against Sonia, I’d need to let him take the lead. And I’d also need to watch Sonia’s attacks as well. She had single-handedly killed the leader of the Black Fang without so much as taking a step when he attacked her. So, how fast was she when she was actually trying?

Sonia bent forward, clutching herself in a mad cackle. "‘Stay back'! How rich! How noble! So, shall I pass judgment on you, as the Black Fang must with traitors?"

Jaffar sprung forward, daggers bared like razor teeth, ready to tear apart their target. But Sonia had been expecting him. She stood up straight, arm extended, and a blue wisps spun out in front of her, slamming into Jaffar and throwing him into the distance. The blow hadn't killed him, but he struggled to recover.

"No!" Nino cried.

Blast! So much for making a run for it.

"I sentence you both to death! Prepare to be punished."

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" I growled as I rushed in on her gloating. However, I misjudged how fast Sonia could react, and she dodged the strike that was meant to pierce her black heart. But she couldn't avoid my blade further opening the wound that Brendan had managed against her.

Sonia released a painful scream and a massive force shot out from her other hand to send me rolling back. Fortunately, it had not been a bladed wisp, and I managed to land back on my feet.

“Now that I have you here alone,” Sonia said through a wicked sneer. I no longer have to be careful about sending my morphs against your friends. I will deal with these traitors, encase you in ice, and then Eliwood will drown in the torrent of Lord Nergal’s Legion!”

Adrenaline surged through my legs, driving me back towards Sonia with only one burning resolve branded in my eyes: kill this woman. She had orchestrated the attack on the manse to kill the prince. She had been helping Nergal regain his power. She helped him possess me again.

She was the reason Kent was dead.

Jaffar had recovered as well, moving in from the other side to flank Sonia. Yet being outnumbered two to one did not prove to be a disadvantage for her. With a single flourish of her arm, another swarm of the bladed wisps shot out in all directions, forcing us to start circling her in order to avoid taking on so many of the wisps at once. In my sprint, I could see that aggravating her wound had handicapped her. She could not conjure as many of the wisps as she had against Brendan when he attempted to kill her.

It was a minor benefit for us. That wound didn't keep Sonia from waving her good arm around her to continuously summon wisps, and she was an expert in using them effectively. I could adequately defend myself against the wisps so long as I kept moving around her, and so could Jaffar. But there were enough of them that they kept us from getting in close to Sonia. The wisps struck in from different directions just like a human opponent. Even though each wisp dissipated the moment it came in contact with my sword, another one would be coming in from another angle. If we had a third person attacking her, she might have left an opening to exploit. Nino was the only other one with us, however, and she could barely keep ahold of herself with the revelation of her true family, watching Jaffar and I circle Sonia, but her face placid and eyes empty. I could not force her into this fight.

Jaffar decided to create an opening himself. After fending off another wisp, he stepped to the side, letting the next wisp lacerate his forearm so that he could make a charge on Sonia while she turned to throw another wisp at me. But he jumped too early. Sonia had only just started turning back toward me when she saw Jaffar dash in. She spun right back on him, throwing up both her hands and sending the same force she had used to knock me back. Jaffar was hurled into the air like loose sackcloth and he slammed into a tree with a sickening crack.

"Jaffar!" Nino cried out.

I should've seized the opportunity to rush Sonia while she had been attacking Jaffar, but I had noticed his hasty maneuver too late and, in my bewilderment, Sonia unleashed the same force on me to toss me into the air. I crashed through the branches of a tree and tumbled back to the ground, disoriented from the spinning. My impact hadn't been as damaging as Jaffar's, so I was able to shake off my daze quickly and ready for Sonia's next attack. But she had turned back to Jaffar instead, and both her hands were glowing the same blue as the wisps that were spinning in front of her like a small tornado.

Unable to reach her, all I could do was shout at her target. "Jaffar! Move!"

He couldn't. He tried, but he couldn't. His collision with the tree had broken a bone in his leg and no doubt several ribs. He could scarcely kneel to move, and it would be impossible for him to avoid the incoming bladed whirlwind even with Nino, who had rushed over to help him.

"Lord Nergal will have your quintessence! Only the chosen few will live to see the new world. Perfect people! People like me!" She threw up her hands and the whirlwind zoomed forward, tearing apart the grass in its path and leaving nothing but the barren dirt in its wake.

"Didn't you hear the commander? He said MOVE!"

Hector thundered out of the trees, grabbing Jaffar and Nino by their cloaks and hurling them away just as the edge of the whirlwind caught Hector's left side. The whirlwind spun off and away, dissipating against a tree, while Hector went to the ground hard.

"HECTOR!" I screamed in terror.

"What?" Sonia stood astonished by the newcomer. Then, an arrow slammed into her wounded shoulder. "GYAA!"

Rebecca emerged from the bushes, pulling another arrow that found its mark in Sonia's thigh. Sonia grunted and furiously swung her arms in front of her to summon the bladed wisps. The blue blades howled through the air with a deadly hum, seeking to rip apart their target like a pack of hungry dogs. Rebecca pulled another arrow from her quiver, spinning it around her fingers as she brought it up to nock on the string. She pulled back for only a second before releasing the arrow from its perch like a swift sparrow darting from its nest, shattering any wisp in its path and plunging deep into Sonia's chest. Her remaining strength was fading fast; she dropped to her other knee and clutched the arrow protruding from her weakly.

"It can't be…" Sonia stared incredulously at the blood in her hands. "I'm… perfect… Lord Nergal said… so…"

I heard Sonia's quiet breaths as I ran past her. She wasn't dead yet, but she would die. Hector rolled over on his back, groaning like he had when Florina and her pegasus had fallen on him, and that eased my frightened nerves. He had been lucky not to take the full force of Sonia's attack, but he would need time with the healers, along with Jaffar, who was being served a vulnerary by Nino.

"Don't you dare tell Lyn what happened, Mark," Hector said, aiming his finger at me. "Or Eliwood. I don't want them thinking I'm going soft."

"Saw what?" I responded cheerfully. "All I saw was a couple stubborn fools disobeying the orders of their commander." I shot a look at Rebecca, startling her into a blushing tenseness.

"She obeyed you. I saw her running into camp with a fretful expression like she had accidentally started a fire in the woods. And when she told me you had gone off to find those two, I didn't even let her catch her breath before I pushed her back into the forest to show me where you were."

"Dear little Nino." Jan had returned from wherever he had been hiding.

"Uncle Jan!" Nino ran up and hugged him. "I'm glad you're safe!"

"Yes. I didn't even fight. I just hid… I… I… I'm just a cowardly old man… When that woman killed the commander, I could do nothing…"

"That needn't be the case, Jan," I replied. "Now that you know Nergal has taken over the Black Fang. You can spread the word to those who were still loyal to Brendan. Break Nergal's grasp on the Black Fang."

"Father…" Nino said quietly. "He's dead, isn't he? Even though I wasn't his real daughter, he treated me kindly. And yet… Moth- Sonia…"

"Let me return this to you, lass." Jan reached into his pocket and pulled out a small golden necklace, handing it to Nino.

"A…pendant?"

"It belonged to your real mother. The commander never fully trusted Sonia. He had his agents investigate her past. He uncovered much… Like where you'd come from. He was able to speak to a woman who worked in your house. When he told her about you, she wept with joy. She asked that you be given this."

Nino rubbed a finger over the pendant. "Uncle Jan… Thank you. The pendant, I'll cherish it." Her uncle released her, and she came over to Hector and me.

"Thank you for saving, Jaffar," Nino produced a brown skin from her bag. "Here. I have an extra vulnerary. Please use it."

"Thanks, lass." Hector pulled off the cork with his teeth and took a gulp.

"Why did you save me?" Jaffar asked.

"Guh?" Hector gurgled out of the vulnerary.

"At the manse, you tried to kill me. Why did you save me? You got hurt."

Hector tilted his head back and slugged down the rest of the vulnerary before answering him. "Ahhhhh. You don't get to die yet. Not after all you've done. You killed my friends. You are my enemy, and you will stay alive so that you can suffer for all you've done. You're nothing more than a tool. It serves no one to break tools. It's more important that we stop Nergal. But don't forget," he eyed Jaffar savagely. "I don't forgive you."

"What will you do now, Nino?" I asked, trying to ease the tension.

"Um…" she looked off shyly. "You came for Jaffar and me… You spared us at the manse. It made me happy. Can I… Can I travel with you?"

"Travel with us?" I know I had given them the offer before. But that was in order to try and keep them from murdering the prince and help us fight off the assault. Now that the truth of Nino's past had been revealed, it might have been hard for her to face Nergal. She hadn't been able to fight against Sonia. "Are you sure? We are going to be facing Nergal. It will be very dangerous."

"I know," Nino said nodding. "I loved the Black Fang. Nergal and Sonia ruined it, but… The Black Fang that my father and brothers made… Everyone was so kind, I thought of them as my family… I want to stop Nergal from hurting any more of them."

"I see… When you put it that way, I can't very well deny such a request. But are you sure this is what you wish to do? I don't want you to come because you feel obligated to repay us. I want you to come only if that's what you really want."

"Yeah, I do!" she beamed "I'll do my best! I promise! Jaffar, too!"

I had no issue; bolstering our forces with Nergal's henchmen would weaken our enemy. Hector was the one who worried me. He didn't say anything in response to Nino, but he had made his stance on Jaffar clear. I locked my eyes with his and tried my best to silently communicate the threat that I posed to the company with my possessions. Jaffar wouldn't be any more of a threat than I was. Hector glared at me for a moment longer, and when Nino looked over at him curiously, he finally rolled his eyes in reluctant acceptance.

"I guess that settles things then." I helped Hector to his feet. "Let's get these two back to camp so the healers can help them. Rebecca, take the lead."

"Yes, sir!"

Rebecca headed off down the path while I helped Hector along for a few feet. The vulneraries had done their job, and both Hector and Jaffar managed to walk after a couple of minutes, albeit sluggishly. But as I gave a sideways glance back at them, I noticed Hector was slowing down to say something to Jaffar.

"Um… my lord?" Nino spoke up softly.

"Huh?" I said, coming back. "Oh, I'm not a lord, Nino. Just call me Mark."

"Okay… Mark…" She appeared to be genuinely conflicted with whatever she wanted to say to me. "Can I ask you a question?"

"I don't see why not."

"Jaffar and I were members of the Black Fang. Jaffar has killed your friends. I was going to kill the prince. You mentioned that you didn't kill us because we didn't kill the prince. But… I feel like you said that out of sorrow for your fallen friend. Jaffar said you invaded the Black Fang fortress a couple of days ago, and you knew our plans, and you didn't know the prince was alive. Still, you did not attack me when you found me. Why?"

I cocked my head to the side and thought about my answer. "Well… How about I answer that question with a question of my own. Why didn't you kill the prince?"

"Huh?" I could spot the dim redness growing on her cheeks. "I uh… when I was in the manse, I was outside the prince's room, and uh… I heard him… He was praying."

"Praying?"

"Uh huh. He was praying for his coming-of-age ceremony. He wanted to please his father, but more than that… He wanted his entire family to live together in the castle as one loving family. He just wanted his parent's love… To be accepted… He was just like me... No matter how I tried, Sonia always looked at me as if I were nothing… Her eyes were always filled with disappointment. She…" Nino sniffed. "She never held me… not even once…" She rubbed her eyes. "But you didn't know that."

"No, I didn't. But I did know you spared the prince. I heard Ursula calling you traitors when I arrived at the manse. And you and Jaffar even fought to save him. In my eyes, you did nothing wrong, and as for Jaffar… Though he's killed some of our friends, after listening to what he said at the manse, I do not believe he did it out of evil intent. There was no reason you or Jaffar had to die."

"Then why did you follow us here? Why did you fight Sonia?"

"I was worried about you two. I didn't want to see the two people whose lives I had just spared be killed by that wicked woman."

"But that's what I don't understand! Why do you care about us? You spared our lives when we didn't kill the prince, but we didn't do anything to deserve you coming after us. Jaffar killed your friends! Why are you not mad like Hector?"

"Nino… To be perfectly honest with you… I'm not so much different from Jaffar…"

"What…? What do you mean?"

"Nergal has used me to do his bidding as well. I have a special power that Nergal wants, and he has the power to possess me. I've hurt my friends, too. I'm a tool for him, just like Jaffar. That's part of the reason I'm fighting Nergal—to free myself. And when I look at you and Jaffar… It's like I'm looking at my own reflection. You two have been manipulated and used by Nergal and his henchmen. You lost your family to him. I can't even remember my own family. But I have a feeling Nergal is to blame as well."

"But…" Her voice cracked. "But…"

I wrapped my arm around Nino and pulled her in close. "I know it might not make sense to you, Nino, but it doesn't need to. I want to help you. And that's why I came after you two. You wanted to join us, so I don't want you two to feel like outcasts. You don't have to be alone, Nino. You and Jaffar have both had to endure pain and neglect under Nergal, and he has taken two families from you. So, I swear… I won't allow him to take a third."

We spoke no more words. Nino's grip on my cloak tightened. She buried her face deep in it, and the tears finally flowed.

* * * * *

The sun was on the rise when we made it back to the manse. The company was still camped in the courtyard. I sent Jaffar and Hector to have their wounds treated by the healers. Jaffar complied, and Nino went with him, but Hector ignored my urging, claiming Eliwood was probably worried about us and we needed to inform him of our return together. My lack of sleep made me unwilling to deal with Hector's obstinate mood, so I ordered Marcus to move the company out (the last thing we needed was for Bern to see an army on the property of the royal family) and followed him into the manse. Eliwood was in the foyer with Pent and Louise, and a mien of relief lit his face when he saw us enter.

"Thank goodness you're okay! Where did you go? What happened?"

"Nino and Jaffar went looking for Sonia," I explained. "Rebecca saw them head off into the woods, and we followed them. Short story is they found Sonia, and Nino learned that she wasn't Sonia's daughter."

"Is that so? I can't say I'm surprised. It never seemed like that girl was Sonia's daughter. She was too innocent. They were complete opposites in every facet."

"Mhmm. They wanted to join our group. I'm allowing it. And I'm making that decision as an executive order. They want to help us defeat Nergal. I see no reason to reject them."

Eliwood glanced over at Hector then back to me. "I won't argue your decision. I'm glad to accept the aid of anyone who wishes to put an end to Nergal's corruption. What happened to Sonia?"

I smirked. "Do you really need to ask?"

Eliwood mimicked me. "I guess not. That will have struck a major blow to Nergal. Hopefully, we can…"

He paused and looked past me, and I turned around to find a man dressed in the refined monochrome attire of a butler standing behind us.

"My apologies for the interruption. I am a servant of Queen Hellene, and we just arrived after hearing that the manse had come under attack."

"Is the queen guarded?" I asked. "There may still be trespassers outside hiding in the woods."

"Yes. General Murdock has sent his men to sweep the forest for any more assailants. The queen has requested an audience with you and your comrades."

"We will meet with her right away," Eliwood said.

"Thank you. If you go to her quarters here, she will join you momentarily."

"Alright." I headed up the stairs with Hector and Eliwood.

"Shall we come with you, Mark?" Pent asked as I passed him and Louise.

"Yes. No doubt having almost lost her son has distraught the queen to a great degree, much like our first meeting with her. It will be to our benefit to have familiar faces in the room." They followed me as we headed down the hallway.

"Even if it is a private audience, courtly niceties aren't my strong suit," Hector said.

"Oh, I'm well aware, Hector." I jeered, opening the door to the queen's room. "I'm sure your brother is rubbing his forehead raw with worry that you will-"

A fist sent me sprawling into a nearby dresser, flinging a box of jewelry against the wall and spilling the glittering contents all over the floor.

"Where did you go!?" Lyn screamed at me.

"Out for a walk," I said, rubbing my jaw.

The humored half-truth did not defuse her. Her fists were against me again, repeatedly pelting me while she continued spitting fire. "It's not funny, Mark! You could've been killed!" Her anger turned to sorrow now. "I lost Kent last night! How… How dare you go off alone! I could've lost you, too! You stupid, selfish jerk! You're an idiot! A stupid, selfish, dumb idiot!"

Each syllable came with a fuming blow. "Lyn!" Why in the world was she so livid with me again?

"We talked about this in that cave! You told me you wouldn't risk your life needlessly! You lied to me!"

Ow, ow, OW! Jeez, I've forgotten how hard she hits!

"Lyn, I didn't! They would've been killed if I did not go to help them. I wasn't trying to sacrifice myself for others again. I was just trying to save them. And I did."

"That doesn't mean you go off alone!"

I caught her fist before it hit my jaw. Another hit might have dislocated it. "Alright! I'm sorry. It was a poor decision. But I'm okay. I'm still here. And right now, I need you to calm-"

"Don't you dare tell me to calm down!" I nearly fell over onto her when she tried to jerk her hand free.

"Then you need to take your rage out on something else somewhere else! The queen is coming here to meet with us, and I can't have you assailing me while we're discussing the location of the Shrine."

Lyn finally subdued herself, but her glare continued battering me. "Fine. We’ll meet with her then. But we aren't finished."

"Are you sure?" I asked while evaluating myself to decide if I needed a session with the healers. "Hector already admitted he's not one for courtly manners. Am I going to have to worry about you too?"

"Hey, leave me out of your lover's quarrel!"

"So long as you don't make any stupid pronouncements to put your life on the line for the hundredth time, there won't be any problems…"

A part of me felt like I should've just had both Hector and Lyn leave the room, but I had run out of time for any further decisions.

"Ah, so you've returned," the queen said, coming into the room. She didn’t even glance in the direction of the scattered jewelry. "And you were successful? You recovered the Fire Emblem safely?"

Eliwood and I locked eyes, and I waited for him to produce the seal. But there was an odd glint of suspicion in his eyes. He looked back to the queen. "Queen Hellene. Has no one told you what happened here?"

"Oh, something about assassins sneaking in, wasn't it? I've no time for such trifles. Quickly, the Emblem."

Eliwood complied with the queen, but his face had become surlier as he pulled the seal from his pocket.

"Ah…" The queen took the seal quickly but carefully, gazing into the orb with ravenous eyes. "Without a doubt, this is the Fire Emblem. Ha ha! With this, my Zephiel holds rightful claim to the succession! Now, it will never pass to that annoying Guinivere…" She laughed again, and a chill shot down my spine. Her laugh was disturbingly similar to Ursula's after she immolated Kent.

Eliwood appeared unnerved by her laugh as well. "Queen Hellene…"

"Oh, yes, I'd forgotten," Queen Hellene said, setting the Fire Emblem aside. "Your promised reward. The road to the Shrine of Seals, was it not?"

"I have a pressing question to ask of you first," Eliwood said with heat in his words.

Oh no. Not now, Eliwood. I know how you feel, but please control yourself.

"What is His Royal Highness Prince Zephiel to you?"

She flinched at his words. "I… beg your pardon?"

By the Eight, I should've sent everyone out of here…

"His Highness Zephiel is your trueborn son, isn't he?" Eliwood continued. "Or, is he like the Fire Emblem, nothing more than a tool for securing the throne?"

Slapping the queen probably would've been better received. "How dare you!" Hellene shrieked. "Such insolence! To whom do you think you are speaking!?"

"This has nothing to do with title!" Eliwood matched her tone. "You are free to possess your desires and aspirations. But your own innocent son… How can you do anything that places His Highness' life at risk!?"

"What? What do you mean? Of what do you speak…?"

"Didn't you hear us?" Lyn said sounding just as hysterical. "Assassins nearly killed-"

"Lyndis, that's enough," Eliwood interrupted, having regained a modicum of composure. He bowed to the queen. "I beg your leave." The words were holding back his anger. Eliwood and Lyn left the room. Hector followed them, and even Pent and Louise left without looking at the queen.

"Wait right there! We are not finished! Someone! Someone stop those insolent children! Someone!"

She began to chase after them, but I stepped between her and the door. "If you have further business with my lords, I suggest you discuss it with me."

"You," the queen said, looking at me in surprise as if she just noticed me. "You were here? Tell me, what did your lord mean? Why were assassins here last night?"

"I think you already know the answer to that, Queen Hellene. The prince left here all alone, you and general Murdock called away… I'm utterly astounded you even need to ask such a question. Your ignorance is painful, to say the least."

"You mean the assassins…" Her voice caught in her throat. "…my son!?"

"We overheard the assassins' plan while we were retrieving the Fire Emblem. We came back here as quickly as possible and arrived just in time. We saved your son, but we lost one of our own in the assault. He gave his life to protect your son; he died in my arms to protect not just the prince but me as well. And yet you are more concerned with some trinket." I shook my head in disgust. At this point, even I could barely keep my poise in the queen's presence. "Though I thought it better to restrain my repugnance, I do share in my lord's frustration. Someone we loved died so that you may still have the one you love. Or at least we thought you loved him."

I started to leave, but something else came to mind, and I stopped at the door. "You should know that someone in my company heard your son praying before the attack. His perseverance is admirable. Though the king despises him, he continues to try and win his acceptance. Your son prayed for peace between you and the king last night. He prayed that a day would come when you and the king would come together again and that he and Guinivere and her mother could all live happily together in the castle. For his sake, as well as all of Bern, I hope his prayer is answered one day soon."

I left the manse after that. There was nothing else to say at this point. We had no more time to waste. My possession last night meant that Nergal had regained his power. Eliwood's outburst on the queen had destroyed our chances of finding the shrine. And a part of me was angry with Eliwood; Kent's death may have very well been in vain. But I couldn't dwell on that possibility now. We needed to decide the next step. The lords were talking with Pent and Louise outside.

"Lord Pent, Lady Louise," Eliwood said. "I ruined a perfectly good opportunity. I'm terribly sorry."

Pent dismissed the apology. "You said nothing that I did not agree with. Do not think long on it."

"Lady Hellene has changed," Louise said. "Before she got married, she was a kind woman who wanted to be a good wife and a good mother."

"She and the king are ill-matched," Pent agreed. "She has suffered much. And now, she is obsessed with the succession. Such a sad life…"

Lyn looked dejected. "His parents are alive. Yet they're both awful. I feel so sorry for him."

Eliwood rubbed his forehead. "Even if it was just, I should have left it unsaid. I angered the queen and, in doing so, lost the only aid we had in Bern."

"What's done is done, Eliwood," I said, hiding my derision. "Our mission has not changed. We will scour Bern until we find the Shrine of Seals. We have no time left. Nergal has regained his power."

"Mark, are you sure?" Lyn asked.

"How do you know?" Hector questioned.

"He possessed me last night. He tried to get me to come to him. I tried to resist, but then the leader found me. I was powerless to move myself, and Kent…" I stepped past them to hide my sorrow. "He stood between me and her. He died so that I would not be taken. He's dead because of me."

"Mark," Lyn said, approaching me.

"Don't, Lyn," I ordered. "Let's just go." I took the initiative and started heading out of the courtyard.

"Go no further," A voice resounded from the manse.

"Queen Hellene?" Hector said as the queen came up to us.

"What are you…?" Eliwood observed the outside of the manse. "Where are your guards?"

"Your name…" Queen Hellene approached me. Her face was far softer than the affronted scowl she had worn after Eliwood questioned her about the prince. The kind of face I had seen on Lady Eleanora when Athos returned us to Pherae. "It is Mark, yes?" She lifted a book and a small stone to me. "Take this book and this seal. My reward to you."

"Your majesty?" I said, a bit wary of her kindness.

"This book contains the road to the Shrine of Seals. The seal was a present from Count Reglay. It was meant for Zephiel, but… I believe at this time that you need it more. Furthermore, your path will remain clear for the next three days. No matter what happens during that time, Bern's soldiers will not move. I can make no promises about the king's own troops, though. As for your offer to tutor the prince, after what has transpired, you have done more for Bern in a night than you could in years of teaching. Taking any more from you would be immoral. Please take these with my gratitude and find what you seek. "

"This will aid us greatly," I said, bowing. "You have our thanks. But why all of this for us?"

"Because you didn't just save my son and find the Fire Emblem. You all reminded me of who I was. I had lost myself. This is a thank you, not from a queen, but from a mother. For saving my son, I am forever in your debt. Now, you should get going."

"We will," I said, bowing again. "Thank you, Queen Hellene."

We took our leave of the queen and left the manse grounds. The queen had done even more for us than I expected, and we could not waste a minute of it.

"So the book is a map," Hector said, looking over my shoulder, "but what's this… seal?"

I knew what it was. And I had a good feeling. "Why don't you take a closer look?" I placed the Heaven Seal in Hector's hand, and as soon as it made contact with him, light burst from it.

"What in the… What's happening!?" The light in his hand faded after a couple of seconds.

"How do you feel?" I asked him.

Hector stared at the now pale seal in his hands. "I feel… Hey, Eliwood! Give me your sword!"

"What? Why?"

"Just give it here."

Eliwood complied, handing his sword over to his friend. Hector took it and swung it powerfully in front of him like he usually did with his axe, but with the same kind of finesse that Eliwood traditionally exhibited.

"Ah, yeah!" Hector said, thrusting the sword in front of him. "It feels like I've known how to wield a sword all my life. I bet I could match Lyn now."

Lyn scoffed unimpressed. "Match me? You won't get anywhere near me now that I know how to wield a bow."

"Ha!" Hector pounded a fist against his breastplate. "Try and pierce my armor with your flimsy arrows! They will shatter and fall just like our enemies."

"Good observation, Hector," I replied. "How about you take it to heart, and you two test your skills against Nergal’s forces instead of each other."

"That's sensible," Lyn replied. "What do you say, Hector? From now on, we keep track of how many of Nergal's minions we dispose of."

"You're on!" Hector took off down the path. "Starting now!"

"Hector!" Lyn called, chasing after him. "We haven't even gotten back to the company yet. Hey! Wait up!"

"Those two could put an end to Nergal all on their own with that energy," Pent said. "I'm glad to see that Queen Hellene was willing to part with that Heaven Seal. The power it gave to Lord Hector will serve us well in the coming days."

"Indeed," I replied.

"What did you say to the queen?" Eliwood asked me.

I feigned confusion. "What do you mean? You're the one who questioned her about Prince Zephiel. She must have listened to you."

"Yes, but you were in there with her after we left. You said something else to her. You're the one she thanked."

I shrugged. "Could have been Lyn's statement about the assassins before you cut her off. The queen is smart enough to put the pieces together."

"I think it is more likely that the queen listened to all of you," Louise said. "The determination and selflessness you all display is inspiring. Athos has placed his hope in the right people."

"Then let's not disappoint him," I said, opening the book. "It's time we found this Shrine of Seals." My confidence was higher than it had ever been. But it could have been higher. The dull ache in the back of my head from last night had not disappeared.

Chapter Text

After receiving the location of the Shrine from Queen Hellene, we set out from the manse immediately. With the book given to us, we were able to follow a secret road that was known solely by the royal family, and I was surprised to find that it would be a remarkably short journey. Only two days by the company's regular march, and we had made such good time on the first day, that I felt we could make a stop off in a village just outside of the sealed shrine.

The warm breeze that flowed down the street was a welcome change to the biting chill we had endured during our invasion of the Black Fang fortress. Even at high noon, this village was rather quiet. I couldn't complain. It was a welcome respite from the constant slog we'd had to endure the past week. And I could take in the serenity of Bern's countryside while enjoying the sweet bread a kindly baker had offered to me as a newcomer to his town.

It always intrigued me to observe the varying nations differing from each other. All of it was new for me due to my amnesia, and ever since I had awoken in Lyn's Yurt, I had been trying to study them to discover the truth of where I might have come from.

Although I had woken up in Sacae and I had a tendency for wandering, I had rejected the possibility of being Sacaean. The Sacaeans had very identifiable traits such as their dress, weapon skills, and mannerisms, none of which I seemed to possess other than kindness that some in the company said was similar to Lyn's. However, I just considered it a habit I picked up from spending so much time around her since I awoke.

The frozen northern nation of Ilia fell into that same category. Although it was a nation known for its mercenaries, Fiora had told me how it was mainly the females that took up such roles due to the pegasi of Ilia being more affable to women. The men tended to take on more industrial jobs such as building and upkeep of the cities. If I were from Ilia, it would've been more likely that I would've stayed there.

Lycia had seemed like a reasonable possibility, at least any of the smaller villages. Eliwood and Hector, along with their families, were altruistic individuals, but I couldn't say the same for other nobles such as the marquess of Araphen and Lyn's granduncle Lundgren. Plus, with the amount of recorded ancestry for noble houses that I found while researching in the archives, I should have noticed some mention of me. Though considering my amnesia, I might not have known my actual name if I saw it. I only said my name was Mark from the dream I had before waking up. That also made Bern and Etruria possible origins.

Nabata was the nation that seemed like the most unlikely origin due to its minimal population. Yet, ever since we had left the desert, I had felt a strange connection to it. And then there was the mysterious fact that Nergal needed me for my ability to call the dragons, just like he needed Nils and Ninian to open the Dragon's Gate. They hadn't known me when we first met, but they said we were similar in having unique abilities.

Come to think of it, why had I never asked them where they had come from? Just because we weren't the same and didn't know each other didn't mean we hadn’t lived in the same area. No sense in waiting around. The company had four hours of rest before we headed for the shrine. Due to his increase in power from the Heaven Seal, Hector decided to buy some additional plates for his armor. Lyn had likewise felt the need for some additions to her equipment after gaining power from her Heaven Seal, so she had asked Louise and Rebecca to take her to an archery shop. As for Eliwood, he and Ninian had gone to an inn with some of the others for lunch, so I decided to seek out Nils for my answers.

I had just consumed the last morsel of my sweet bread and brushed off the crumbs when a large man with an open mercenary jacket walked up to me. The expression on his face was as short as his hair. For a moment, I thought I might have stepped on his toes somewhere. But I hadn't; this was my first meeting with this man, so his disgruntled mien left me a bit wary, and the enormous sword on his back did nothing to ease that apprehension. And yet, as I looked at him, there was a strange sense of familiarity.

"Hey you," he said no more cheerfully than his expression. "I'm looking for someone."

"Is that so?" I replied, trying not to sound too intimidated. "I'm not from around here, so I can't say I would know who it is you're looking for."

The man's eyes shifted slightly glancing at the sword strapped to my waist. "A foreigner? Do you fight for Eliwood?"

"What? N-no. I don't I-"

The others were right. I was a lousy liar. The man's large blade was out of its scabbard in less than a second and hacked through the bench where I had been enjoying the bread. I rolled out of the way and drew my sword while the man continued to hound me.

"Was it you? It was you, wasn't it!? You're the one who killed my brother!!"

"What!? Your brother? What are you talking about? Who are you?"

"I am Linus Reed, son of Brendan Reed. I am the vengeance of Lloyd, whose life you stole! Prepare yourself! I'm coming for you!"

That's why he seemed familiar! He looked like that swordsman who had confronted Eliwood and the others when I had returned from the manse the first time. The man who had ceased his hostilities after hearing Eliwood talk about Uhai and warned us about Sonia. But what baffled me was that he said we were responsible for his brother's death. If the man who had confronted Eliwood was this man's brother, Lloyd, he had left with his life. Yet Linus claimed he was dead…

"Listen," I shouted deflecting an incoming strike. "We didn't kill your brother!"

"Liar!" He stepped in, swinging his blade horizontally, and the force of his strike sent me rolling back over myself.

"We didn't! You must listen to me. Nergal is a liar. And so is Sonia. She is the one who killed your father, and she's probably responsible for killing your brother, not us!"

"You killed my father too!?"

Blast! I should've kept my mouth shut. "No, you don't understand! We're not your enemy! We're trying to-"

At this point, Linus had gone completely berserk. He howled like a mad dog with each swing of his blade that would've cleaved me in half if I did not block his attacks. And he didn’t let up. His strikes caused such recoil, continuing to push me back and almost off balance. I couldn't get in an offensive hit of my own. All I could do was keep moving back to escape being overwhelmed.

Another horizontal strike threw me back two steps, but Linus stepped in and brought his long weapon into a diagonal uppercut my hands were unprepared to withstand. His blade tore a deep gash in my right forearm, and my sword went spinning off onto some rooftop. Linus tried to finish me off with a thrust from his weapon, but I fell backward and rolled sideways to avoid the follow-up chop. There was an alley next to me. I pushed myself back up, and dashed down it. The air was displaced near the back of my neck as his sword missed me and crashed into the building, sending a swarm of aggravated debris over me.

Without my weapon, I was helpless, and Linus appeared engulfed in his blinding belief that we had killed his brother. Trying to talk him down would be useless, at least if I tried. But some former Black Fang members? Nino or Legault might have been able to talk some sense into him. Nino had called Brendan's sons her brothers, and though she had a darling innocence to her, I doubt she referred to them as such just because they were both Black Fang. If Lloyd had been willing to stand down for Eliwood, surely Linus would do so for his little sister.

I emerged onto the next street when that howling war cry echoed in my ears. I dove right, avoiding Linus's jumping slash, and he pivoted to come at me again. However, before he could move, another bestial cry filled the air. We both turned our heads upward as a wyvern plunged out of the sky. The creature landed, sending up dust and dirt that impaired my vision, but I just made out the flash of a lance as it swung in Linus's direction.

"Get on!" said the rider.

Huh? That's not Heath. It's a woman…

"Get on now or die, boy! He's coming back!"

I obeyed, climbing on behind the rider and grasping her shoulders. Linus had been pushed away by her lance, but he was on his way back in. The rider whistled and her Wyvern flapped its wings to throw another cloud of dust in Linus' face while gliding over a building. After a few more wet blinks, my vision cleared and I could now see the back of the woman's head clearly. The prickly blonde hair barely caught the wind as we flew, and when she turned around to me, I could see her eye, as wild as her wyvern, deep in the scar running down the left side of her face.

"Vaida!"

"I'm glad to see you remember me. How are you and your little playmates doing? They don't seem to be interested in helping you fight that guy."

"What are you doing here? Why are you helping me? I thought you worked for the Black Fang. You're… you're trying to kidnap me, aren't you?"

"If you wet yourself, I'm throwing you off." We landed on a rooftop at the edge of town, and Vaida tamed her fierce expression before she continued. "You forget what I said to you when we faced off the first time. I serve only Bern."

"You serve he who sits on the throne," I said, remembering her words. "But that still doesn't explain why you are here. We were told that Bern's soldiers would not bother us."

"I'm here on a personal agenda."

"Why? You serve the king, and we ruined the king's plan."

"Hmph. So it's true…" Vaida folded her arms and stared up into the mountains. "I did serve the king. But that was before I heard about Prince Zephiel’s close call. Neither the prince nor the queen accused the king of sending those assassins. But Murdock knew."

"Murdock," I said, thinking back to our infiltration of the castle. "He's the prince's bodyguard."

"Not quite. He is fiercely loyal to Zephiel, but he is still a general of Bern and answers to the king's commands. He was called away from Zephiel that night with no apparent purpose. And after hearing assassins almost murdered Zephiel in his absence… There is no proof the king hired the Black Fang, but Murdock knew he was responsible. So did I. And you just confirmed it. That's why I'm here. I wish to join you in your struggle against Nergal and the Black Fang."

"You would abandon your king so simply? Although I do not agree with him, I can understand the king's jealousy. His son will make a far better ruler."

"That's right." Though weakened from whatever had given Vaida that scar, her eye could still reveal the strength of her resolve. "I served my king and the Black Fang and Nergal because I thought it would be best for my country. But I was a fool. Prince Zephiel is our future, our hope. You saved him when he needed saving, and now I’m here to save you."

"I see…" I had misjudged Vaida. She wasn't a power-hungry henchman. She was a patriot, a vain and ruthless patriot, but a patriot nonetheless—another person who had been manipulated by Nergal's duplicity and wished for redemption. Nergal's forces were crumbling, and hope was emerging from the rubble. "Then let's-"

"YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE THE FANG'S JUDGEMENT!"

Linus appeared on a rooftop a few buildings down from us, bounding over the gaps toward us. Vaida and I jumped back on her Wyvern, and I told her to fly back into the town so we could find the rest of the company. But Linus wouldn't let us get far. Vaida's wyvern screeched as a hand axe tore a small slit in its wing, and it struggled to stay airborne.

"Blast! He just doesn't quit," Vaida growled, clenching the reins tight to regain control of her thrashing mount.

"Take us to the ground. I doubt that was his only throwing axe, and we're too much of a target in the air. We can handle him on the ground together."

"You don't have a weapon!"

"Don't tell me one of Bern's great Wyvern Lords doesn't have a spare sword on her!"

Vaida turned back around, mumbling something about me being a child begging for candy, and urged her Wyvern to the ground. We landed, and Vaida pulled a sword from her riding pack, handing it to me as I dismounted the wyvern. Linus hadn't made it to us yet, but it would only be a matter of time. And he wouldn't be the first to arrive. Jaffar, Nino, and Legault exited one of the nearby buildings.

"Mark, what's happening?" Legault asked. "What were you shouting about?" He noticed Vaida tending to her injured wyvern. "I thought Bern's soldiers wouldn't be harassing us."

"She's here of her own accord," I replied. "We have another problem though."

"You will not escape. I will avenge my brother!" Right on cue, Linus came stampeding out of an alley down the road. But when he saw us, astonishment abated his charge. "Jaffar… Nino, Legault? What are…?"

"Hello… Linus," Legault said, taking a cautious step forward in front of Nino.

"You… you disloyal filth! You all… have sided with them!?"

"Calm down," Legault said, putting up innocent hands while he moved closer to Linus. "Your brother's murder… It wasn't by our hands—Hey!" Legault back-stepped from a half-hearted swing from Linus.

"Draw your sword. I won’t miss again."

"Linus, come to your senses!" Legault pleaded. "Nergal has destroyed the Old Fang. Remember how good the old days were? Your father, old Jan, Uhai, you and me, and your brother. When did the Black Fang lose its honor?"

"Be quiet! Stop your pathetic whimpering and fight!"

"I won't do that. Look at the Black Fang, Linus. This is not the Fang we created!"

"Shut up!" Linus had regained his rage from when he had attacked me and let on a flurry of strikes that forced Legault to pull out his sword to defend himself.

"Brother, stop!" Nino cried. "Please, listen to him!"

"I will kill anyone who aids my brother's killers! Nino, that includes you!"

"No!" Nino dropped to her knees. "My… Brother…"

The threat on Nino had activated Jaffar. He pulled out his daggers and jumped into the fight with the same unbridled ferocity as Linus allowing Legault to step away. The two of them exchanged blows in a battle that astounded even me. On one side was Linus with a tremendous sword that took great strength to wield. Even the mightiest combatants took time to recover from swings with blades as big as his. Jaffar should've been able to overcome him with his speed, but Linus was able to swing his weapon as swiftly as a short sword, and the size of the blade kept Jaffar from catching him with his second dagger.

As for Jaffar, he moved so fast that he almost appeared to be teleporting. But as quick as he was, Linus was matching his speed, and the weight of his sword should have knocked the daggers from Jaffar's hands. Yet Jaffar could not be disarmed, and the two of them continued their clash on even terms. That is until Linus swung his sword across with one hand, forcing Jaffar back to deflect the strike. Linus reached down and pulled Jaffar’s leg out with his other hand. Jaffar fell to the ground, and Linus was already bringing his sword down.

CLANG!

His weapon slammed into another sword of the same size being held by Hector, who now wore a set of domed pauldrons like Oswin's, along with additional heavy plates of armor.

"That man's life is not yours to take." Hector stepped in between Linus and Jaffar, their weapons groaning against each other."

"You think you're tough, don't you?"

"Tough enough to cleave you in two."

"I am Linus Reed, son of Brendan Reed. You killed my brother, Lloyd! Take this! Rrraahh!"

If Jaffar and Linus' strikes had been like lightning in a storm, then Hector trading blows with Linus were the booms of thunder. Linus must have known that he would not be able to pierce Hector's armor with the kind of strikes he had used against Jaffar. Their attacks were much slower against each other, but each collision of the weapons reverberated around all the buildings so profoundly that I literally shook from each blow.

Another slam from Hector pushed Linus backward. He was about to charge back in when a figure with long dark hair and a red blade emerged from a nearby alley.

“Hero of the Black Fang!” Karel shouted, rushing in. “Your skill with a giant blade is exceptional, and your fierceness is that of a beast.” He brought a flurry of attacks on Linus. “As the final living member of the Black Fang, my blade will end your group. Demon against Beast!”

The arrival of the Swordmaster from the Black Fang fortress allowed Hector to recover, and when he saw an opening in the wild strikes, he thrust his blade in, trying to catch Linus unaware. But the manic Hero was in a state of pure adrenaline and focus. He could match Karel’s speed and stand against Hector’s brute strength. Even when Karel managed a slash on him, Linus didn’t seem to notice nor slow down.

But Hector and Karel weren’t the only ones to make an appearance. A lither figure appeared on the roof of a building, drawing a bow. Lyn had added to her outfit as well, donning archery guards on her chest and arm, and she had even bought herself a matching furred cloak to go along with her garb!

Finally!

Lyn had a clear shot at our enemy. Unlike Hector, Linus had no armor, only an open merc coat that would do nothing to protect against Lyn's arrow. She did not fire, however. Her arrow pointed at Linus, but her eyes were on me. She and Hector had both heard Linus and Legault's quarrel. She wanted to know if Linus could come to our side, or would she have to put him down.

I looked down at Nino. Her head was bowed, and her eyes were clenched shut; her fingers were dug into the earth as if she were trying desperately to turn back time. Legault stood like a lonely statue with all his hope forsaken. They were desperate for a way to save their friend—so was I. But for once, I didn't have a solution. Linus would not even listen to his former comrades. Rage and vengeance had consumed his sanity. It was the exact result I feared Lyn would fall into if she had continued to hold on to her hatred for the bandits that had killed her tribe. He was lost, and if he weren't killed, someone else would be, and then we would have to kill him anyway. Hector and Linus clashed again, and this time, the blow knocked Hector away. Karel lunged in for a strike, but Linus caught the Swordmaster’s arm in his armpit and hurled him around. And as he stumbled, an image flashed before me.

Fire—an inferno raging upward and engulfing a man in red armor. Agony burst from his mouth, and the smell of blistering flesh stung my nostrils with its rancid message of death. The fire faded, leaving the man's skin as red as his armor. He fell. I could not move; I could not catch him—I couldn't save him. The fire had taken his life and branded the image of his scorched corpse into my head as a reminder of the price for not being firm with my orders. Kent was dead.

Who will be next?

"Do it!" The bitter words stained my mouth.

The arrow soared through the air straight for its target, but my order had alerted Linus. He leaned to the side, taking the arrow in his arm while at the same time pivoting and flinging another hand axe at Lyn. His sudden change in targets had thrown Lyn off as well, and she had to fall onto her butt to avoid the axe taking off her head. In that time, he bounded around Hector and made straight for us. Jaffar dashed out to meet him, blades drawn once again ready to kill.

"NO MORE!" Nino leaped to her feet and threw up her hands. The screaming voice of a small, terrified girl broke into a thousand booming crashes that tore across the sky like a flock of startled bats. Clouds raced in from over the mountains bearing streaks of lightning with them until they were over us. The lightning skipped over the clouds to an epicenter, and the dazzling payload descended from the darkened sky like a gargantuan arrow of light, striking Linus with full force.

For an average man, such a devastating attack would've been the end. But whether Nino held back against her dear brother or Linus had the power of an avalanche—or both—our enemy managed to stay on his feet. Linus's eyes broke wide with the electricity flashing in the dark voids of his pupils, and his mouth stretched into a sharklike grimace. Every uncovered vein swelled with the color of Hector's armor, and I could hear the handle of his sword groaning unhappily from the pressure of his grip. The strike had almost killed him.

And it was the opening Jaffar needed. With his foe paralyzed, he bent low, driving his blades upwards into Linus's chest. Linus hissed through his gnashed teeth and glared at Jaffar with eyes that thirsted for his blood. And slowly, his grimace altered itself. A bloody chuckle spilled from his mouth.

"So… I've failed… At least…I can see my brother again." Jaffar pulled the blades from his chest, and he collapsed to the ground.

"…Why?" Nino fell with him. "Why did it…have to…come to this? I… I don't understand…"

Legault could not sustain his stoicism any longer, and the weeping began. "I knew this would happen… Linus was always fiercely loyal to his family, but more than anyone, his brother. Nergal… That dastard… He filled his head with lies. He took advantage of Linus's obliviousness. Nothing was going to change. NOTHING!" His hand gripped his face. "I knew it, and yet I still tried. I couldn't leave well enough alone… I'm a fool."

"A fool?" I asked, as my mind branded another failure into my head. "You are a fool for holding on to hope? If that's the case, then we are all fools. We are fighting to take down a madman who has power beyond us, who took over a group of assassins and manipulated a king. We are foolish to believe we could match such a being. And yet, that's what we are doing. Why? Even hope cannot guarantee victory. It never can. That's simply not what it is. But it is a belief there is at least a chance, which, ultimately, is far better than having nothing. It's not foolishness to hope that you can try and save someone who is lost. We cannot save everyone from his or her circumstances. But some can…" I glanced at Jaffar, who had not stopped staring at Linus's body since he removed his daggers. "It would be foolishness not to try and save someone."

"And it is not by your hands that this man had to die." Athos came up beside me with Eliwood to gaze upon the scene with tired eyes. "Nergal's puppets forced this misunderstanding. They knew that killing the brother would blind and deafen this man. Sending him on this mad hunt to eliminate you all. He could not be saved and yet you all still tried. That courage in the face of the impossible is what keeps this hope you all carry with you alive."

He turned to Nino and Legault. "Go. Take his body and bury him. You, who knew him best, will return him to the earth with the respect he deserves. Honor his memory, and prepare yourself for the one who corrupted him."

Legault glanced at Linus one more time and nodded, and then he bent down to help Nino back up. She slowly stood up, letting her despair fall off of her, and released the last of it in a quiet breath. Then the two of them went to Jaffar and helped him pick up their fallen friend.

My gaze followed them until they passed Vaida. She respected the silence as the former Black Fang carried off their comrade. Then she met me with a fragile smirk.

"You have a strange view of foolishness. Are you saying that I am not a fool for hoping that Nergal was best for Bern?"

"No, that was quite foolish."

Vaida huffed out a chuckle. "At least you're not."

"I'm not?" I smirked as well. "Trusting someone who previously was our enemy would be considered foolish by many people, including those already in this company."

"Doesn't seem to matter based on the company you keep. But let's entertain that idea for a moment. Why did you jump on the wyvern of a previous enemy?"

"Because I'm a fool,” I said, giving her a big goofy grin.

She laughed, and for a moment, the hardened Wyvern Rider was banished, and she appeared almost as kindhearted as our benevolent Monk, Lucius.

“But even a fool can be careful,” I continued. “So, tell me. Why are you helping us now?”

“I already told you. You saved Prince Zephiel, so I-”

“C-Commander Vaida!” Heath came running up to us. His eyes were wide and disbelieving for the woman with the scar.

“Heath! You still live.” Vaida let out a smug laugh. “Well, I guess you were always a lucky one.”

“Yes, commander. We fled to Lycia as you instructed. But you… That scar…”

Vaida rubbed the gash along her face. “What? This? It’s nothing.”

Heath dropped to a knee. “Forgive me, commander. Had I known that you would trade such a wound for our escape…” Vaida strode over and hauled Heath back onto his feet. “Pfeh. Stop your whining, soldier! I received this scar because I was weak. And I was lucky it was my face… Had it been my arm, I wouldn’t be able to fight now…”

“Commander.”

“Cut the sympathy, Heath. When did all of the venom go out of you? I have taught you since you were in swaddling clothes! If you’re worried about my survival, you can worry about it after you’re dead.” She flipped his hand at him. “Now tell me, what happened to the others? What happened to Vaida’s Raiders?”

Heath didn’t look at her. “When we escaped from Bern, Isaac, Lachius, Belminade… they all…” “All gone, eh?” She folded her arms with a sigh. “That is too bad…”

“Heath joined us as a mercenary while we were in Lycia,” I cut in. “It seems that he once flew for Bern?”

Vaida eyed me fiercely through her scar. “Is that a problem?”

“No,” I said with a single shake of my head and a smirk. “You saw we have former Black Fang in our company. I have no issue with former Bern soldiers either. I simply wish to know your story.”

“We were caught in a trap set by a ruthless Bern general,” Heath explained. “There were rebels gathering in a village to overthrow the king. Our unit was tasked with suppressing them. But when we arrived, we only found unarmed peasants.”

Vaida spat at the ground. “The dastard had made up the rebellion to increase his station, and we were left with two horrible choices. If we carried out his orders and kept our mouths shut, he could take credit for stomping out a rebellion while holding our crimes over our heads as blackmail. And if we came back and revealed his duplicity, as we did, the general and his influential lieutenants, who reported the ‘rebellion’ to the king in the first place, held more sway over him. They convinced the king we were conspiring in the fake rebellion, and the king sentenced us to death by hanging. I ordered my men to flee to Lycia while I held off the general’s forces,” she pointed at her face, “earning this souvenir in the process.”

“But you survived,” I said.

“I did, but I could no longer fly for Bern, and I feared what would happen to my country should the general become even more ambitious and attempt a coup. I wandered Bern for a time, trying to dig up some evidence to bring the general’s treachery to light. That’s when the Black Fang and Nergal found me. I told them of my banishment and my fear for the royal family’s safety, and seeing a lucrative opportunity, they exposed the general as a traitor to the crown. I had lost my honor and rank among Bern’s Wyvern Knights, but the royal family was safe and had gained new advisors from the Black Fang.”

I sucked in a breath of realization. “You’re the reason Nergal and the Black Fang were able to manipulate King Desmond!”

Vaida nodded. “At the time, I did not know Nergal’s true nature. I assumed the Black Fang to be working in Bern’s interest. That is why I pledged my service to them and ambushed your company when you fled the castle. However, I never knew Desmond was plotting to have his own son assassinated through the Black Fang. When news of the attack on the manse reached me, I sought out Murdock, and he told me the truth. He did not know who defended the prince. Both Prince Zephiel and Queen Hellene refused to reveal his saviors, but…” She looked at me. “I had a hunch.”

I looked at Heath. “I’d ask if you trust her word. But I already know your answer, and you have given me no reason to suspect treachery from you.” I looked back at Vaida. “As for you, I owe you my life.” I flipped her sword in my hands and extended it to her. “For that, I am willing to forgive our previous encounter. But your part in Nergal’s infection of the royal family is troubling, even if you were unaware of his intentions. I will never be able to trust that you still aren’t working for Nergal. You may join us, but you will be monitored. And if we discover any deceitfulness on your part, I will put an end to it personally.”

She took the sword. "Don’t disappoint the fool’s hope I have for you, and it will never come to that." She winked at me and then returned to tending to her wyvern's injury while I went to Athos and the lords, who were speaking with Karel. Lyn saw me approaching and ran up to me with a smile. “Mark, we have great news. Karel discovered Nergal’s hideout.”

“He did?” I asked, joining the group.

“Yes,” Karel replied. “I was hunting for Black Fang and Nergal after I left you all. He has few forces now that the Black Fang has been dismantled, but his power is growing each day. Even from a distance, I could feel the Dark magic seeping from the cavern. Had the archsage not found me and brought me with him, I might have succumbed to the Dark before too long. It will take an army to face that monster.”

“I’m afraid not even an army can stand against Nergal,” Athos said, “even with his power not fully restored. What I felt in that cave…”

"Lord Athos?" Eliwood looked at the archsage with a grim mien.

It was as if the dawn had broken within the archsage. His somber expression brightened into a humored grin. “But I did not send you all here to Bern without good reason. We have come here to gain the power to resist the Dark magic and stop Nergal. Now, let us go underground… Where Bramimond awaits."

"Bramimond?" Eliwood asked. "One of the eight legends? Is that who you're talking about?"

"That's right. Of the eight legends, only Bramimond and myself remain. Your journey here was a bit of a test, I'm afraid. I had to see if you were worthy of wielding legendary items."

"Legendary… items?" Eliwood asked.

"That's right. They are weapons that we, the eight legends, used to defeat the dragons. With them, you will be able to sever Nergal's power at its roots."

"Weapons we can use to destroy Nergal…" I said. Unhinged fervor welled up in me like magma building in a volcano.

"The legendary items are sealed in lands across this continent,” Athos explained. “The only one capable of removing those seals is Bramimond. Now if only we will be granted this one request."

The familiar sound of racing broken glass filled the air, and the world suddenly went black. But I had not fallen unconscious again. It was that same feeling that I had felt when Athos teleported us to Pherae. It was an empty feeling—a lonely one. I knew this feeling. We were caught between time and space, and then that feeling was replaced with something more foreboding. A presence in the darkness saw us as intruders in its perpetual slumber.

"It's so dark…" Eliwood said somewhere nearby.

"It's creepy…" Hector's heavy plates clanged together as he walked around. "Can't see a thing."

Lyn shushed him. "Someone is here."

It did not react right away. We all knew it was here, and it let the dread of the unknown seep into our brains. A cold wind blew past us like a giant exhaling a slothful sigh. There was no light to illuminate the darkness, but as the temperature dropped further, a man cloaked in a hooded robe the color of a decaying swamp stepped out of the gloom as bright as if we were seeing him in the daylight. And yet, he gave off no illumination. He was the only thing that we could see in this void.

"You're Bramimond…" Eliwood said.

"…Yes," His voice sounded like it was speaking to us from somewhere far away, but he wasn't yelling. "I… suppose that is me." And then suddenly, it sounded from where the man stood. "What do you want of me, you who live above ground?"

"We have a favor to ask," Lyn replied. "We seek something to help us defeat Nergal…"

"That is unfortunate," his voice was far away again, but returned to normal in seconds with a gentler tone, "for I cannot grant that which you seek. Humanity would suffer were I to remove the seals."

"What do you mean!?" Hector exclaimed. "The entire world is on the brink of destruction as it is!"

"The entire world!?" Bramimond's voice spoke from a distance yet again, but this time it really did sound like he was shouting before blaring right in front of us. "Why would I care about that!? The whole world can burn for all I care!"

"By Father sky…" Lyn was just as astonished as I was with Bramimond's strange responses. "Your voice… The way you talk. It keeps changing. How many…?"

"Bramimond has no self," Athos explained. "He… She… It… Yes, it is a mirror that reflects the person addressing it. It projects no personality of its own. There are as many Bramimonds as there are people facing him… Bramimond, do you remember me?"

Bramimond's voice shifted distances again. "…Athos. Hmm, it's been many ages. I cannot fathom why you brought these people here. Why I sealed everything away… Do you forget why? The legendary items are not meant for human hands."

"You must reconsider…" I spoke this time. "There is an evil out there that will destroy the world unless we gain the power of the legendary items!"

There was no shift in Bramimond's voice this time because it did not respond to me. Had I succeeded in making it reconsider?

"Bramimond, remember…" Athos continued. We, too, are human. These people, they will not be seduced by power. They came here without my aid, using their own abilities. You observed them, did you not?"

"It's true… They seem better, stronger than most humans. And yet, humans are frail. What guarantee do I have… that they will not succumb to that frailty, Athos!?"

"A guarantee?" I answered. "That is something we cannot give. We seek a power to stop another power. Without a doubt, it is a covetous desire we have. All we can do is simply ask you to trust us."

"…You…" Bramimond's voice shifted again, but did not change, "…you are a mystery. A curse infects you, and yet you persevere. You know nothing of yourself, yet your goal is clear. I remember that look… These humans have come this far because of you… but you are not human."

My mouth fell open. "What?"

A bright light flashed around us.

"The seals have been released. You may now do as you please. I'm tired. You will let me rest."

The resonance of broken glass filled the air as I tried to ask Bramimond what it meant by me not being human, and we were back outside again, not far from the village. All faces were upon me. They had heard the same thing I did.

Eliwood spoke first, turning to Athos. "Lord Athos… What Bramimond said… About Mark…"

The hostile glare Athos had when I was telling him about my possessions when we first met was upon me again. I had never felt smaller in my life. It was as if I were an ant gazing up at a boot that was ready to crush me. I began to say something, but the back of my head was assaulted with a familiar pain, and I crumbled to my knees.

"Mark!" Lyn cried, dashing to my side. "What's wrong?"

My head turned by itself. "He's…here…"

They followed my gaze to find Nergal standing on a small cliff over us with Nils and Ninian in his grasp.

"At last…" he cackled. "At last, my power is restored. Come, Ninian, Nils. This way. Open the Dragon's Gate for me."

"N-No!" Nils jerked his arm, attempting to escape Nergal. However, Ninian stood submissive in his grip.

"You mustn't go! Neither of you!" Eliwood shouted.

Nergal tilted his head down to Ninian. "Would you like to see my powers here and now? You may choose, Ninian. Obey me, or…"

"If I go with you, will you spare my friends? Will you let my brother go?"

A wave of terror overtook Nils, and his head snapped to his sister. "Ninian!?"

"One of you should prove sufficient." His single dreadful eye fell upon me, escalating the pain in my head again. "Once the gate is open, all I will need is for him to come. And he knows he will have no choice… As you wish."

With a simple movement, Nergal tossed Nils off the cliff, and into Hector's arms.

"No!" Nils shouted, jumping to the ground. "Ninian! Why!?"

"…Look after Lord Eliwood…"

"Ninian!" Nils shouted, sprinting for the cliff.

Eliwood ran with him. "Ninian! You must not!"

Nergal's cackle rang as loud as Nino's scream had before lightning struck her brother. The noise ripped apart the sky around us, causing the earth where they stood to tremble and crack.

"Niniaaaaaaaaan!" Nils screamed.

Eliwood grabbed the cliff face and started to climb. "Don't move! Nergal!"

"No!" Athos flew forward with a speed I never believed would be possible for the ancient man. "Get down! Both of you!" He threw out his arms just as the cliff where Nergal and Ninian disappeared from collapsed, raining down rocks upon Nils and Eliwood.

"Eliwood!" Hector rushed in and started pulling the rocks off his friend.

The pain in my head disappeared with Nergal, so I let Lyn help me back up, and we went to aid Hector. Thankfully, the rocks had not been too large, and we were able to extract Eliwood and Nils from the rubble in less than a minute. To our relief, they were both still breathing. However, they had fallen unconscious.

"Get them back to the village," I ordered to Hector and Lyn. "Have the healers tend to them immediately."

"Right," they said in unison, carrying them off.

I watched them go until they were far enough away, and then I turned back to Athos, who mirrored my own distressed mien. The pain in my head from Nergal's presence had been far more severe than it had ever been before. Nergal had regained his power, and that meant he would also be able to take full control of me as he had back in Caelin. However, that disheartening revelation was trivial in comparison to the question that stood out in my mind.

"Athos… what did Bramimond mean by me not being human?"

An invisible weight brought the archsage's head low. "I cannot say. Your origin has remained hidden from my sight. It was not until you led the daughter of Hanon home that you drew my attention, same as she. For a time, I believed you to be a son of Roland like Eliwood and Hector, or potentially a descendent of Hartmut. Your knowledge of the battlefield is quite reminiscent. But when you finally came to me, I had been cast into the darkness. You were a descendant of no one. All I knew was your power."

"To call the dragons. He took Ninian so she could open the gate. They are not human either, are they? Whatever we are, we're the same."

Athos shook his head. "I do not believe that is the case. If it were, then he would merely need to possess them as he has with you to take them."

"But he has done that," I replied, causing Athos to lift an eyebrow. "On our first trip to Valor, we found Ninian in a dory adrift in the ocean. She had lost her memory just as I had, and when we went to find Eliwood's father in the Dragon's Gate, she obeyed Nergal's orders completely."

"Hmm…" Athos ran his fingers through the thick lengths of his beard. "But did she ever experience painful headaches like you have?"

My hope died instantly. "No…"

"This is not the first time since Valor you've been attacked by him, either. Did you take the drought I had given you?" Athos' eyes grew even sharper as he peered through me like a predator watching its prey, and I wanted nothing more than to go and bury myself within the rubble.

I nodded. "It didn't work."

Athos shared my dismal disposition. "Just so." He moved toward the village with great haste, banishing what little warmth I had left in me as he passed.

"Archsage!" I chased after him in pursuit of that stolen warmth. "What is it? Do you know something?"

"No." His curtness swung at me like a sword. "Only baseless assumptions that I will not entertain a second longer. We have more important matters to attend to. Come, we must retrieve the legendary items before Nergal decides to take you."

No more words were shared between us as we returned to the village. Though I walked right beside him, there was an immense rift between us. I could not tell if the distance that had formed was for his safety or mine. Even in the village where the entire company had been waiting for my return, I had never felt lonelier.

…you are not human.

How could that be?

Eliwood and Nils had been taken into a house on the edge of the village, and the healers had finished revitalizing Eliwood by the time Athos and I came in. They continued working on Nils while Eliwood set a weary hand over his face. Hector moved to help his friend sit up.

"Where…" Eliwood asked.

"The village," Hector said. He kept a steadying hand on Eliwood's back. "You and Nils were both knocked unconscious by Nergal's parting gift. Do you remember?"

Eliwood stared in dumbstruck horror at the table he sat upon. "His power… It's so much more than before."

Lyn stepped up to him with arms folded to shield herself from the truth Eliwood had spoken. "If Lord Athos hadn't erected a barrier when he did… We would have lost both you and Nils…"

"If he'd truly wished to kill you, even my power could not have saved you."

"Ninian…" Eliwood breathed out. "To protect us, she…"

"Even if you catch him, you can't defeat him. Not as you are. If you wish to save the girl Ninian… The power to topple Nergal lies within the sacred weapons. Do you understand, Eliwood?"

"Yes, I know what I must do."

Contentedness came over Athos and he rested against his staff. "You must go to Ostia and take possession of Roland's blade, Eliwood. As for you, Hector, I will send you to the resting place of another legend's weapon. We will need both if we hope to end Nergal's plans. But before we leave…" Athos reached deep into the folds of his bulky robes. "Take this, Eliwood."

Eliwood’s eyes grew wide at the orange stone in his hand. "This is… It's a…"

"That's right. It's a Heaven Seal. Take it, and hold it in your hands."

Light burst out of the stone as soon as Eliwood took it from Athos. The room filled with the brilliance of the seal for a second before fading, and Eliwood bounced himself off the table.

"This is incredible. My body is overflowing with power."

Hector pressed a firm hand to his friend's shoulder. "Way to go, Eliwood!" He held up a fist. “With this power, we will put an end to Nergal.”

"Let's go." Eliwood headed for the door more spirited than I had ever seen him. "We have to get those weapons. We will defeat Nergal and rescue Ninian!"

Eliwood's contagious determination spread throughout the room, instilling everyone with the same mettle he carried with him. Everyone, except for me. I was cold; I was burning up; I was angry and sad and confused, and I felt like throwing up. But most of all, I was terrified. What dreadful thing did Athos consider me to be that he would not even reveal it to me? Something that even a man who had lived for centuries and likely seen the worst of the world wouldn't think about.

"Mark?"

My head shot up with a start to find Lyn standing inches away from me with that same comforting sympathy she had for me when she first brought me to her Yurt in Sacae.

She kept her voice low. "It's what Bramimond said, isn't it?"

I nodded like a shy little boy.

She came back to me and gripped my arm so that I could find the comfort she had waiting for me in those gentle green eyes of hers. "Just because you aren't human doesn't mean you are not one of us. Eliwood and Hector would say the same."

"Yeah…" I tried to rid myself of the worry in a deep inhale. I did not succeed. "Yeah, you're right. Let's go save Ninian."

I couldn't sleep at all. Bramimond's words and Athos' glare had left behind a burning brand in my mind. So I used the excuse of my insomnia to head off to the stables to let my thoughts flow in a laborious task. I wasn't human, and whatever I was was a threat to this company. But I knew if I tried to leave, someone was bound to stop me, and then there would be another pointless argument about how the company needed me to stay and that I wasn't a monster and a lot of other ridiculous claims of my accolades while ignoring the deadly truth.

"Why can't they just accept the truth, Ajax?" I asked my horse as I took a brush to his ebony hide. "Every step closer to Nergal we take, we learn something more about my past that continues to shine a light on my disturbing nature."

Ajax shook his head in response.

"You agree with them, too, huh? Can't get anyone to agree with me, it seems."

"…You should not be surprised." Rath was sitting against a pile of hay in the stall across from us, eating an apple while rubbing the jaw of his own horse that feasted on the hay. "Lyn often comes here while you make your rounds of the company… she spends time with Ajax… Ajax has her mindset."

"So that's what she's been up to." I shook my head as I brought the brush down Ajax's neck. "Great… Just what I need. Another Lyn."

"You speak ill of your relationship with her…" Rath patted his horse and then came over to lean against one of the dividers of Ajax's stall. "Why?"

"It's not just her. It's Eliwood and Hector as well, and most other people in the company. They treat me like one of them when I'm not. And that's dangerous."

"…How?"

"One," I said, throwing up a finger. "I can be possessed by Nergal. Two, those possessions can lead to me hurting others."

"Ninian suffered a possession, and she hurt others too… I heard that she hurt Lord Elbert… She could be a threat, but you did not send her away. Now we are going to rescue her. But that is not why you speak ill of your relationship with Lyn. I have seen the way you look at her… There is great pain in your gaze… You choose to accept that pain… Why?"

So it was that obvious? I breathed out a heavy sigh. "To be honest, I'm not really familiar with this concept of ‘romantic love.' It is fine for Eliwood and Ninian I suppose. But Lyn and I… It is better for her that we do not enter into such passion."

Rath took the last bite out of his apple. "Why?"

His questioning reminded me of a child that you kept telling no. I lifted three fingers this time. "There are far better people out there for Lyn to fall in love with over me. Personally, I think Lyn would be better off living out the rest of her life with you. After all, you are both Sacaean. It would do her good to be with someone who knows her people's culture and fill the void of her tribe. You two could even rebuild her tribe."

The apple core struck the side of my head.

"If you were not this company's tactician, I would shoot you in the leg for that racism!" Rath had always been an apathetic individual who barely smiled. This was the first time I saw him baring his teeth in anger.

"Guess I should be glad you were only armed with an apple then," I said, wiping the juice off my forehead. "But even if you were to shoot me with an arrow. It would not change my opinion on the matter."

"That is truly an audacious assertion. One that I never believed a wise man such as you would ever utter. Tell me, Mark. Where is the logic in your claim of Lyn and I being a match for love? Do you truly believe that just because we are both Sacaean, that means that a love we could potentially share is vastly more beneficial than something that you two might achieve?"

"Well… you two did talk to each other a lot when you first joined us. And she never stopped talking about you whenever we sparred after that."

"It is a natural thing for two people of similar backgrounds to talk after having no contact with that background. Don't we all crave to speak with those we are familiar with?"

"And she is very comfortable speaking with you."

"And she isn't with you? Or Dorcas? Or Erk? Or Eliwood? What does ease of speech have to do with affection for another?"

"I honestly can't tell you, Rath," I said, throwing up my hands in defeat. This was the first time he and I had ever said more than a couple sentences to each other. Who knew he could be this tireless in a debate? "As I said, this whole ‘love' thing is lost on me. I didn't realize these feelings I had for Lyn were what love actually is. And even if being with you isn't better, it just doesn't seem right for us to be together."

"Why? Because you're not Sacaean?"

"For one thing, yes."

I just spotted the rock coming for me and moved my head sideways to avoid suffering a welt on my forehead.

"That is a second offense of racism out of you, Mark. I will not stand for a third. Dismiss the trait of her being Sacaean. Doing so puts you on that despicable level of Marquess Araphen. And I know you are above bigotry. If you need more proof to counter your baseless assertion, remember that Lyn is the daughter of a Sacaean man and a Lycian woman. Race has nothing to do with love. So forget that she is Sacaean. What is it about either of you that makes you two unfit to be lovers?"

"Because I can hurt her!" I kept my voice to a whisper but put the direness of the truth into my tone. "I can hurt her, Rath. Just like I can hurt you, or Dorcas, or Eliwood or anyone in this company. I already harmed her grandfather and, in doing so, hurt her as well. I can't control myself, and I could not bear it if Nergal were to take control of me, and I ended up harming Lyn.

I waved my hands over my body. "Guess what, Rath? You say that race has nothing to do with love, but what about species? Apparently, I'm not human, according to one of the eight legends! Even Athos looks at me with grim uncertainty now. Why should she have anything to do with a non-human, especially in the realm of lovers? This kind of love is what produces children, no? What might happen to Lyn, or our possible offspring were we to engage in such practices? No! There is too little known about me to risk her life or the life of a child just to satisfy these emotional aches. It is better for her to be with someone who has no chance of hurting her than to risk her life with me."

“Is that so…?” Rath had finally returned to his usual stoicism. "Forgive me. I was unaware of your true nature… The reason for your reluctance is sound." He rubbed Ajax's snout and then moved toward the stable’s entrance. "However, even if the archsage considers you a threat, I do not believe that fear should seal your judgment on Lyn's own feelings. The fact that you are so concerned about Lyn's safety proves you worthy of those feelings. And you know it is the same care that she has for you. If you are so new to love, let me give you some advice that I learned from what Lyn told me of her parents when they fell in love. Good love is not found in two people who just make each other happy, and it most certainly isn't two people who are incredibly similar. Good love is something that is cultivated endlessly between two people who have an unquenchable desire to serve each other's needs by persevering through whatever flaws they may have. And from what I've seen, your possessions are a flaw Lyn is desperate to help you with just as you were desperate to free her of her anger for the bandits that killed her tribe."

I whipped my head around. "How did you know about that?"

"We talk a lot, remember? …The bandits that killed her tribe… She has never discussed them with me since I rejoined the company. Instead, it is you she talks about…"

Rath pushed through the entrance flap, and I was left alone in the tent to ponder what Rath had just said. Well… not completely alone. Ajax blustered out a, “he's right, you know.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 18

I regretted my choice of attire the moment we stepped into the cave. I tried peeling my sleeve off my sweaty arm to try to provide some cooling air for my body. A fruitless action; heat could be seen billowing out of cracks in the walls of the cave, and the only light source came from the smoldering magma that oozed along trenches like primal slugs. After Bramimond released the seals on the legendary weapons, Athos led us back to Pherae and then teleported a small group of us to a cave just on the outskirts of Ostia.

With Nergal's return and him having taken Ninian, our time was running dangerously short. We had to retrieve the legendary weapons from their resting place before Nergal decided to possess me to come and summon the dragons for him. Fortunately, we would only need to collect two of these weapons to face Nergal and any dragons should he manage to use me. Hector and a chosen few from the company would retrieve Armads from the hero Durban's tomb on the Western Isles, while Eliwood, Lyn and I, and a few others recovered Roland's greatsword Durandal from this stifling cave.

"I never imagined there could be a place like this in Lycia," Eliwood said, staring at a wall of magma seeping out of the ceiling in the distance.

Lyn let out a strangled exhale. "The air is so hot. It even hurts to breathe."

As we moved deeper into the cave, the magma only became more prevalent, and giant columns of flame emerged from the floor.

"Long ago, in the depths of this cavern…" Athos spoke. "When Lycia was a single country, an altar was built."

"Here?" Eliwood asked, slightly astonished that his ancestors would choose such a desolate location to build an altar. "In this place?"

Athos hummed an affirmative. "There's something here that needs protection from those with evil hearts."

"Durandal, right?" Eliwood said.

"That's correct. The weapons we wielded contained great strength. Power fearsome enough to cut down dragons…"

A slight twinge of pain shot through the back of my head. But at this point, I was finally getting used to it.

Athos continued the explanation. "Today, the might in those remaining weapons is not what it once was. Yet they have been safeguarded to keep them from evil hands. This place… No one's stepped foot in here since Roland's death. Roland's presence still fills the air. All that reside here now are former soldiers whose spirits guard the sword. This is your trial, Eliwood. A few of you may enter, but only you can approach the altar. Go and prove that you have the strength to wield Durandal. I will return with Hector once he has retrieved Armads, and the rest of the company has arrived at Castle Ostia."

"I will, Lord Athos," Eliwood replied.

Hector had taken Oswin, Florina, Rebecca, Canas, and Dart with him. It would be foolish to bring anyone even lightly armored into this cave with its heat. I decided Lyn should join us, of course (or else I wouldn't hear the end of her discontent for being left behind), along with Pent, Louise, Raven and Priscilla. Eliwood had started wielding a lance from the power the Heaven Seal granted him, and Raven had picked up combat with an axe after sparring with Dart and Bartre, so we would have all our weapon bases covered. It only became more treacherous the further into the cave we moved, and taking our time would continue to wear on us. Eventually, we came upon what looked to be a ruined temple.

We agreed that Durandal had to be somewhere within. However, there were several paths into the ruins and various enemies patrolling. I sent Lyn to the eastern entrance along with Priscilla and Raven to support her. Pent and Louise would have no problems fighting alongside each other, so I held no qualms about sending them down to the western entrance that appeared to have strategic cover for them to take out their enemies from a distance. Eliwood and I headed through the main entrance. Between us two, the enemies proved to be a trivial matter to deal with. Eliwood himself, using the power he had gained from the Heaven Seal, could have handled the enemies himself, but I had joined him because I could tell he wanted me too.

"Mark…" Eliwood asked after we had finished dispatching a pair of axemen. "I've meant to ask you. What do you think…of Ninian and I?"

“An odd question,” I said. “Ninian may not have combat abilities but provides great morale for the company, and I don’t need to sing your praises for your abilities, Eliwood, you are courageous and dependable and-”

“No,” Eliwood interrupted with a laugh. “No, not what you think of our contributions to the company. I mean, what do you think…of us…as a romantic couple.”

Though it was already blazing hot in this cave, I could feel my cheeks light with awkwardness. "You want to know what I think of how you two would be romantically? Does the opinion of someone like me, who is wholly unfamiliar with love, really matter?"

"Yes," Eliwood said firmly. “You are the most observant and shrewd man I know, Mark.”

"Very well," I said, gathering my thoughts. "From my observations, I've noticed the way she acts around you ever since that night after we returned from the Dragon's Gate, and the way you've responded. She only acts that way around you; she doesn't even act that way around Nils. And after what Hector informed me of these feelings I have for Lyn… I’ll admit I want to grin stupidly at you as you two have done with me. But now’s not the time for this. It is better for us to focus on rescuing her."

Eliwood looked toward the ground. "There’s more to this. You should know we had our first real conversation that first night back on the mainland after we brought her back from the Dragon's Gate. She came in and thanked me for rescuing her that year ago when you and Lyn had come to save her from the Black Fang." He let out a small chuckle. "Poor Ninian—she could barely form a full sentence she was so nervous. I tried to ease her anxiety by making a phony request. Since she was a dancer, I told her she could repay me by showing me a special dance the next time we had a company rest. At first, I regretted my jest, fearing she would regard it as a joke to lighten the mood, but she conceded to my request with a genuine appreciation for my interest."

"Huh… She actually consented to show you a special dance? I never thought timid Ninian would be willing to do something so personal for someone other than Nils."

"I was shocked as well, but ever since that night, our talks became more frequent. I told her about festivals in Pherae and how my mother enjoyed dancing too. She seemed to love those conversations. But then we got on a subject about my father one evening, and she suddenly withdrew again. She…"

"She what?"

Eliwood eyed me with a look more demanding than he had ever given me during this campaign. "If I tell you, you must not reveal this to the rest of the company."

A strange request, and one I couldn't honestly agree to. "Eliwood, you know, as this company's tactician, I have to put the well-being of our people above any personal feelings. We already know Ninian is…different—such as I am. If this is something you'd rather not let the company know as well, it might be better if you didn't tell me. However, if Ninian is a threat, I urge you to tell me just as I revealed my possessions when they were an issue. As leaders of this company, we have a duty to our forces to protect them, and they have a right to know of any potential threats to the company."

Eliwood released a sharp exhale as we turned down a ruined hallway. "I don't believe she's a threat. I mean, how could she be?"

"I think we both know looks can be deceiving, Eliwood."

"A truth I often find hard to accept, my friend. After discussing my father, Ninian… told me that she had been deceiving me. She's been keeping some secret from us. I still don't know what it is. I told her if she didn't feel comfortable, she didn't have to tell me or anyone. I'm sorry if that was wrong, but I didn't want to push her."

"Hm," I rubbed my chin. "Well, if we're going to be honest, I might as well tell you that my possession didn't start with Lord Hausen. I had actually been possessed back at Castle Santaruz right before the marquess was murdered."

"You were?"

I tilted my head to the side. "I don't know if Nergal actually possessed me. I was certainly petrified, not by fear or an overwhelming emotion, but definitely by some outside force. I heard the marquess speaking with Ephidel, although I didn't know who Ephidel was at the time. I tried to go in and confront him, but my body wouldn't move. It wasn't until after Ephidel stabbed the Marquess that I finally regained control. So, although I didn't hurt the marquess like I did Hausen, I have a feeling Ephidel or Nergal was to blame for my inability to move. Honestly, I did not know it was a possession at the time, and I hadn't hurt anyone, so I didn't feel the need to bring up the issue. Ninian has been a puppet to Nergal in the past, just as I, so we shouldn't believe her to be completely benign. But as you all continue to trust me in spite of my lapses, I don't think there is any reason to be suspicious of Ninian outside of Nergal's forced influence."

"I appreciate that, Mark. I… I don't know how to explain it. Ninian is…" He tilted his head back and stared at the ruined ceiling. "I don't ever want to see her cry. I'd do anything to make her smile that lovely, wonderful smile she gave me that night. She's the first woman I've ever felt this way about."

"Of course she is. Isn't that what this love thing that you and Hector pester me about is? Wanting to see that beautiful smile that lights up your life?"

"I guess you're right… But Mark…"

I set a hand on his shoulder. "We'll get her back, Eliwood. I give you my word."

Eliwood cracked a smirk. "I know we will. I've never once doubted your word. That's not what I was going to say."

I flattened my gaze, knowing what was next.

"You've been correct in your assumptions about Ninian and me, and I'm sure you have noticed Hector and Florina as well. I appreciate you listening to me vent my anxiety. Being open and honest with you has provided much-needed relief to the burdens I carry. And so it saddens me that you are suppressing the feelings you have for Lyn."

I stared away. "Eliwood, do not tell me you asked for my thoughts about you and Ninian so that you had an excuse to discuss Lyn’s and mine’s relationship. Now is hardly the time…"

"Mark," Eliwood huffed a short laugh, "you know how roguish Hector can be. Most people in the company know the feelings you have for Lyn because he keeps whispering about them, and if Lyn isn't already aware, then she at least is suppressing her own feelings for you. You two shouldn't suffer like that—you least of all. I encourage you to express your feelings for her, Mark. Your support for one another will make you both stronger if you do. It's a strategic benefit. You've seen the way Hector and Florina fight in battle when they're with each other. They're practically untouchable. The same will happen to you and Lyn if you finally come to terms with your feelings for each other. Are you just going to let Hector and I tease you the rest of this campaign?"

"I'm not like you and Hector, Eliwood. I'm not even human by word of one of the eight legends."

"But you were the one that said that Ninian wasn't all that different from you."

I moved ahead of him to end the discussion. "We have more important things to worry about, Eliwood…" A large altar came into view as we turned a corner. "Like retrieving this legendary weapon and saving the one you love."

"Mark." Eliwood grabbed my shoulder to stop me. "Your happiness is just as important as mine. I do not appreciate it when you consider yourself inferior because of a curse you carry against your will. You are my equal no matter what power Nergal has over you. Promise me right now, Mark. Promise me you will cease such ridiculous assertions of yourself."

I turned my head away from his stone-hard gaze. "Fine. I promise."

"And I also want you to consider what you need to do with Lyn. You want to make her happy, right Mark?"

"Eliwood…"

"What if being with you will make her the happiest?"

"Eliwood." I came back with a stern gaze of my own. "If it puts an end to this pestering, I will think about it, but not until we save Ninian and defeat Nergal. And we can't do that unless you get your weapon. Once all this is over, I will express my feelings to Lyn. And I'll even give you and Hector permission to lock me in a room with her until I do. But until then… For the sake of Elibe, let's focus on defeating Nergal.

"Very well. But I'm going to hold you to that, Mark," Eliwood said, giving me a goofy smirk as we ascended the stairs.

"Just get your weapon, my lord," I ordered to get Eliwood off my back.

A brooding figure with a horned helmet covering the top half of his head stood between the altar and us. Inky black eyes peered at us through the slits in his helmet never breaking contact as we approached. His massive ashy arms that resembled the trunks of the giant trees we saw in Bern rested against a silver axe the size of me—almost a dead ringer for Hawkeye. As swordsmen, Eliwood and I would have the advantage over him. Even so, this figure had to be the guardian of the ancient weapon. With that in mind, he could have the potential to breathe fire or stretch his arms further than humanly possible or any other unexpected attack.

"Go to the right and watch which way he moves," I said softly, drawing my weapon. "If we take either side of him, it will be harder for him to keep track of us. If he moves toward you, evade his attack, and I will follow up with the opportunity to strike. Otherwise, strike when you see an opening."

As we trekked up the last set of stairs, the figure spoke."…I am one of… Sir Roland's… warriors…Georg…" Years spent breathing in the ash of this cavern made his deep voice incredibly hoarse. Yet, the guardian still retained a daunting command coming from deeper within him that almost sounded otherworldly "…You are of the enemy… and trespass here… I will… cut… you down…"

We were only a few yards away from him when he stepped forward, heaving his axe up for a strike. The attack appeared to be coming toward me, so I lifted my sword to block. However, I had misjudged the strength of this guardian. The force of his blow flung my weapon from my hands and threw me off my feet, sending me tumbling back down the stairs. I barely got a glimpse of Eliwood being knocked aside before I lost track of the world and rolled end over end, tangled up in my cloak and unable to tell up from down except through gravity. I finally hit a flat portion of the stairs, and my equilibrium started to settle, but my respite remained brief.

"Mark, look out!" I heard Eliwood shout from up the stairs.

My vision adjusted just in time to see the dark gray axe-wielder bounding down every third step with his weapon raised above his head. Gathering up the last of my senses, I rolled away, and his axe just caught the end of my cloak. Ridding myself of the snag, I turned around and spotted the axe being swung at me once again. I fell backward as the axe slashed through the space my upper torso had previously occupied. And now I was in another vulnerable position. Had Georg been any faster, I would already be dead. Eliwood charged in before our foe could strike again and dropped a heavy slash against him. The strike knocked the guardian away a few feet, but his armor had prevented any damage from being done.

"Eliwood, let him come toward you. He's too strong to block. You must wait for an opening to exploit." Without a weapon, the only aid I could offer my lord was tactical advice.

"That's not possible, Mark!" Eliwood shouted, attempting to land another strike. "Look out!"

For some reason, Georg had prioritized me as his target. Even though Eliwood struck another harmless blow, our enemy stepped passed him and charged at me. I dove away as he swung in with a vertical slash and attempted to make a run down the stairs. I was returning to my feet when I saw the axe coming down for me like the jaws of a giant beast clamping down. I wouldn't be able to dodge this strike. I twisted my body just in time to avoid having my arm being hacked off, but the blade caught the edge of it, and a large gash split down the top of my forearm. I tumbled to the ground again, and the guardian lifted his weapon to finish me off.

A surge of colors exploded behind the guardian, and dark pieces of metal scattered in all directions. Georg staggered and I pushed myself away from being stepped on. Three arrows followed the colors, slamming into his back and driving him further away from me, allowing Eliwood to come in and aid me. Lyn jumped over me and scooped up Eliwood's sword before springing forward and drawing the Mani Katti against the guardian, with Raven following right behind. Georg attempted to slash through Lyn, but she sidestepped his strike and followed up with five more precision strikes that struck at any gaps in the berserker's armor. Yet the hits appeared to do nothing. Georg reached out to grab Lyn, but Raven brought his axe in an uppercut. The hit severed a tendon in his left arm, and his axe dropped to the ground while Lyn slid behind the Berserker and planted her Mani Katti along with Eliwood's weapon in the vulnerable gap made by the exploding colors.

"…The seal…" his hoarse voice gasped. "…protecting… Beyond my power… regret…" The guardian finally fell to the ground, and Lyn removed her weapons as his body disintegrated.

"Are you all right, commander?" a calm, innocent voice spoke up next to me. I felt a brief spike of pain as Priscilla clutched my profusely bleeding arm, and in moments, the pain dissipated while the wound mended itself.

"I am now," I said with a relieved sigh, shaking my arm to make sure the damage healed. "Thank you, Priscilla."

Priscilla smiled and bowed to me.

"What happened?" Eliwood questioned, looking at the remains of Georg and then at me.

"We saw everything," Pent said, coming up with his wife. "He seemed dead set on killing you, Mark."

"Did you reveal you were the commander?" Raven asserted. “That would’ve made you the prime target.”

I gave them a shrug as I retrieved my weapon from where it had landed in the fight. There was a sizeable chip in the blade; using it to make a strike even against a leather jerkin would likely snap it, so I made a mental note to get a new sword. "It's as much a mystery to me as any of you. Maybe he didn’t like the color green."

"Your casual jesting is refreshing, Mark," Louise replied with a smile. "But I still find it strange that he seemed so determined to destroy you without considering the targets who presented more of a threat. He had seen both Pent and I before we attacked. And yet, he completely disregarded us."

"And his attack against me was incredibly sloppy," Lyn added. "It was simple to dodge and unusual for a being of such power. I think it was meant to move me so that he could get to you, Mark."

Eliwood stared down at the ashes. "These guardians have been here for so long. It's likely their sanity left them long ago."

"And their souls may now rest… At long last…" said a voice.

All of us turned to find Athos coming up to us. He stared at the ashes as he approached. Then he looked at us again. "Time for a reunion of sorts. Eliwood, move back."

Eliwood complied, stepping aside, and Athos moved toward the altar. "My old friend… The little knight Sir Roland." There was a brief flash from the altar, and Athos spoke again. "Roland… Awaken, and answer my call." Another flash and an ethereal figure adorned in armor and messy blue hair appeared before us.

"My friend…" The figure's voice echoed as if it came from a long hallway. "Wise, all-seeing Athos…"

Athos smiled warmly. "Good to see you, Roland."

"I feel much time has passed. Seeing you again… It brings back memories. Fighting the dragons… Old friends… All this time lost in memory…"

"It's been almost a thousand years… and yet, once again, the world is threatened by one who craves the might of the dragons."

"The might of the dragons?" Roland asked.

"Heed my words, Roland." Athos turned his hardened gaze on Eliwood. "This boy is descended from your blood. Please lend him your strength."

Roland stared at Eliwood for a second. His ethereal eyes glistened like fresh snow within the grim, hazy air of the cave, and it was hard to make out any telling expressions on his face. "I…no longer have flesh and bone in this world. I cannot… No, wait. Take this." The spirit held out his hand, and the wisps started to appear from his body, swirling around his hand until a greatsword had materialized. "Its blade shall serve as a vessel for my soul's strength."

"If you do such a thing," Athos' tone had become as firm as the greatsword Roland now held, "you will pass forever from the reach of this world."

Roland gave him a big smile. "And yet my heart will be glad. If I might help my children, there is nothing else I need do… I ask that you see this through, my friend."

Athos inclined his head. "I will." He took the weapon, and Roland's form faded away.

"Lord Athos," Eliwood said, still in awe of what we had just witnessed, "who was that man?"

Athos chuckled. "So you were able to see him, too? That was your ancestor, the warrior Roland."

Eliwood still seemed to be dumbstruck. "That was Roland?"

"That's correct." Athos approached Eliwood, presenting the sword to him. "Take this. It belongs to you now."

As Eliwood took the blade from Athos, there was a flash from it, and the sword radiated a faint red light.

"What a wondrous blade," Eliwood said, drawing his hand along the flat part of his new weapon as he marveled at it.

"Durandal," Athos replied. "The sword of sacred fire."

Another flash burst out, but not from the sword, and Athos tapped the tip of his staff against the ground, happily humming. "Ah, Hector has impeccable timing. It appears he has acquired Armads. Our task here is finished. Please wait for me outside while I bring our friend back to our side."

We didn't wait long once we made it back outside of the cave. I sent Pent, Louise, and Priscilla back to the company at Castle Ostia to inform them of our success, and a few minutes later the sound of the warp spell reverberated through the air, and Hector and Athos appeared before us. A massive golden axe crafted from a material that seemed even smoother than pure marble rested on Hector's shoulder.

"Hector!" Eliwood said, going to his friend. "You're back!"

"Good to see you all," Hector replied, taking his friend's arm. "Here look at this." He brought the axe down so Eliwood could see it better. "It's the thunder hammer."

"One of the ancient weapons," Eliwood replied, pulling out his sword. "I have obtained mine as well."

Hector stared at the sword. "So this is the legendary blade of Roland…"

"Durandal," Lyn said as we joined them. "The sword of sacred fire. Do you feel it too?" she asked turning to me. "We've never seen these weapons before, and yet they feel so familiar…"

So I wasn't the only one experiencing a sense of familiarity with these weapons. That eased the feeling in the back of my head, though not completely. "You should not be surprised. They are weapons of your ancestors—weapons that were used to save the world once before, and will be used to do so once again."

Eliwood gripped the handle of Durandal tight and pointed it toward the sky. "I will use this to battle Nergal." He turned to me. "Come, Mark. We must return to the Dragon's Gate."

His words sparked another bout of pain in the back of my head as I finally placed my familiarity with these weapons. I had seen them in my dream before waking up in Lyn's Yurt. A dreadful chill suddenly slithered down my back… Before I could say anything, Durandal flashed, and the shimmering scarlet aura around it intensified more than it had when Eliwood had first taken it up. "The sword… It's glowing…"

Something fell into place in my head, and the words burst out of my mouth before I could even think of saying them. "Watch out! Something's coming!"

The mountains above the cave rumbled against a titanic bellow, and we turned to the source of the noise. A colossal bluish-green, four-legged beast crashed out of the nearby forest. It swung its long neck up towards the sky, and the frills along its head vibrated violently as it released another ear-splitting roar.

"It can't be!" Eliwood said, alarmed at the sight of the creature.

"It's… a dragon!" Lyn said in disbelief.

"No!" Hector shouted. "How is it possible?"

"That's irrelevant," I shouted. It was time to put these legendary weapons to the test. "Eliwood, that glow must mean that Durandal is ready to unleash its power. Slaying this monster is Durandal's purpose. Fulfill it!"

Eliwood didn't need any more urging. He rushed toward the dragon, readying his weapon for a powerful strike. With the size of Durandal, if Eliwood struck at the right spot, he would be able to defeat the creature with a single blow. His weapon glowed brighter as Eliwood closed the distance, and I noticed something peculiar. The dragon had taken notice of Eliwood, but it didn't appear ready to attack. Perhaps it didn't consider Eliwood a threat. A creature as powerful as a dragon wouldn't need to fear such fragile beings as humans. That tragic hubris would be its end.

Eliwood swung Durandal in an arc over his head making contact with the underbelly of the dragon. The durability of the dragon's scales was incredible. Eliwood could barely drive the sword more than a few inches into the thinnest part of the dragon's skin. But the sword did its damage. As Eliwood emerged from between the creature's legs, it reared up on its hind legs and released a screech of pain before falling to the ground. Eliwood knelt on one knee at the other end, breathing heavily. It couldn't have been easy to bring Durandal through that armored flesh. Nonetheless, he had defeated the dragon in a single strike as I predicted. The legendary weapon had proved its power.

"Eliwood!" Hector called as we all rushed to his side. "Are you all right?"

Eliwood let out another heavy exhale and stood up straight. "I think so…" His breath was still ragged as he turned to us. His eyes bulged with nothing but adrenaline and excitement. "My body moved on its own. It was as if the sword itself was guiding my arm."

Athos joined us. "The sword of sacred fire was made to combat dragons. With so much power, who can say what it might be capable of?"

I turned and gazed upon the dragon. It took labored breaths, but I could see blood steadily seeping out from its wound. It would only be a matter of minutes before it succumbed to the injury. "But how did a dragon get here? I thought he needed me to…" A disturbing thought crossed my mind, and I turned back to the group. "Could Nergal have…?"

Everyone's countenance started to match my own. Even as Athos stared at the dragon, my heart stopped as his face became drenched in absolute horror.

"No…"

"Is something the matter, lord Athos?" Eliwood asked.

Another voice suddenly resounded around us. "Let me be the one to answer that." The familiar echo of teleportation followed the voice, and Nergal materialized before us.

"Blackheart!" Eliwood roared. "Nergal!"

In supreme contrast to Eliwood, the almost bored mien on Nergal's face set my blood to a boil. He didn't even acknowledge Eliwood or the legendary weapon we had acquired to defeat him. "Ninian proved useless. I've come for a replacement." The sound of breaking glass echoed again, and suddenly Nils was next to Nergal. His eyes were deep crimson, the same as Ninian's when we had first confronted Nergal at the Dragon's Gate.

"Nils!" Eliwood shouted as we moved in to save him.

Nergal's expression hadn't changed. "Don't waste your breath. He won't be awake for some time. Nils will do for me what Ninian would not."

Eliwood gripped his weapon in rage. "Scum! What have you done with Ninian?"

Nergal's mouth finally twisted into a smirk that made my stomach lurched. "It's not what I've done. It's what you've done, Eliwood."

"What?" Eliwood did not falter in his stance, but he was on the verge of holding himself back from attacking our enemy.

The smirk on Nergal's face grew into a sickening grin. "Eliwood, did you never once question it? Why the siblings were needed to open the Dragon's Gate?" The sharp pain in the back of my head panged for a brief second. "Why did it have to be Ninian and Nils?"

None of us said the word, but my head ached more with each terrible second as an explanation to Nergal's question invaded my mind.

"The answer is simple," Nergal replied with revolting delight. "The Dragon's Gate cannot be opened by humans. Why would humans be able to open a gate that was designed for dragons?"

"…wh-what?" Eliwood's voice trembled.

"It's pitiful, really," Nergal continued. "Poor Ninian's plight. Coaxed by my honeyed words, she passed through the gate… Though unable to return home, she refused to aid me and wandered lost and alone until she was slain by the hand of the one she loved."

My heart dropped out of my chest so fast my lungs struggled to continue allowing me to breathe. Durandal remained in Eliwood's grasp, but the tip of the sword tilted into the ground.

"What…" Eliwood was short of breath as well. "What are you saying?"

"Can you not guess? Or is it that you are afraid to know?" He gave a wicked chuckle. "Very well. Let me tell you, Eliwood. The dragon there… The beast slaughtered by your hand…" His grin reverted to the smug smirk. "That is Ninian. The girl you loved. The girl you swore to protect."

The words froze my blood.

"She returned to her true form and lost all human memory. Yet you, above all else, remained in her heart, and she came here…" He lifted his hand toward the dragon barely clinging to life. "Look upon the creature you have slain. That is Ninian."

Eliwood did not turn. His body shuddered as if he too had been given a biting chill by Nergal's words, using all his strength to stay on his feet. Durandal dropped from his hands. I could hear his quivering moans, but he dared not turn to the dragon.

"Go on," Nergal pressed, motioning toward the dragon again. "Look. She's using the last of her strength to take human form for one last time. I believe there may still be time enough to say farewell. You know, of course, that you cannot save her."

Durandal had fallen from his hands, but Eliwood clenched his fists tight with rage. "Nergal! You foul demon!"

"It's not me. You, Eliwood. You killed her. You."

Eliwood shook even more, and he looked like he was about to attack Nergal with his bare hands. "I… AAAAAAAAH!"

Eliwood charged, but Hector didn't let him get even a foot into his useless assault.

"Calm down!" Hector said, grappling Eliwood back before he could let Nergal end him as well. "Get ahold of yourself, Eliwood!"

Eliwood finally broke down, and the tears were thrown out wildly as he struggled against his friend. I noticed the dragon shake in the corner of my vision and turned my attention to it. It started to shrink suddenly, and all eyes turned toward the dragon. No doubt everyone else felt the same way—hoping against the fear of seeing Nergal's words proved true. But as I watched the dragon shift to the form of a female human. There, drenched in her own blood, lay Ninian, desperately gasping for air as her trembling eyes searched for something.

"Lo…Lord Eliwood…" Her voice was so brittle. My heart throbbed like a lance had pierced up through my stomach to impale my heart that had fallen from my chest.

Eliwood finally looked in her direction. "…Ninian?" He said the words as if he didn't know where the voice had come from. The rest of us moved towards the body. No one spoke. And at least for me, every step felt like wading through ice water filled with biting fish. This pain had to have been far worse for Eliwood, who finally approached, kneeling down and gently lifting Ninian to cradle her in his arms.

"…ah…" She winced.

"Ninian!" Eliwood had finally come to terms with reality. "Ninian!"

"Eliwood…" With what little strength she had left, Ninian set a frail hand upon Eliwood's arm that barely held her.

"Ninian…" Nothing held back the tears. His mouth was open, but left agape as his words were sparse. "Please don't die… I… What have I done?"

"I'm glad…"

"What?"

"That you are unharmed, my lord… I'm so glad…" Her hand gripped Eliwood tighter. It wobbled more with each second as Ninian's breathing became more rapid and her eyes swelled, trying to hold on to the sight of the man she loved… and then, she finally fell limp.

"Ninian…" His words stumbled over each other as he tried to speak. "Ninian? You can't… Answer me…There's so much I haven't told you…You… can't…Why…" All the agony and sorrow Eliwood had been holding back finally exploded, and we felt the full brunt of its tragic force. "NINIAAAAAAAN!"

Eliwood lost himself to his hysterics, and if that wasn't hard enough to bear, the sadistic cackle that invaded our sorrow drove the painful nail even deeper. My heart raged hot within my stomach, searing my frozen blood to the point that I felt like throwing up. But with my thawing blood came a desperate thought…

"That's enough." Nergal caught his breath with another wicked grin directed at Eliwood before continuing. "You will await the end of the world trembling in the shadows of dragons!"

"Dastard…" I managed to say under my breath. If one of the lords attacked Nergal, they would surely perish. But me? Nergal needed me. He had made that abundantly clear throughout this campaign. And if I had resisted his power so far, then this rage within me would burn away any influence he tried to push on me. And so, I turned, drawing my broken blade and charged.

“Mark, no!” Hector shouted.

But I was out of his reach.

Nergal turned on me and stretched out his hand. Pain exploded in the back of my head and I crashed to the ground, clenching my eyes shut as I cried out in agony from my burning head. "And what does a whelp such as you think you can do?" His disgusting smile spread even further like a fissure etching itself across the earth. "Does the beast wish to bite its master? You, who betrayed me? Does the disloyal pet wish to bear its fangs and bark out its worthless anger? I will not be ignored. I have ensured your return! Whether by your will or mine, you will return and obey."

The pain in the back of my head now burned like a molten spike being driven through me, but it was a mere pinprick to the boiling ire still coursing through me. I only had one thing I wanted to focus on: driving my sword through this monster. Feeling that my head was still in one piece, I endured the pain and pushed myself up to a shaky knee. He wouldn’t kill me, and I would not allow him to stand there freely mocking our misery! I staggered back on my feet, whipping my head up to face that loathsome monster and gripped my broken blade in my hand. But then another voice rang out.

"I will not permit it!" The anger in the voice boomed almost as loud as the sound of the teleportation. Athos appeared in front of Nergal, and I could only imagine the fury on his face by his stance before the dark sorcerer. He held his staff out before him in his left hand, and his right bore a tome with fire leaping off the pages. "Instead, I will see you perish in flame!"

Athos pushed his staff forward, and brilliant lights flashed around the apex of the staff. A raging inferno the likes of which I had never witnessed burst out of thin air, consuming Nergal in its swirling vortex before more fire consumed the sky above, forming giant blazing orbs that rained down upon our enemy. The falling projectiles exploded upon impact, shattering the earth where Nergal had been standing. The heat from the explosion caused everyone to shield themselves from the blaze, but whether by the intensity of my own fury or sheer determination to see the monster blister and melt, I watched on with unbridled admiration for the archsage. This inferno was a far more deserving fate for Nergal than my broken blade could ever have achieved, and I relished every second with voracious delight.

But I would not be sated. As the fire faded and the smoke billowed away on the wind, Nergal still stood, clothes slightly charred and patches of ash on his face. The only thing Athos had managed to destroy was Nergal's nasty smile.

"The purest fire… Flame breath. Very impressive, Archsage Athos. However…" His evil grin made a comeback. "However, fire is no longer my foe! Look!" He threw his arms out. "Not even a legendary blade can cause me harm! At long last, I am impervious!" Nergal let out another triumphant cackle, more conceited than the last, and the sage that had unleashed the blaze looked to be on the verge of collapsing.

"Miserable, aren't you, Athos?" Nergal said, taking notice of the archsage's decline. "Yet out of respect for the great man you used to be, I'll leave. After all, 500 years ago, we followed the same path, did we not, old friend?"

Old friend? What did he-

Before I could finish the thought, the spot in the back of my head erupted in pain again, even worse than before. It felt like some foul creature was trying to dig its way out of my skull. The pain forced my eyes shut and my legs to fold as I instinctively clutched my head, attempting to alleviate the agony in any way.

Nergal's laugh was overtaken by the sound of glass shattering again, and he was gone. Hector moved to check on Athos, and Lyn was by my side. After a few seconds, the pain subsided, and I gave her a nod of assurance. Then we both moved to join Hector and Athos.

"What do we do now?" Hector asked, staring into the smoldering crater. "Not even legendary weapons can stop him…"

"…uhh…" We all turned to the sound of someone groaning. Nergal had left Nils behind; his darkened eyes were returning to normal.

"Nils!" Lyn rushed over to him. "You're awake! Are you okay?"

Nils blinked a few times, then looked around. "Ninian! Ninian… Ninian!? Where is my…" He finally glanced at Lyn. She dropped her head but did not say a word. He looked to Hector next, but he averted his gaze from the boy. With silence from both of them, Nils caught my gaze. It was Kent all over again. My heart had found its way back to my chest, and each beat burned with agony. My throat was scratchy, like I had swallowed acid, and I could not utter a single word. So I turned my head in the direction of Eliwood, who still hugged the lifeless body. Though overwhelmed with grief, he was the only one who could still speak.

"…Nils… I'm so sorry."

Nils finally spotted his sister. His mouth dropped open into trembling, and he stumbled back a few feet before dropping to his knees. He stared at the two of them, eyes blinking rapidly as if to convince himself it was a dream. But he would not wake up from this nightmare. He threw his arms over his face and screamed at the sky. Eliwood had dropped his head into Ninian's corpse, adding his own sobs to Nils. Hector shut his eyes, and Lyn hugged herself as tears cascaded down her cheeks. I could not hold back my own grief, and amongst it all, the echoes of Nergal's words remained.

…you will return and obey.

Chapter Text

Chapter 19

On Hector's proposal, we headed to Castle Ostia. I did not argue the suggestion. The loss of Ninian had taken its toll not only on the lords and me, but on the rest of the company as well. Our trials had worn us down far more than I could have anticipated. We needed to regroup, refresh… recalculate. Being the most heavily guarded fortress in all of Lycia, I could ensure we took all the time we needed to recover from our defeat, and it would protect Ninian’s body until we had avenged her. Hector directed the company to the noble guesthouses once we arrived while he, Lyn, Eliwood, and I moved to the main castle. He asked Athos to join us as well.

"Lord Hector!" A soldier saluted us as we arrived in the entrance hall. "We're pleased to see you home alive and well!"

"Where's my brother?" Hector asked, not stopping.

"Ah…" The soldier responded, with a slight utterance of worry only I noticed hidden under his breath, following after his lord. "He departed yesterday for a conference in Etruria. He's scheduled to return in a half month’s time."

Hector stopped, and I wondered if he’d caught on to the soldier’s lie. "Etruria? That's a pity." He turned around. "Fetch the servants. Prepare rooms for my companions. They need rest."

"Yes, my lord." The soldier saluted Hector and ran down a nearby hall.

Hector turned to Eliwood. "Eliwood, you follow him."

"Hector I…" Eliwood began to contend.

"I don't want to hear it. You've suffered more than anyone else here. I'm not losing you to your sorrow. Go get some rest."

With a defeated sigh, he obeyed Hector and disappeared down the hall the soldier had gone. Hector watched him go, and once he was sure Eliwood was gone, he turned on Athos with a expression filled with such disdain that for a brief moment I feared he might throttle the archsage. He had been preparing to confront Athos like this.

"Graybeard. You know something, don't you? Tell me! What are we supposed to do now?"

Athos sighed and took a seat in a nearby chair. "Yes, I suppose you have a right to know…" He set his staff against the arm of the chair and folded his hands in his lap. "I first met Nergal some 500 years ago, wandering the Nabata wasteland. Like me, his only drive was the search for truth in this world. We were equals in power and knowledge, and we became fast friends. We believed we could solve the mysteries of the world. We truly believed…"

"So what happened?" Lyn asked.

"A…disagreement made at the height of our quest. One day, as I charted the mysteries of the Nabata, I came across the most amazing village… It was unbelievable, but in that place, humans and dragons lived together in cooperation."

"Dragons and humans?" Hector questioned. His tone oozed his disbelief. "Are you telling me they could live together in peace?"

Athos gave him a solemn nod. "At first, I doubted what my own eyes showed me. But yes, the village truly did exist."

"That's… amazing," Lyn replied.

"The dragons I beheld there…" Athos continued. "They were both similar to and different from the dragons I had fought hundreds of years before."

The spot in the back of my head throbbed momentarily, causing me to wince enough that everyone took notice. I was about to reassure them I was okay when Eliwood entered the room. Hector went to him, but Eliwood put up a defiant hand and asked Athos to continue. No one else argued Eliwood's presence, so Athos complied.

"As you wish… The dragons had refused to fight humans in the war, and instead, they retreated to this wasteland. They desired nothing but to remain hidden from the outside. Nergal and I crafted a barrier and created an oasis for them. Upon their invitation, we lived there with them. Our life there… It was calm and satisfying. At some point, the village became known as Arcadia, a place of perfect peace for travelers gone astray.

"The dragons' libraries were a dream come true for us. We studied their language and history with unbridled passion. A century, then two… Time passed in an eye's blink. And yet, slowly, our thoughts turned down different paths."

"In what way?" I asked rather forwardly to hide my increasingly irritable headache.

"I wanted to share the dragons' wisdom with others," Athos replied with a soft smile. "My hope was for our earthly paradise to spread outward."

"And Nergal?" I asked when Athos did not continue.

"Ah, Nergal…" The brightness of his eyes faded like the flame on a candle when all the wax had been burnt up. "He took the dragons' knowledge… He learned the art of stealing the essence from living creatures and turning it into power. It was terrible. When we discovered what he was doing, the elders and I tried to persuade him to stop. But the power bewitched him, and he was deaf to our pleas. He started with small creatures and grew ever more confident. Then, he began draining the quintessence of humans. The villagers and I joined forces and…defeated him. Or so we thought…

"After he was banished from Arcadia, Nergal fled to Bern. He increased his power slowly to avoid our eyes. Using quintessence, he made his "puppets," the morphs. They're bewitching in form with intellects beyond human. You've laid eyes on his most trusted morphs. Jet-black hair, pale complexion, and blood-red lips. But the most striking feature of the morphs is their glittering golden eyes. Eyes you will never see in a normal human being. Eyes… that you have seen in someone else…"

"Someone else?" Hector asked, processing the words. "Who?"

Athos turned his gaze, tired and defeated, upon me, and the moment our eyes locked, the pain in my head disappeared. "Our tactician."

"What?!" Hector roared as they all looked at me.

"That's… That's not true!" Lyn gasped.

Eliwood remained just as silent as I, petrified by what Athos had just said. This was the inhuman thing that he had been trying not to think about after Nergal had taken Ninian. I didn't blame him. I didn't—couldn't believe it either.

Hector threw a finger in Athos' direction. "You have a lot of nerve accusing Mark of being one of those abominations, Graybeard!"

"It gives me no pleasure to reveal the disturbing fact that the man who has led us through these trials has been a puppet of our enemy. Ever since you all were brought to me in Nabata, in fact, I had labored to banish the idea as a possibility. How could one of Nergal’s morphs be rebelling against his creator? But my suspicions were confirmed after hearing Bramimond say Mark wasn't human and our most recent encounter with Nergal." Athos stared at me with eyes that demanded the truth. "Mark, it was you who told me that you suffered headaches varying in intensity whenever mention of Nergal or the Black Fang came up, correct? And you also told me that on several occasions, you had completely lost control of yourself to the point of carrying out harmful acts toward others?"

My head still spun with nausea from what Athos implied that I don't know if my nod happened by my will.

"But you said that the morphs have jet-black hair and blood-red lips," Eliwood tried to defend me. "Mark does not have those traits."

Athos shook his head. "No, he does not. But the ones we know best weren't his first morphs. Remember that before you all were brought to me in Nabata, you stumbled into some ruins where you encountered a being that sealed magic."

"That being is a morph too?" I asked. I still couldn't believe Athos was implying I was one of Nergal's creations. I desperately wanted something that could prove it wasn't right.

"Yes, his name is Kishuna—a morph without black hair or bloody lips. I discovered him wandering the desolate ruins from time to time. I attempted to converse with Kishuna, but he never spoke. Only cried. I assumed him sick, so when I next found him, I tried to feed him a sleeping draught in hopes of restoring his speech after having rested. The same type of sleeping draught I had given to Mark in case Nergal possessed him again. And just as with Mark, he did not rest, but I did accomplish my goal. He opened his eyes to me. They were golden. And he spoke one name…"

"Nergal…" I said for him.

"Yes. A failed morph Nergal had rejected and left to suffer in existence."

"But that still doesn't prove Mark is one of them," Lyn said in that dismissing tone she had spoken after I had assaulted her grandfather. However, the tone filled me with further dread of the truth.

"I agree. We have seen no connection other than the golden eyes and Mark's own admission of his possessions. But as I said before, my assumptions were confirmed by our most recent confrontation. Before, with what Mark had told me, I assumed Nergal’s desire for Mark and his ability to possess him was due to a power he craved such as we saw with his possessions with Ninian and Nils. But when he subdued Mark, he said ‘Whether by your will or mine, you will return and obey.' Return… Mark is unable to remember his past, yet Nergal appears to have a previous relationship with Mark. This is the only conclusion I can come to."

The words echoed in my ears as Athos spoke them, drowning out the voices of everyone else attempting to defend me. I had not considered their meaning until now, but it made perfect sense. My amnesia yet apparent skill and knowledge in tactical warfare like his other morphs that had manipulated a marquess, a mercenary leader, and a king. My headaches, ranging from irritating to excruciating whenever Nergal or the Black Fang were mentioned. And most damning of all, my possessions that had cost the lives of others. It all made sense… "I'm one of his morphs…"

Athos simply nodded. "I deliberated revealing this unfortunate truth. But considering what we will soon face, I felt it important to be aware of all the risks we face and why."

"No…" My body was fragile glass, and Athos had thrown a rock through me. A chill swept through me like my blood had drained out of my fingertips, and they tingled spitefully as the last drops fell from my being. Even though I had finished putting the pieces of the puzzle together, I still couldn't accept the picture before me. There was no brilliant past, no achievements to remember, no wonderful life I had forgotten. This entire time, I was nothing more than a sadistic creation of a madman. I was a monster… an abomination… and I was designed to hurt these people.

"NO!"

"Mark!" Lyn called as I fled the room.

My head throbbed like it was splitting open. As if that malevolent creature that had been trapped in my head when Nergal killed Ninian finally decided to break my skull apart and claw its way out. It was reality, but how could this be my reality? How could I be nothing but a disastrous product meant to help a maniac conquer the world? My military experience, my strategic knowledge of combat and warfare… Was it all just implanted in me to achieve those malevolent goals?

The frigid air struck me as soon as I burst through the doors of the castle like a frozen insect stinging me to spread its bumpy infection. Yet it was nothing compared to the disturbing revelation that my mind fought to disprove. It could not. It all made sense. Waking up in the middle of nowhere with no memories—Nergal had tried to keep me from betraying him by destroying my mind. My headaches were a result of my mind trying to remember what happened before Nergal attacked me. And his words…

“Does the disloyal pet wish to bear its fangs and bark out its worthless anger? I will not be ignored. I have ensured your return! Whether by your will or mine, you will return and obey."

I was his tool. And when he discovered that I was close to Nils and Ninian, he attempted to take back control to serve him once again. Everything I feared about my mysterious past was true!

"…Mark…"

And yet, it was even worse than I imagined! I was nothing but a fiend meant to bring misery and destruction to innocent people. I was his puppet, this entire time he had been pulling the strings to lead my friends along a hopeless path of utter bitterness. We would fail; they would all look upon me and rebuke me for my betrayal.

"Mark!"

His voice would return soon. That creature would come slinking back to the hole in my head and burrow in deep to take control. And when it did, I would start screaming. I was tired of trying to resist it. Tired of pointlessly fighting against my creator who preferred teasing me with hopes of somehow gaining control so that he could continue watching me writhe helplessly. There was no control. Only what my master allowed. But… I could take that away from him. I left my sword in the estate, and one of the lords would surely try to stop me. But I could find a rock. There were some big ones before me! Any of them would work—I could achieve my salvation! I could slam my head against that rock again and again until there was nothing left for my master to control. It was infinitely better than continuing to live on my knees. I could end it. I could get him out of my HEAD! END IT FINALLY! THERE WOULD BE NO MORE-

"MARK!"

I was spun around by a firm grasp. Lyn stood before me with worry and fear swimming in her mien.

Oh, thank the eight she’s here… No… She shouldn’t be here. It’s too dangerous!

“Lyn,” I breathed out. “You shouldn’t be here…”

"Mark…" Despite the look on her face, her voice was as soft and kind as the day we met—as bright as sunlight breaking through the clouds of a raging thunderstorm chasing away the suffocating mist around me. "Don't run away. Let's talk through this."

"Talk through this!? What's there to talk about?" The words exploded with the unbridled ferocity of a cornered animal, but I wanted terribly for her to have something to disprove what the wisest man alive just said. "I always thought it strange I had these golden eyes, and no one else but some of our enemies did. Who would've guessed that it meant I'm actually a monster!"

"Mark, you're not a monster."

"Prove it!" I snapped back. I saw the pain on Lyn's face from my attack, but I did not let up. "I've been possessed. I've hurt people I've cared about. I have nearly destroyed this entire company because this entire time, I have been a servant of our enemy." Another spear of pain skewered my heart. "Kent died because of me."

Lyn's mien became stern. "Don't you dare blame yourself for Kent's death! He trusted you like a brother."

"He died betrayed by his trusted brother! He died because I was suffering another possession!"

"He died to help you resist. Kent revered you, Mark! He always trusted your judgment without question, just as you always trusted him to carry out your orders. And so, when he saw you in trouble, when he saw that you needed help…" Tears started to fall from Lyn's eyes. "He chose to give his life not only to save you but the entire company as well. He died knowing that if we lost you, we were all lost. Do not tarnish his sacrifice by blaming yourself. Kent would never have seen it that way."

"He didn't know who I actually was, Lyn! He's dead because I'm Nergal's puppet. This is exactly what I feared I truly was! Kent died because my master tried to possess his morph again while we protected Prince Zephiel. My master immobilized me while Ephidel assassinated Marquess Santaruz, and my master used me to try and murder the man that I spent months reuniting his granddaughter with. And I even had a premonition of it happening! How much longer until another innocent dies by my hand?"

Lyn grabbed my shoulders in an attempt to break me from my hysteria "No one else is going to die-"

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" I shook myself from Lyn's grasp and retreated away from her. "I don't want to hurt you too! I can't let it come true."

"Mark…" The shock and concern rang clear. "What are you talking about…? What can't you let come true?"

The nightmare from my first day with Lyn flashed through my mind. The looks of despair on everyone's faces, the disturbing voice I spoke in, the tears in Lyn's eyes before she moved to attack me. It played in my mind as clearly as it had that night. Even the fire consumed my vision again until I finally opened my eyes when Lyn touched my shoulder again.

"Mark… Please… Tell me what has terrified you so…"

"I had another premonition. Long before the one about your grandfather. The day I woke up in your Yurt."

"You awoke with a scream and sweat drenching your face," Lyn recalled. "I remember. I assumed you had just had a nightmare about your attackers. But it was about me? Before you had even met me?"

"Yes. I did not understand it, and I did not want you to believe I was mad. So I ignored it. But you were there, and so was Eliwood and Hector."

"And what happened?"

"I ordered you all to attack me. You resisted, but I demanded you strike me down. Begged you…"

"And did we…?"

"I don't know. Fire rose and consumed my vision before I saw the outcome, and then I woke up."

"Then there is nothing to worry about," Lyn said, squeezing my shoulder. "It is pointless to worry about an outcome that we do not know of."

I shook her away again. "Will you stop being so dismissive of the danger I pose?! I'm not a simple bandit who is feeling guilty about my past. I have been and still am a danger to you and everyone else. I won't risk anyone else dying because of who I am! Now that I know that I'm a puppet, the dream makes sense. My master will-”

“Stop calling him your master,” Lyn cut me off. “He does not own you!”

“He will take control of me when we confront him,” I continued. “He will use me to try and destroy you. I won't risk that premonition coming true as well." As I gazed into her eyes, the existence of my threat to Lyn sunk into me like a sword being plunged into my heart. The affection I had concealed deep within for Lyn shattered at that moment, and the tears finally burst forth while I blubbered out my next words. "I won't risk losing you…"

Her eyes burst wide at my words. "Mark…"

Damn it! In my anxiety, I revealed too much. I couldn't make this issue about my feelings for Lyn. This issue was about the good of the company as a whole, not just her. I turned and tried to escape deeper into the night, but Lyn caught my arm before I had even turned halfway around and pulled me back to face her stern gaze.

"Mark, no more secrets. Why did you say that? And don't lie to me. I want the truth."

Her grip did not relax in the slightest. I tried staring at the ground to try and hide from her glare, but she grabbed my face and locked it back with hers, so I jammed my eyes shut.

The hand that had locked my head in place relaxed and slowly slid up my cheek. "Mark, why are you avoiding my gaze? We've been friends for so long; I thought we trusted each other enough to tell each other anything. What has you so troubled that you will not even look me in the eye? Please tell me."

She was right. Lyn had been by my side longer than anyone I knew. And I already knew that she felt the same way I did. I had labored to keep our relationship professional. There were more important things than our personal feelings for each other. I opened my eyes to find hers glinting ever so dimly in the torchlight of the castle and her pleasant smile that always soothed my troubled heart.

"Mark?"

"Please don't look at me like that…"

She moved her face closer to mine. "Why?"

"Because a monster like me shouldn’t have these feelings for someone as benevolent as you."

"What?" Lyn's eyes rapidly searched mine.

I did not hold back. "You're a beautiful person, Lyn—both inside and out. I don't feel this way about anyone else. I couldn't imagine any moment in this journey without you, and at times, I felt certain you felt the same way. But despite all that, I was still a coward. Eliwood and Hector have pushed me to confess to you on multiple occasions. But I feared what would happen between us should I express my true feelings for you. What if I had been wrong in my assumptions? What if I had been the only one experiencing these feelings? What if my feelings for you altered my judgment in battle? What would happen to us? What would happen to the company? What would happen…"

I just now realized that Lyn had moved within inches of my face. Her breath was warm, her eyes flickered with invitation, and she smiled so simply, yet so brilliantly, that I had lost all comprehension of what I had been saying. Now, it was like I was back in Roland's cave; I was on fire. Only one desire blazed hotter in the core of my heart, incinerating all my anxiety. I cupped Lyn's face in my hands and pushed my lips against hers. And to my delight, she accepted my embrace, wrapping her arms around my neck to draw me in closer. Seconds seemed to turn into minutes as I drank in the sweet sensation of those soft lips I had desired to taste for so long.

"You don't know how long I've been waiting to hear this from you, Mark," Lyn whispered to me after we paused. "You've always been the man my heart longed for. That year we were apart was the most painful year of my life. More painful than when I had lost my family. I've felt the same way for just as long as you. But I didn't say anything because you had such a terrible weight on your shoulders with this campaign. If I had known how much this had been troubling you… I wish you would've expressed these feelings to me sooner instead of keeping them secret." She nipped at my lips and giggled mischievously. "I can't believe you endured Hector for so long! Now say it… Say the words you've been agonizing to say. It will help you, I'm sure."

I took a deep breath and exhaled it just as quickly. "You are my light, Lyn. Whenever I am surrounded by darkness, you are there to guide me out of it. If you had never found me in those fields so long ago, I don't know where this wretched creation of a madman would be. And every day I am thankful that it is you who found me. You're the reason I am here now. You're the reason I have continued fighting, and I love you for it."

Lyn beamed again and pulled me back to her lips. The world around us seemed to melt away as happiness coursed through my body. At long last, I had finally received the answer that I had dreaded I would never hear all these days. When we finally separated again, I held her radiant face in my hands and pressed my head against hers, soaking in every moment of this incredible bliss.

"If we make it through this, Lyn, I want to spend every day with you. I want to make up for all the time we've lost because of my irrational fearfulness."

"I feel the same way, Mark," Lyn breathed out in delight. "I want to be your partner, your protector and your light, now and always."

"And Nergal be damned. I'm going to find him, and I'm going to free myself. You're worth whatever agony I must endure in order to put an end to these possessions. And I will. I promise."

Lyn laughed and then set her head on my shoulder and pulled me against her. "The night is cold, Mark, but you no longer have to face it alone. If you are prepared to face such agony, then I will be there to help you endure it." She brought her head in front of mine again, rested her gentle hand upon my cheek, and pulled me into her lips once again.

A knock at the door stirred me from my slumber. I tilted my head toward the light seeping in through the curtains. Morning had come sooner than I had wished. I stared down at Lyn whose head rested against my chest still soundly sleeping. I had no wish to disturb her peaceful dreaming. But the person at the door would not be ignored.

Another round of knocking forced Lyn's head off of my chest and deeper under the covers of the bed we shared. I planted a quick kiss upon her head and then slowly moved off the bed and over to the door. When I opened it, Hector stood before me with an air of solemnity as I had never seen before.

"Mark, we need to talk about what Athos said—about you being a puppet of Nergal. I just wanted you to know-"

Before he could finish his sentence, the bed let out a soft, drowsy hum. Both Hector and I watched as Lyn turned over on the bed and pulled the covers further over her. When I turned back to Hector, his countenance had flipped. His brutally grave mien had been replaced with the biggest, stupidest grin.

"What is it you wished to speak to me about?" I countered before he could say anything.

"Hey, don't try to change the subject, you slippery eel!" Hector poked my shoulder. "It's about blasted time! What are you going to name the child?"

I gave him an amused chuckle as I motioned out the door. "Come, let us continue our talk where we will not disturb her."

Hector stood aside and followed me as I strolled into the hall, a smile remaining from the memories of last night. "So you finally stopped holding yourself back."

I shook my head. "We didn't go that far yet.” I paused. “At least, I hope we didn’t. Lyn assured me what we did last night wouldn’t lead to a child. But…” I pursed my lips and blew out. “We were so intoxicated with passion. I think we’ve only been sleeping for a couple hours before you arrived.” I let out a deep breath. “I hope you are both being truthful with me about us not creating a child through our passion. I trust Lyn, and she said she understood my fears and respected them. So, we agreed that until we deal with Nergal, we shouldn't rush into our ardor. I couldn't bear it if I left Lyn alone with our child."

Hector scoffed. "I'm hurt, Mark. After all we've been through and how much Eliwood and I have urged you about telling Lyn you love her, how dare you think we would allow such a tragic fate to befall either of you, Lyn, or your unborn child."

I threw the same goofy look both Hector and Eliwood had given me the night I first told them about Lyn. "Urged? I think pestered is a more appropriate word."

"Eh, if it worked," Hector said with a shrug. "Either way, Lyn would never be left alone, especially if she were with child."

"Then call me chivalrous. I wished to wait until we dealt with the threat before carrying on with our happy future together. We love each other. That's acknowledged now. But we also know that I'm a puppet of Nergal." My thoughts drifted back to the dream of that first night where I faced the three of them. "Regardless of my feelings for Lyn, I am still a danger to her and the rest of this company. And I do not know if I will survive our next encounter with our enemy. I will not allow myself the full extent of this happiness until I am sure I am no longer a threat. I will not be responsible for your deaths. I will throw myself into a fire before that happens."

Hector jabbed my shoulder with his finger. "I won't allow it, Mark. Morph or not, you've led us all this far by your will. And it's the kind of stuff you just said that proves to me that you are not some tool of that one-eyed maniac. I'm not going to allow him to destroy what you most certainly deserve."

He stopped at a window that overlooked the castle courtyard, where simply dressed nobles were carrying on conversations around tables with drinks and small snacks. A few Ostian soldiers moved through them, but there was no sign of any alarm or concerned speech. For a moment, I wondered if Ostia knew what the marquess' brother had been up to these past several months.

"You've worked hard, Mark. Harder than anyone in the company, harder than me. Harder than any person I've ever worked alongside in my life, including my brother. In the short time he knew you, the only time Uther ever spoke as highly of another person was when he spoke about our father." Hector chuckled. "He told me he would gladly sack the rest of our royal tacticians in order to hire you after our campaign. He admired your ability to remain calm and focused even in the aftermath of a tragedy, and this was after he heard of your possessions." The thickness of his suspiration fogged up the window as he leaned closer to it. "You've had to endure some of the most grueling hardships I've ever seen any one person go through. I can't say I envy you, but you have my respect and utmost esteem. Despite this revelation about you, know that none of us consider you anybody other than Mark. And none of us would ever want to see you replaced."

I sighed at his consideration of me. It was pleasant to know that, like Lyn, he did not look at me as a monster. But even I could not shake off the dread of what might happen to me. Yet if they were willing to take a risk on me, I couldn't quit on them now. "Then let's not wait for another possession to happen. The longer we wait, the more time Nergal will have to prepare for our coming. What's the status of our company?"

"The company is gathering supplies today and tomorrow, and I've sent a messenger to Fargus. I'm sure he'll be more than willing to ferry us back to the Dread Isle, and we can finally put an end to this campaign. Athos also took the legendary weapons and returned to the Shrine of Seals to talk to Bramimond in hopes of adding his power to ours. He didn't say when he would be rejoining us, but he's never left us in a boat without a sail. And once Nergal has been dealt with, I'm making sure you and Lyn have the grandest wedding Ostia has ever hosted."

I smiled at Hector's offer. "I appreciate that, Hector. You'll just have to convince Lyn to be willing to have the wedding here over her beloved fields of Sacae."

Hector pointed a thumb at his chest. "If I have to build a castle in the fields of Sacae for you two, I will. Regardless, and I'm sure Eliwood will agree, we are seeing to it that you and Lyn are still alive at the end of this. So, throw aside this puppet nonsense and get ahold of yourself. You have one final battle to lead us through, my friend."

Chapter Text

Chapter 20

While Ninian's death was a savage blow to the company, the revelation of who I truly was dragged me even further into the pit of despair. Lyn's and Hector's words were the rope I needed to climb out of that pit, but I still carried bruises and deep cuts. Before we left Ostia, I announced my true identity to the rest of the company and gave them a final opportunity to back out before we returned to Valor. There were too many unknowns going into this last venture. I could not guarantee anyone's survival with Nergal having regained his full power and the risk I now knew for sure I held.

No one took my offer. When we boarded Fargus's ship in Badon, I could feel the determination to bury Nergal and his ambitions radiating off every single person, even Jaffar. To my surprise, the one who worried me the most was Hector. Not because he didn't have a desire to take down Nergal. I could read that drive on his face as clearly as text in a book. But his boiling rage seemed to be pouring out a little too early. Although, it was Hector after all. We were finally going to confront the man that had caused us so much misery during this campaign. Even I was seething with furious zeal to bury Nergal once and for all. Perhaps he just couldn’t contain is wrath for much longer.

Rage was not the only thing I harbored on our way to Valor, though. During the voyage, I was treated to an innocent distraction: a curious girl eager to read about the history of Elibe with me.

"So they used the legendary weapons to banish the dragons and end the Scouring?" Nino asked, enraptured by the photo of the eight legends standing heroically together.

"Correct. And with the dragons finally banished, the eight heroes founded the nations of Elibe that we know today."

"That's amazing!" Nino picked up the previous pages of the book and ran them under her thumb. "Sonia never let me read any books like this. If I wasn’t studying my tomes, she would scold me for wasting time." Her cheerful demeanor darkened. "Who knew, I had been wasting my time all my life."

I rubbed Nino's back. "You believed in a lie like so many others, Nino. You can’t be faulted for that. But you're free now."

Nino gave me an infectious smile and then bounced over the cushions to hug me. "Not yet. Nergal is responsible for all of this pain we've suffered. You, me, Jaffar; Nergal used all of us. You saved Jaffar and me, but I will not enjoy this freedom until my teacher is also free like me."

"Teacher?" I raised a brow at her. "Why did you call me teacher?"

"That's what Miss Lyn calls that pretty archer with the blonde hair whenever they are training together. Miss Lyn seems to be learning things from her, and I am learning things with you. So it seemed what I should call you." Her cheerfulness quickly faded. "Oh no! You're the commander, though. I'm sorry! I didn't realize that it was wrong to call you something different."

"No, no, no." I couldn't help but laugh at how innocuous her anxiety was. "It's alright, Nino. You don't have to refer to me by any specific title. I was just surprised that you would call me your teacher. All I've done is read a few books with you."

"Well, even though they weren't my real family, so many kind people surrounded me while I was with the Black Fang, and I loved them. Uncle Legault, Lloyd, Linus, my father… They made Sonia’s neglect bearable. I thought I had lost too many when Linus died, but there are people in this company who are just as kind. And I've come to love them as well because of you. You were the one who came to try and stop me from killing the prince, and you also came to save Jaffar and me from Sonia. Not only that, but ever since Jaffar and I joined, you've always continued to make sure I was okay and if I needed anything."

I was about to tell her that was part of my job as the company's tactician, but that would’ve been a lie. The reason I had frequently come to see how Nino was doing was part sympathy for what her life had been under Nergal and part selfishness. For some reason, ever since Kent's death, other than spending time with Lyn, talking with Nino always seemed to bring a smile to my face. And perhaps I hadn't realized it until Nino mentioned it, but maybe the reason for that was because I had saved her from Nergal. Despite my failures during this campaign, taking both Nino and Jaffar away from Nergal was a success. And when I remembered this success, it gave me hope that we could succeed in taking me away from him as well.

Nino continued when I didn't say anything. "Linus never liked books. He took me out to practice sword fighting with training sticks if we had free time. I could only use the smallest sticks, but he was still gentle and patient with me, and we had so much fun until Sonia came to scold me. Linus would always stand up to her when she yelled. Sonia would punish me later when Linus wasn't around, but he still tried to protect me when he could.”

She turned another paged in the book and stared absently at it. "But you’re like Lloyd. He was different when it came to my books. He understood the necessity of gaining knowledge from books, and he always came in to help me with my tomes when he saw me studying alone, and he would bring other books for us to read together as well. Whenever Lloyd was with me, Sonia thought we were studying my tomes, so she wouldn't get mad. Now Sonia isn't around to get mad, but neither are Lloyd or Linus. I am reading books other than my tomes, and I'm learning so much more. And I'm doing that with you." She set the book down to wrap her arms around me again. Combined with her sincere words, I had to try hard to suppress a shiver.

"What do you want to do after this Nino?" I asked, moving on from her praise.

Nino took a moment to think about it, then pulled out the amulet Jan had given to her back in Bern. She rubbed a thumb across the gold designed embossed on it, then over the smooth green jewel in the center. "I think I want to go and find where my real family lived. Sonia said my family guarded the secrets of the dragons. In the books we've read, the dragons are bad. But others have said there are good dragons. I would like to meet those good dragons, and if they are kind like you and the others here, I would want to guard their secrets too. If I return to my home, I might find those secrets." She lifted her head back up to me, and her eyes were bright with optimism. But beneath the surface, I sensed a lingering fear that she desperately wanted to expel. "If I find more books on dragons, will you read them with me, teacher?"

A bell rang on the upper deck. We had arrived at Valor.

"Of course, Nino," I said, messing up her hair. "I wouldn't be a very good teacher if I didn't. But we're going to have to earn that reading time first. Let's get going."

We stepped up on to the main deck to be greeted by a horde of ominous dark clouds hanging over us. The company was loading into dinghies and some of our scouts were already on the shore, scanning the landing for enemies. Off in the distance, I could see the forest where I fought Uhai, and beyond that, the rotted tree that would eventually lead to the Dragon's Gate. Nergal no longer had the Black Fang to send against us here. And that made me more fearful of what we would face. The last thing that Nergal had sent against us…

"Well, we've arrived!" Fargus's boisterous tenor broke me out of my dread.

"Fargus," Eliwood said. "I can never thank you enough."

"No need to worry about that." He turned to me with that same big smile he had given me when I came up to him at the docks during his little "game" in Badon. "Are ya sure ye don't need our help from here? Fargus's pirate crew makes women smile, and villains revile! We could be helpful."

I smiled at him. "I appreciate the offer, but we're going to sail solo from here."

"We don't have any idea what will happen," Hector said, handing Fargus a slip of paper. "We'd like you to deliver a message if you would."

Fargus cocked his head as he took the paper.

"Even if we successfully defeat Nergal," Lyn said, handing him her message, "there's no saying if we'll survive the battle."

Eliwood was the last one to hand him a message. "We might… If we don't return, I apologize for the inconvenience, but…"

Fargus grunted unhappily and snatched the paper from Eliwood. "I'll worry about that if the time comes. Don't worry."

Eliwood nodded gratefully. "Thank you. And also… about Nils."

"I know. I'll take responsibility for him."

"Nils?" Lyn bent down to him. "We're going now."

Nils did not break his stare from the wooden panels he sat on.

Hector came over and gently rested a hand on his head. "We're going to shatter Nergal's ambitions and bring him down! You wait here and rest until we get back, ok?"

Nils continued his silence as Eliwood came up next.

"Nils… I don't think you'll forgive me no matter how I apologize, but hear me out. Our power is no match for Nergal. Even so, we can't give up. I have to fulfill Ninian's wish, too. I will never, ever flee from that duty."

"Nergal has taken much from us, Nils," I said looking off toward where the Dragon's Gate resided. "Ninian was one of those. We are not feeling the same pain you do, so I wouldn't expect you to be as we are. That's why I'm not asking you to come with us. But we loved her, too. Whatever happens after this, when you can finally get past the pain, with or without us, I pray you will keep moving forward. That's what Ninian would want."

He said nothing. I couldn't blame him. I nodded to Eliwood; it was time.

"Ok, Fargus," Eliwood said. "We're going." The lords headed down into a dinghy with a few others from our company, while I waited to make sure everyone had what they needed before they departed the ship.

"Hey!" Fargus shouted. "Don't mess this up, pups!"

I couldn't promise that. My confidence wasn't high at the moment. I was breaking my golden rule. We were going into a fight I didn’t believe we could win. We were walking into this forest blind to face an enemy that wanted us to come for him. Athos still hadn't joined us either. And even if he did, I doubt I would have felt any more assured. He had summoned an inferno upon Nergal after Ninian's death, and it had done nothing. Nothing at all. What hope did we have even with the legendary weapons? Athos was the one who believed they could work, and as wise as he was, he hadn't been able to see that Ninian was a dragon and I was a morph until it was too late.

"Mark!"

Legault’s call pulled me out of the maelstrom in my head. He came running up to me washed in worry.

"Have you seen Nino anywhere? She's not with the rest of the company. She might be with Jaffar, but I haven't seen him either."

"Jaffar?" Dart said as he passed us. "Isn't he the hooded fellow? I saw him below deck being yapped at by that disheveled lad."

"Disheveled lad?" My heart skipped a beat at whom he might be referring to.

"Yar, I forget his name. The one who got all gloomy and what not after we came back from Valor the first time. Blonde hair, red cloak—hey, Mark? What's wrong with ya? Did ye get a sudden chill?"

"Mark?" Legault had turned pale as well. "You don't think…?"

"Check the upper decks," I ordered. "I'll get Fargus and search below decks." I bounded up the deck so fast that I startled Fargus.

"Oi! What's got your britches itchin'? I ain't keeping any dark sorcerers on me ship."

"Follow me, Fargus. I may need you."

Fargus didn't ask any more questions. We descended below decks, and I stopped so I could listen. I could hear some voices, but they were further below. I continued down to the bottom of the ship, and the voices, or the only voice, became much clearer.

"If you hold still, Nino won't be harmed. I promise."

I couldn't see anything down here, but this was the brig of Fargus's ship, and I could hear the voice coming further within the gloom.

"Fargus," I whispered. "Do you have the keys to these cells."

"No, one of me mates keeps hold of them. I'll be back."

Fargus did his best to keep his leather boots quiet as he ascended back up the stairs, and I continued to the voice.

"Matthew?" I called out as he came into view. He and Jaffar were in one of the cells. A dagger was in his hand, and Jaffar stood in a corner, arms crossed and without his weapons. He truly must have done something with Nino to get an Assassin like Jaffar to disarm himself. "Matthew, what are you doing?"

"What you should've done back in Bern. This man has killed our friends—he killed Leila!"

I saw a ring of keys on the ground next to him. "Matthew, what did you do with Nino?"

"She'll be fine so long as you don't interfere," his tone cut through the air as sharp as his weapon.

"Matthew, I understand you are hurting-"

"Do not claim to know me right now, Mark! Since our first voyage to Valor, I have wrestled with the notion that you might have fallen under Nergal's control after Leila told me how you almost murdered Marquess Caelin. Letting that snake Legault join us strengthened that notion, and pardoning this murderer confirmed it."

"I do not serve Nergal, Matthew, nor would I continue leading this company if I knew he had control. You don't need me to tell you that. And Jaffar doesn’t work for him either. Not anymore. Jaffar was a tool for Nergal. He never had a will of his own. He never knew he had a choice."

"And what kind of excuse is that?" Matthew's eyes blazed as he glared around at me. "Defending this evil filth and trying to stop me. I… I was right. Nergal has possessed you. That's why you let him live. You plan to betray us at the Dragon's Gate."

Matthew might as well have plunged that dagger into my chest with how harshly his searing words cut. But I resisted the added venom from poisoning my response "Then why haven’t you killed me!? You knew I posed a threat. I even tried to order the company to kill me before I hurt someone. You could've done it at any point during the campaign. I would've gladly accepted the fate. So why didn't you?"

"You didn't murder Leila!"

"So this is just a personal vendetta then!? What, do you think this will bring her back? Put her soul to rest? Leila watched me drive a sword through Lord Hausen, yet she didn’t kill me or consider me a threat. She fought to help me resist Nergal. So how do you think she would feel if she saw you doing this? Do you think she would be happy? Kidnapping a girl and striking down a defenseless man—I thought Ostia's spies knew what honor was."

"Yes, it's dishonorable. But you both know nothing of honor either, don't you? There will be no salvation for me. Carrying out justice is all I have left."

"This isn't justice, Matthew. It's vengeance. Do this, and you leave me with no choice but to retaliate with real justice!"

"So be it." Matthew raised the dagger. "Leila? Can you see me? I'm going to put an end to this right now!"

"Matthew, don't!" I grabbed the door of the cell out of sheer desperation, hoping some mad strength would manifest within me. Jaffar stood there with the tranquility of a statue. I kicked the door, but it only responded with an angry rattle. My vision caught the knife’s reflective blade. It was too far for me to reach, and I ran out of time.

Matthew gasped as if someone punched him in the stomach. But Jaffar hadn't moved. "Ah, Leila… Is this… right? Is this… what you want?" The dagger fell, but not into Jaffar's chest. It clattered to the ground along with Matthew. "Go…” He motioned at the keys next to him. “The girl's safe. I never touched her."

Jaffar did not wait for Matthew to change his mind. He scooped up the keys and unlocked the door. But before he exited, he turned back. "Matthew… Is that your name?"

"What?"

"That woman… There was a name clinging to her final breath. She said, ‘Matthew.'"

"Really?"

Jaffar handed me the keys and headed out of the brig. Matthew continued to sit there staring at the floor. A part of me wanted to shut the door and lock Matthew in that cell. That would have been justice—real justice. Any tactician would consider it a necessary decision. Just like when my possessions became worse. But this…

I dropped the keys and stooped down and picked up the dagger. The darkness prevented me from seeing the detail on the blade, but I could feel exactly how much time Matthew had put into preparing this weapon. The metal ran smooth like solid water over my fingers. So smooth, I knew I would cut myself if I even brushed the tip. Matthew had sharpened this over a substantial period and never used it, even before I had allowed Nino and Jaffar to join the company. This wasn't a weapon; it was a grudge, and the rage and spite that had been poured into it burned in my hands, so I flung it across the cell, slumped against the bars across from Matthew, and sat until the silence between us was too much to bear.

"Still think I'm under Nergal's control? Then take it. I won’t stop you. Put an end to me now. Save the rest of your friends! Avenge Leila's death like you want. It’s my fault. I'm the reason that they discovered her duplicity. When I assaulted Lord Hausen, she helped me fight off my possession. Nergal saw that through me, and so he had her killed when she returned to him.” I beat my chest. “I'm the reason she's dead, you fool, so kill me! And after you've finished with me, why don't you go and jab it into Hector's back as well. He isn't the one that sent Leila here to spy on Nergal and the Black Fang, but he’s the closest to Uther you’ll get."

Matthew stayed silent. I was happy he did. I might have retrieved the dagger if he tried to justify himself.

With a heavy sigh I said, "I have made an abundance of decisions during this campaign. All of them I've thought were the right decisions to make at the time. That's my job as the tactician. Make the right choices. But not once have I ever considered a single decision I've made to be objectively correct. How could they be? It's a decision I, as an individual, am making at the moment. I saw what Jaffar went through under Nergal. And I decided the right decision in that moment was to spare him and bring him to our side. He isn't the only one in this company who has been used by Nergal. Marquess Caelin almost died because Nergal possessed me. The right thing to do would've been to kill me right then and there. That would've been justice! Leila didn't carry out that justice, though. She spared my life! I am here now because of Leila. Not a day goes by that I don't acknowledge that fact.

"Was her decision right?” I asked throwing up my hands. “It doesn't matter. She made a choice, and she was willing to live with the consequences. The real question is why was the decision made? Why did Leila spare me after I drove a sword through Lyn's grandfather? I have no blasted idea. I wished I could have asked her—thanked her. But you want to know why I spared Jaffar?"

"Hope," Matthew said.

"Hope?" I questioned. "What do you mean, hope?"

"Hope is the reason Leila spared you. She saw you struggling against Nergal and helped you fight back. And because you did, she believed you could eventually be free. That’s why I dropped the dagger. I remembered Leila did that for you. You both had hope that those under Nergal's control could fight back against him."

"Do you think she made the right decision sparing me?"

"Didn't you say it didn't matter?"

I opened my mouth to respond but it changed to a chuckle at the clever response. If nothing else, Matthew did have a healthy dose of charisma. "Quick of wit as always.” I breathed out the last of my mirth in a sigh. “We don't always get to choose what happens to us, Matthew. I didn’t choose to be Nergal’s creation. But I’ll be damned if I’m just going to let him continue using me. If nothing else, I hope you can believe me when I say that." I pushed myself back to my feet and stepped out of the cell. "I’m not confining you here, Matthew. But consider yourself. I'm not worried about losing Jaffar in this moment. I'm worried about losing you."

Matthew did not respond in any way. No words of acknowledgement, no bobbing of his head to tell me he heard me. He just continued to sit there staring at the floor no doubt wrestling with his guilt. I said my piece, and the company would likely be worrying about me now. I left and headed up the stairs. And as I climbed them, I nearly stepped on Jaffar before I saw him sitting on the top stair. "Gah! Jaffar! You nearly scared me to death." I laughed out the surprise to calm my nerves. "I knew you were good. But I didn't think you were good enough to kill with the mere sight of you."

Jaffar glared at me from under his hood. "First, Hector… Then Sonia… Now Matthew… …Why?"

"Is that such a shock to you, Jaffar? Do you think Nino is the only one who thinks it’s wrong to kill someone for no reason?"

"You are not Nino. There was a reason to kill me. The spy. Your spy. I killed her." His eyes searched me.

"When I pardoned you, and Hector tried to kill you. You didn't kill him in response, but more than that, you didn't even try to defend yourself. Why?"

"Because I was not ordered to."

"Ah ha," I replied bouncing a finger at him. "Were you ordered to kill Leila?"

"Yes…" Confusion began to swim in his countenance.

"What if you weren't ordered to kill her? Would you have killed her?"

"No. But she would still be dead."

"Right, but not by your hand. The only reason you killed Leila was that you were the one ordered to. Nergal was your master. Your entire life you've felt like that was your only purpose. That is why Leila is dead. You felt you didn't have a choice. You were, in a way, possessed just like me. But you're not anymore. You rejected Nergal, and maybe it's because of Nino, but you still made the choice to come with us to face Nergal when you were not ordered to do so. As I told you back at the manse, tools don't get to make choices. You made a choice. Therefore, you are not a tool."

Jaffar shook his head. "You say why you did not kill me. That is not what I wanted to know. I have done nothing for you. Why did you come to save me from those who wished to kill me?"

I blew out a sigh. "Life isn't about being indebted to each other, Jaffar. I helped you for the same reason Nino helped you. You are a person, and you deserve to live."

"…You are… too kind… to me… That is a weak spot… You make a grave mistake to think me as a friend. I am a tool. Nothing else. Intended to be cast away like trash when I failed…"

I dropped my face into my hand and groaned at the repetition. "Jaffar… do we really have to go over this choice thing again?"

"I will never understand you. You should have killed me when you found me. But you didn't. Therefore, I must continue living. Whatever mission you have for me, I will complete."

"How about we start with ending Nergal and his plans. Then we can discuss the future." I stepped around him and continued up the stairs

"Mark…"

I turned back to him. He was still staring into the darkness of the brig.

"They call you a morph. I've seen your fear…. I understand it… I've seen many morphs. You are different. Morphs do not fight against their master. The morphs belong to their master. You said… tools have no choice. The morphs have no choice. I am not a morph. I choose not to fight for Nergal. You are called a morph. You choose not to fight for Nergal… You do not belong to Nergal." He turned around, and his sharp eyes pierced right through me. "You are not a morph."

Well, I certainly wasn't expecting a pep talk from Jaffar. Usually, that was my job. But it was welcome encouragement for sure. His words gave me a boost of confidence and refilled my hope that fueled me back towards the company.

"Oi, lad," Fargus called as I started to descend into a dinghy. "Everything smooth down below? Jethro said the keys were pilfered, and we be looking for them."

I had almost forgotten the original reason I stayed on the ship. "Everything is fine, just a minor scuffle. I guess we're all dreading what we're about to face. Your keys are in the brig. Did Legault find what he was looking for?"

"Was he looking for that green haired lass? That be who he left the ship with, scolding her for all the books she be carrying with her." Fargus chuckled. "I think she was worried we pirates were going to steal them. Har! Sweet thing probably doesn't realize we pirates don't read too well."

"Okay then. I'm headed out with the company. Tell Nils we'll be back, even if you don't believe it."

"Oh, I believe it, pup. Fargus wouldn't have ferried ye all here the first time if he thought he wouldn't be bringing ye back."

He gave me a wave as I left the ship, and my thoughts trailed back to the place where we encountered that strange being that could seal magic. Athos said that thing was a morph as well, and Nergal had rejected it. Why though? Was it because it was like me? Did Nergal not have full control, so he banished it from his presence to live out its miserable existence alone? The thought caused me to shiver as I rowed to shore. Was that meant to be my fate?

A contradictory thought expunged the apprehension. This entire campaign, Nergal had been trying to take control of me and bring me back to him. He needed me because I could summon the dragons. I was important to him. Why did he banish someone so vital to his plans?

Because he didn't banish me. He lost me. If I had the will to resist him now, maybe I had resisted him before. Jaffar was right; I wasn't a morph. At least not like the others. I was a morph, but a failed morph because I had free will, and I chose to rebel against my creator.

"Mark?"

I looked up to find Lyn with her arms draped over the bow of the dinghy staring at me in intrigue.

"Are you okay? You completely ignored Hector and Eliwood when you rowed ashore."

I looked around to see that Hector and Eliwood off to the side with the same expressions as Lyn. I had been so engulfed in my thoughts that I hadn't noticed any of them.

"I'm fine," I said with a smile, exiting the boat and approaching her. She beamed as I placed a hand on her cheek and kissed her. Even though our love was no longer a secret, having her here with me was terrifying. Not because our lives were in danger. At this point, we had accepted that constant possibility. Being in her presence, knowing that we loved each other, left me apprehensive—and I welcomed it. Morphs didn't feel these emotions. And I was not a morph. "Just trying to keep happy thoughts. Sorry to worry you. Is everyone ready?"

Lyn nodded. "Yes, we've just been waiting for you. What happened?"

"Nothing we need to be concerned about right now. We need to move on the Dragon's Gate as soon as possible. Let me think about how we should proceed…"

"Lyn! Look out! Move!"

Instinct sent my arms around Lyn, and I leapt back just as a lightning bolt fell on the spot where we had been standing.

"Mark! Lyn!" Eliwood shouted coming to us with Hector. "Are you okay?"

"We're fine, but that warning…" I tilted my head back. Sure enough, Nils sat in the back of the dinghy under the tarp that had been protecting my equipment from the sea water. "So you decided to come with us then?"

Nils pulled off the tarp and stepped out of the dinghy. "I wasn’t sure a few seconds ago. But after I sensed you and Lyn in danger, I couldn’t stay silent. You all have done so much for me and my sister. I have to do her part. No, I have to do Ninian's part and mine! I'll fight with you, and we'll change the course of fate!"

"Well spoken!" Hector commended, shaking Nils by his shoulder. "Now you sound like a man!"

"Glad to see you, Nils," Lyn replied, standing up with me. "Thank you for saving us."

"Sorry for worrying you. I'm fine now!" His gaze traveled past us. "And now… Stop skulking and come out! I know you're there."

A figure appeared out of the fog, one that I recognized instantly. Another of Nergal's chief morphs—the one that had been talking to Sonia in the woods outside the manse.

"Limstella…" I replied, staying wary as they approached us. "Nergal's most precious morph. He must be desperate if he's sending you out instead of coming himself."

"…The master waits for you…” they said to me. “…You will go… …I will take the quintessence of the rest… Come out, my humble servants…" They raised a hand, and a vast horde stepped out of the fog. More morphs, just like the ones we had fought at the manse.

Hector prepared Armads. "We'll have to fight our way through!"

Lyn pulled an arrow from her quiver and shot down a morph that tried to charge us. "No matter how many there are, we cannot retreat!" She pulled out her sword and acted as the vanguard leading the rest of the company on the approaching enemy. Eliwood mounted his horse, which he rode in battle now, and carried on the charge with Hector following behind him.

"Everyone split into pairs and spread out,” I ordered. “Generals and Paladins in the front. Ranged units in the back—I want an impenetrable wall. Keep an eye on the tree lines and use the mountains to guard your flank as you move forward carefully. Let the enemies come to you, move as one, and support as needed."

The company surged forward taking up the formations I commanded. I brought up the rear, and then another figure caught my eye, standing out like a bright flower in the darkness of the trees. A woman that almost personified grace with her white dress and blue hair that fell down her body like a gentle waterfall. She almost looked like…

"Ninian…" Not exactly. This woman was far older than Ninian. But the resemblance was striking. And as I gazed upon this woman, a multitude of images flashed through my mind. My breath hitched as I came to a stop. Trying to process the images was like trying to examine a single raindrop as it fell in the middle of a storm, but I knew what was happening to me. I was finally regaining my memories!

Before I could make any more sense of the phenomena, the woman turned and disappeared into the trees. I wasn't thinking anymore. My mind was still trying to capture even one image, so my body responded on its own, carrying me after the woman. But she was lost from sight even as I entered the trees. My head spun around in a desperate hunt for-

There!

Her pale figure passed through a gap in the trees almost as if she was floating. Was I following a ghost? That would be dangerous if that were the case. Yet I was not afraid. The images in my head were becoming clearer. I saw a verdant canyon, an ocean of sand, a pile of books, a man... Was that? Suddenly, the images disappeared all at once, and my hand shot out trying to grasp them. When I refocused myself, the woman was still before me, smiling at me. And then she turned and glided down the path.

I gave chase, hoping the images would reappear. They never did, but the woman did not disappear either. So I kept following her until I exited the woods, and found myself in a dead zone of sorts. The trees were fallen around a degraded stone building, vines had crawled up around an architecture in heaps on the ground, and loose bits of broken twigs and shattered stone clung to my boots as I stepped into the open space.

The woman had disappeared, but she had led me here. Without the images to fuss over anymore, my mind screamed at me to turn back. The woman was probably some familiar conjured up by Nergal or Limstella to lure me away from the company—an alternative to hijacking my mind. However, some deep internal force within me argued against the notion. Why would Nergal do that? He had made it clear how powerful he had become when Athos tried to incinerate him outside Roland's tomb. Possessing me would not cost him much.

Then a voice came from the structure.

"You hide and wait here. There's food and water in this pack. …If you ration yourselves, it should last about ten days."

That voice… so familiar… I moved closer to the structure, and a smaller voice spoke.

"…What about you, daddy? Are you going away?"

"Daddy has to go to Aenir." Pain spiked in my head when the name was uttered. "…I'm going to get mommy."

"Mommy? Where is she?"

I came around to the entrance of the structure, and when I looked in, I thought for sure I was hallucinating. There was a man in a dark cloak with his back to me, talking to two children, who looked like Nils and Ninian at a younger age. No… there was no mistaking their eyes. It was younger versions of Nils and Ninian.

"Some bad men took her away. They can't have gone very far, though. I have to go after them and save Mommy. You wait ten days… If Daddy's not back by then, take your brother and go to the other side." Another spike of pain. "You're a clever girl. You know the way, right?"

"…Daddy…" said the girl.

"Daddy… Don't go…" the little boy whined.

"…You're good children. Both of you. I'll come for you. I'll be back…"

This must have been another premonition, but how could it be? If these two were Nils and Ninian at a younger age, then this wasn't a vision of the future. So then… This was… the past? I blinked again, and the children disappeared. But the man did not. He still stood with his back to me and grasped the turban around his head with a groan.

No… It… It can’t be…

"What is this place?" Nergal said, glancing around the room. "I was supposed to be at the Dragon's Gate. Why am I here?" He gasped so sharply it almost sounded like a hiss. "It was her! I saw her again! She wanted me to come here. Remind me of this place. During the Scouring… I studied Dark magic here. This… I left something here. Something valuable…" He groaned and clutched his head. "The pain… Bah. It must not be worth much if I never bothered returning for it. Soon I will have the power. Nothing else matters. I will open the Dragon's Gate and get even more power… The power to defeat anyone. Power…"

I stood there in the entryway frozen, waiting for Nergal to turn around and possess me. But rings of arcane light appeared around him, and he disappeared in the echo of his teleportation.

It was Nergal… And Nils and Ninian… They called him… Nergal was...

"Hello…"

I turned around to find another man standing behind me.

"Uh, hello," I said, trying to glance at the eyes underneath the blue hood to make sure they weren't gold.

"Are you lost?" he asked, tilting his head in curiosity and satisfying mine in the process.

"Sort of. I'm sorry to trespass. Do you live here?"

"No, I'm a simple traveler. I was walking in the woods and became tired. I was resting here when you arrived." His tone was serene and friendly as he came up beside me to look into the building. "You strolled right to this building as if you knew it was here." He looked at me with advanced interest. "Do you?"

I shook my head. "I heard their voices, and I came to see who was talking. And that's when I saw him."

"Saw who?"

"You mean you didn't see him?"

He tilted his head again. "No. Was someone here?"

I took another look at the building where Nergal had been standing. Now I really believed I had seen a ghost leading me here. And if I had just witnessed a vision of the past (which seemed likely as young as Nils and Ninian had appeared), then Nergal remaining must have been another figment of my mind. "No… Pay me no mind. My imagination tends to get the better of me sometimes." I must have run through the woods following that woman longer than I first thought because exhaustion suddenly hit me like a war hammer to the chest. "Would it be all right if I took a rest here?"

"Yes, of course." The man led me over to one of the fallen trees and took a seat on the stump while I sat on the ground across from him.

"What is this place?" I asked.

"It's a ruin from the Scouring… The residence of a dark sorcerer. I've found several ancient tomes here." A silver book slid out from under his robes, and he opened it up to me. "Fascinating stuff, really. If I can unlock their secrets, I can move closer to the darkness. From what I've gathered so far, I must make further reparations."

"Reparations?" I asked, thinking better of staring at the tome for too long.

"Yes. It's the fate of those who study Dark magic. If you covet the dark, you must enter it of your own free will. You must erase yourself and become an empty vessel. Only then will you be able to receive the dark and master it. If your disposition is weak, the dark will overwhelm you. You will be…lost… Often times, you will forget why you seek the power to begin with. Only a few people ever gain true power. To win such a prize, one's self is a small and insignificant sacrifice."

His words dripped with disturbing familiarity. Canis had mentioned similar things happening to his siblings.

"I've heard rumors…” the man continued, “Bramimond, one of the eight legends, devoted himself entirely to the dark. All emotion, all memory… dissolved in a river of dark. That is how he received the power to best dragons."

"No offense to you, stranger," I glanced back at the structure where I had seen Nergal, "but that seems like too steep a cost to me. I've seen firsthand what the darkness has done to people. I would not encourage any person to chase after such power."

"To pay any price to have something… I believe every living soul has felt such desire. I know I have. Have you not? Certainly, you wish for something to put a stop to the dark sorcerer who once lived here."

My head slowly rotated back to him. The man's smile was one of a snake's.

"You want to free yourself from him, and more than that… you want to protect her…"

I stood up to draw my sword, but my legs buckled before I even got them straight and fell back to the ground. The man continued to sit on the log as my vision became hazy, both from my draining strength and a black fog that had rolled in around us. I couldn’t even find the strength to call out for aid. The tome was wide open in the man’s hands and bleak symbols hovered above the pages.

"You have come far, wandering tactician. And the darkness has given me a sign by leading you right to me. I will not allow you to destroy such a powerful servant of the darkness. He has too many secrets to be uncovered. I, Teodor, will dispose of you and your friends, and when I'm done, I will examine this building's treasures at my leisure."

The symbols above the tome expanded. Teodor got to his feet and started walking toward me. And he was not alone. Another form shrouded in the black fog came up behind the man. Two hands came around him; one grabbing the man's forehead, and another bringing a knife to his neck.

"You will perish, just like Nergal." Matthew pulled his knife, and then pushed the lifeless body away before jogging over to me. "Doing all right, Mark?"

The black fog began to dissipate, and I could feel my strength returning. "Yeah, I'm okay. How did you find me?"

"Jaffar and I saw you running off into the woods by yourself when we came to join the company."

"Jaffar?" I turned around and jumped back with a start. "Gah! Blast, Jaffar! You are good."

"This place…" Jaffar glanced around. "Nergal's essence permeates the air. He is not here. But he spent much time here."

"Is that why you came here, Mark?" Matthew asked. "Did you sense Nergal's presence or something? Or did he possess you and lead you here?"

"I was led here, but not by Nergal. It was by someone—or something—that wished to help me."

Matthew folded his arms unconvinced by my spooky explanation. "How do you know?"

"Because I regained some of my memories."

"Your memories!?" Matthew and Jaffar exchanged shocked glances. "Are you sure?"

"There wasn't much. Just glimpses of various locations and a brief image of Nergal. No satisfying answers though."

"If you were led here, and if Nergal spent time here, could it be that this is the place where he created you?"

"It's possible, but…" I shook my head and turned toward the building. "There's another reason I was led here. There's something I was meant to find here." I headed into the building and looked around. Time had taken its toll. The shriveled remains of fallen leaves were scattered about the furniture. Both new and old cobwebs hung between the gaps in bookshelves like flimsy veils for the books within. And the dust was so thick upon the books that the text on the spines was practically illegible. There were hundreds of books crammed into these bookshelves, and where there wasn't room to insert a book properly, they were stacked flat on top of others. A sickening wave poured through me looking at the multitude. Any one of those books could have contained the key to my past. However, that fear was overwhelmed by a desire to find one thing.

Something valuable…

My body moved on its own again. There was no pain in my head this time. Something inside drew me over to the desk with the parchment piled high on it. Yet even these were not what my body sought to uncover. With one determined swing of my arm, they were on the floor and my eyes locked on what I was looking for.

A sword. Nothing as grand as Durandal or Armads. The blade was a cloudy gray varying in tone between the fuller and the central ridge down to the hilt. Two golden serpents with red gemstones in their eyes extended from the hilt and weaved their way through golden thorns to wrap around the handle. And where their tails crossed, a black gemstone with a touch of purple shadow swimming within was fixed in the middle of the hilt. As I reached for it, gold started to sparkle in the shadow and then flashed.

Another image appeared in my head, but it came and went so quickly, I couldn’t remember what I’d seen. Even trying to recall the memory was like trying to find a page in a book that was no longer there. I only had the idea that I had seen something with no memory to prove it. And at this point, it was useless to think more on it. There were too many questions and no time for answers. We’d already been away from the company for too long. I took up the blade in my hand, and as soon as I did, I spoke its name.

"Norn."

The sound of weapons clashing acted as a guiding siren for us as we sprinted through the woods. My memories did not return, and we did not have time to be scouring the bookshelves for the possibility of regaining them. That possibility could be considered once we had dealt with Nergal, and right now I had a responsibility to my company that had been fighting for too long without me.

We passed through a line of trees and came out on a small plateau overlooking the field before the Dragon's gate. There were far more morphs than had first appeared. There were so many of them that it looked like the company was attempting to wade through a black swamp. Limstella stood on the far end of the field. The morphs did not move unless they gave a command. But when they did, the morphs moved as one. Fortunately, the company appeared to have held strong in my absence. My anxiety eased as I counted out the company. Everyone was still alive, and a great sense of pride washed over me seeing that they had obeyed my orders.

I knew they didn't need me.

A depressing thought sprouted in my mind, but I plucked it away before it could continue to grow. Even if the company didn't need me to lead them anymore, their survival wasn't the reason for me to keep going anymore. There was someone special down there waiting for me to return. I promised her I would.

Time to get back to work. From this plateau, we could bypass most of the morphs. But halfway down the hill, there would be no more cover for us to try and sneak up on Limstella. For the moment, the company seemed to garner Limstella’s full attention. The distance out of the tree line was short, and the three of us were fast enough that we could engage Limstella before they could redirect too many morphs on us.

I motioned for Jaffar and Matthew to follow me, and we descended the plateau like birds darting through the trees. Limstella had a better peripheral than I predicted, though. Almost the moment we stepped on to the path to them, a blue-bladed wisp came rushing up to meet us. The familiar magic did nothing to slow my charge. My blade went through the wisp as smoothly as my weapon had the night I battled Sonia. Jaffar veered further from me as more of the wisps came our way, and Matthew followed his example after seeing how effortlessly we faced the wisps. These wisps were stronger than the ones Sonia had thrown at us. Each time Norn cut through one of the wisps, a small shock rattled my arm, and the wisps managed to retain their forms long enough to leave a few small cuts. But unlike Sonia's wisps, they moved slower and materialized less frequently, and after one more was thrown at Matthew. They stopped altogether.

Now they were spinning together tightly in front of Limstella, forming a spinning cylinder. The bladed tornado, and it was plausible that it would be much more deadly than the one Hector had taken a hit from. At this point, some of the other morphs had turned to assist Limstella, but we were already less than 50 yards from them. Charging down the hill had increased our speed. Only two of them, a lean one with a sword and a burly one with an axe, stepped between us. They didn’t ready their weapons; they were meant to act as meat shields so that Limstella could finish the spell and send the tornado right through all of us.

Our timing would need to be impeccable. One misstep would be all Limstella needed to unleash that tornado. Matthew and Jaffar didn't need orders from me. They tore down the remaining distance ready to remove the two guards, and I brought up my weapon, hoping it would provide me with enough protection to break through the tornado without too much injury. Nevertheless, I had a feeling I would need some time with the healers after this.

Golden light flashed from the gemstone on my sword, and suddenly everyone stopped moving. No… they didn't stop. They were frozen in place. Jaffar and Matthew stood still in mid-sprint, the morph guards didn’t look at me as I passed them, and the tornado looked like a brilliant sculpture—a sculpture that shattered slowly as soon as I charged through it and drove my sword through Limstella's chest. And as soon as the sword made contact, everyone moved again.

"M-Mark!? H…How did you?" Matthew's voice stuttered in surprise behind me.

Limstella glanced down at the sword in their chest. Their face showed no pain from my weapon, or shock at whatever power had frozen them moments ago. "I am not human. This body and this heart are constructs. Yes, as is this sorrow." Their eyes finally closed and their head dropped.

And so did the rest of the morphs. All at once, every morph in the field collapsed to the ground as if a great, unseen hand pushed them all down at once, and the company was spared because they happened to be in the gaps of the fingers. I quickly found the lords along with Nils, and when they saw me, they rushed to join me immediately. Lyn in the lead of course.

"Mark, you're okay!" The relief in her voice was as plain as the smile on her face. Though her concern for my well-being was nothing new at this point, seeing the joy that I gave her just by continuing to be alive was something magical that not even one of our casters could conjure. "What happened? Where did you go?"

"Due to the amount of enemy forces we were facing, I sought out an alternate path to bypass most of the morphs and take out Limstella as quickly as possible." I motioned to Jaffar and Matthew. "I brought Jaffar along because he fought Sonia with me the night we protected the prince, and Matthew as well for an additional fast striker. We were held back by another foe up in the mountain, so it took us a while to arrive."

"Is that so?" Lyn said staring curiously at the two, no doubt surprised Matthew had been willing to fight alongside Jaffar.

"Bold plan," Hector replied equally stunned by his spy’s willingness to work with someone he still considered his enemy. "How did you know the morphs would suddenly subside as they did? "

"To be honest, I didn't anticipate this outcome. I remembered what Jaffar had said about only killing when he was ordered to. And as an actual person brainwashed into that obedient mindset, I assumed that these artificial morphs might be similar in nature. At the very least, taking out the commander would cause the morphs to retreat as they did at the manse in Bern."

Eliwood carefully maneuvered his horse around one of the corpses. "Limstella must have been the one providing them with quintessence so that Nergal would not have to expend any of his own."

"It's feasible," I replied bending down to get a closer look at one of Limstella's guards. The skin had gone completely pale, and its eyes were as deep and empty as an arid well. "But we shouldn't assume there won't be more morphs waiting for us at the Dragon's Gate. Am I correct, Nils?"

Nils closed his eyes. "Unn… Yes… I sense more morphs waiting for us… But they are different than the others… They have tremendous power… And Nergal as well…

"He'll be ready for us," I said, standing back up. "We should move as soon as possible. Has Lord Athos arrived yet?"

A response came promptly. "If you're looking for me, I'm right here."

"Lord Athos!" Eliwood dismounted his horse and went to the archsage to take Durandal from him.

"You're late, Graybeard!" Hector remarked, retrieving Armads.

Lyn reached up and flicked his head. "Be more respectful, Hector. …Well? Were you successful?"

"I was." A golden tome peeked out of his sleeve. "This is another legendary weapon, Aureola. The strongest light magic, wielded by Saint Elimine herself. With this, we should be able to rend Nergal's dark cloak and do him much harm." He nodded to Eliwood and Hector. "And those, too, have been infused with magic that makes them more effective against Nergal.

Eliwood held up his sword and gazed upon it awestruck. "It's… I can feel it already… Its power is beyond words."

"Incredible!" Hector swung Armads in front of him to test it. "With this, I know I cannot fail."

"And Lyndis, this is for you." Athos pulled out a thin single-edged sword with red dragon wings acting as the cross guard.

"Hm?" Lyn took the sword from him and examined it closely. "What blade is this?"

"A spirit-inhabited sword, the partner of the Mani Katti. This is the Sol Katti. It's not a legendary weapon, but its blade contains much power.

Lyn nodded. "Thank you!"

"Hey Mark," Hector poked me in the shoulder and pointed at my weapon. "Where did you get that fancy sword?"

Everyone took notice of my weapon now. Athos’s mien wrinkled with inquisitiveness.

"Norn," I replied, deciding it would be better to be honest, but not mention the fact that I had seen a ghost. "On our way through the mountain to get to Limstella, we came across a ruined building. I found this sword in it and… I took it… because I thought it might restore my memories."

"Your memories!?" Lyn's head shot up. "Did it work? Do you remember anything from your past now?"

I shook my head. "No, just the name of this sword and a few flashes of memories I assume to be from my past when I first came upon the building. I went to investigate it further, and I found this weapon, but it did not restore my memories. All I know is its name."

Athos continued to eye the weapon curiously.

"Is it one of the eight legendary weapons?" Eliwood asked him.

"No, I have never seen this weapon before." His hard eyes locked on me again. "You said you found this weapon in a building that belonged to Nergal?"

"That's right. I saw a vision of the past while I was there. It was Nergal and…" I just remembered the other part of the vision. "Ninian… and Nils… before the Scouring."

All eyes turned on Nils, who became stiffly uncomfortable at my mention of him.

"Nils…?" Lyn spoke softly.

"Is there something we need to know?" Hector said more severely.

Nils looked to be on the verge of tears, so for the first time during this campaign, I decided to throw aside my instinct as a tactician. "It doesn't matter. Whatever his history, it can wait until after we defeat Nergal. Get the company moving. Let's go."

"Mark," Eliwood had a look like he wanted to agree with me, but couldn't. "Are you sure?"

"I'm a morph. Nils is a dragon. I've lost control of myself and hurt people, and you did not kill me or imprison me or reject me. Not once has Nils done something to betray us. Quite the opposite, he has done everything in his power to help us get here now. So I choose to trust him regardless of his past just as you all have done with me."

"So do I," Lyn replied right on the tail of my words. She and I stared at Hector and Eliwood. "Both he and Ninian have aided us during this campaign. He is here for us and Ninian.

Hector grunted and rubbed the back of his head. "You're right. Nils is on our side. And once Nergal is dealt with, it won't matter anymore. Let's move."

Eliwood nodded sadly. "For Ninian…"

"For Ninian…" I echoed.

The lords moved to gather the company, and I was about to join them. However, when I glanced at Athos, his eyes were stuck on Norn and as solid as the day we first met. With what we were about to face, I needed to address whatever apprehensions he still had.

"Do you disagree with my decision?"

A smile appeared to offset the sternness. "Not at all. My concern is not of the boy, but with you and that weapon. You said the vision you saw was before the Scouring." He gazed out toward the Dragon's Gate. "I didn't meet Nergal until 500 years after the Scouring. The fact that it seems he was on this island, more than likely delving into Dark magic, makes me wonder more about his past too. Was there more to the man I met in the desert? Could he have been practicing Dark magic long before Arcadia?" He turned back to me. "And as his morph, where does that place you in history? You mentioned that you saw images from your past?"

"It was as if I were looking at pictures more than memories. And only one of them was of Nergal. Perhaps it’s locations we visited when I belonged to him. But it is impossible to say."

Athos hummed in agreement. "I understand your desire to regain your memories. It is possible that place may hold what you seek, but… It is a dark place. Finding the answers to your past could prove dangerous. And not just to you…"

"I know," I said, thinking of the night back in Ostia when Athos revealed the truth. "You needn't worry about me, though. I am a morph of Nergal. Frankly, I don't want to know all about that past." Lyn's warming smile appeared in my head, and Hector's words echoed in my ears. "What I do have is the memories I've made since I first woke up in the fields of Sacae, the friends I've made, and the life I've led since. I don't know who I was. What I do know is who I am now. And that is who I shall continue fighting to be."

"The words of a free man," Athos said with a smiling nod. "This world never ceases to kindle my hope for mankind." He moved to join the company. "It is time we put an end to Nergal's ambitions. Let it be finished."

"Athos, one more thing…"

"Hm?" He turned back to me with an interrogative brow.

I took another look at my sword before holding it up to him. "This weapon. Nergal mentioned something valuable he left in that building. I assume it is this. And I knew its name the moment I picked it up. Is it dangerous?"

Athos' expression did not alter in the slightest. "I sense a strange power in that weapon. However, it is nothing like Nergal's power or even dark magic. It is something entirely different—unknown even to me. So, I cannot say. If that weapon has given you a hint to your memories, it might be worthwhile to hold on to it. And if Nergal hid that weapon away…” He clutched his wizened beard in contemplation. “Why would he? I will yield to your judgment, Mark."

I nodded in understanding and watched Athos go, but I did not follow him. There was something much more concerning than my weapon seizing my attention now. I stared back down at the motionless morphs.

"Mark…"

I looked up to find Matthew. He must have been waiting patiently for the others to finish. He avoided my eyes, giving the ground a dejected stare instead.

"I… I wanted to thank you… For stopping me from killing Jaffar. I was selfish. All I could think about for the longest time was avenging Leila. I thought it would bring me peace. But it wouldn't have…"

I threw off his misplaced praise with a smirk. "If I remember correctly, thick metal bars were preventing me from getting to you. It was Leila who stopped you from killing Jaffar, not me. She's pretty good at stopping people from doing that kind of stuff."

Matthew chuckled. "She is. Even so, you tried to talk me down. And after that, you didn't imprison me for what I did. You continued to have faith in me even after giving you reason to do otherwise."

"Don't let it trouble you any longer. I'm going to need you focused when we head into the Dragon's Gate."

"You're right. I—Mark, what is it?"

Matthew finally looked at me to see that I was no longer looking at him, but the corpses that lay all around us. "These morphs,” I said. “They've stopped moving. They did not suffer any wounds during the battle. And yet, they became inanimate after their master died." I glanced up at him.

Matthew caught on right away. "You're a morph too…"

I gave him a grim nod. "I am a morph of Nergal. If we strike him down…"

"No, Mark. That is not going to happen. You're different from them. You have freewill."

"Maybe. But I can't know for sure, and Nergal must be struck down. Regardless of what will happen to me, we cannot hesitate when the moment comes." My gaze became so severe that Matthew recoiled. "Do not breathe a word of this to the lords… That's an order."

Chapter Text

Chapter 21

"Marcus, take group B and cover the entrance," I ordered as we passed into the depressing green halls of the Dragon's Gate for the second, and hopefully last time. "Group A is with me."

The company complied, and those following me spread themselves out as we had drilled continuously since the last time we were here so that they could better engage any surprise units. We encountered more of Nergal's morphs in the ruins outside the Dragon's Gate and we couldn't allow them to hinder our fight against Nergal. I would not allow us to be trapped in here a second time due to an unforeseen assassin. Fortunately for us, the assassin from last time was part of the company now, and he and Nino kept an eye out in the darkness of our western flank with Florina and a few others, while Pent and Louise coordinated our forces on the eastern side. We did not meet any resistance in the darkness until are adversary stepped out of the gloom.

"Nergal…" I said stepping to the front.

"Pah… you finally arrived," he said with disgusting indifference. Then his sickening smirk curled up. "You're too late. The gate is already open. With you here now, I will claim the mighty quintessence of dragons. I will become stronger and move ever closer to perfection.

"How many lives must you steal before you're satisfied?" Eliwood said, daring to move his horse closer. "And it's not only those who die. What about the ones left behind in pain and sorrow? What about them?"

"You're through here!" Hector called, stepping up as well. "You've sacrificed people like they were nothing but things!"

"I am who I am," Nergal replied, spreading his arms. "The pain of others, I do not feel. The sorrow of others does not touch me. Death feeds me. Death pleases me. I am the essence I consume. You fools will become corpses here because I wish it to be." Nergal lifted his hands. "Rise and come forth my servants!"

The sound of breaking glass rushed past us, echoing through the chamber as eight figures materialized next to Nergal.

"Oh no…" Lyn gasped.

Eliwood took an astonished step back. "This…

To Nergal’s right were the guards from the fortress in the mountain, Kenneth and Jerme, behind them were Uhai the Sacaean from our first trip here and the blue witch Urusla who had murdered Kent. They’re expression were empty of emotion, and they didn’t appear to be breathing.

Nino shrieked. I looked to Nergal’s right to see her brothers, Lloyd and Linus, and their father Brendan stood with the cowardly Marquess Laus, Lord Darin. If they had been consumed, then I doubted anyone in the Black Fang who hadn't joined our company avoided this fate. My heart dropped at this tragic thought. After defeating Uhai and learning about Lloyd and Linus from Nino and Legault, I wished I could've met this group on better terms before Nergal infected them. They were not the monsters we had faced during this campaign. And I found it even more appalling that Nergal had now turned them into his disgusting morphs to serve him in death.

"You seem impressed with my work,” Nergal said. “Or perhaps it's just that you've seen a familiar face?"

"What have you done, Nergal!?" Hector questioned. He was barely holding himself back from rushing Nergal outright.

"These morphs you see before you. I've given them the abilities and appearances of the people whose essences I used to craft them." Nergal cocked his head in a way that stoked my anger even more. "Well, that's not entirely true. I've made them far more powerful. This is the ideal plan for hypocrites like you. Especially you, Eliwood. You continue to regret causing harm to anyone, even enemies. However, no matter the reason, once the deed is done, it's done. Whether you enjoy it or not is irrelevant—the result is the same."

"It's not the same!" Eliwood shouted back. "If you feel no horror for taking someone's life…then you…you yourself are not alive!"

Nergal gave an unimpressed cackle. "Your weakness runs deep in you. You can never understand. The concepts of good and evil are devoid of any meaning, any value. These ideas prevent humans from liberating their own strengths." He turned his gaze on Hector. "Do you see? I have power. The power to perform miracles. Oh, yes… Hector. I see that glint of desire within you. Your brother, Uther, the marquess of Ostia? He's dead, is he not?"

"How-" Hector's breath caught in his throat, taken aback by Nergal's knowledge.

"If you would like, I could make a morph of your brother. It would be well suited for a fragile human such as you. Perhaps a heartless puppet could ease the longing in your soul."

Nergal held out his hand, and a murky shadow spilled from his palm on to the floor. At first, the shadow pooled at Nergal's feet, then it separated and rose up. The shadows coiled around each other, causing my stomach to turn. I watched the shadows fade into the form creating legs, a cape flowing off the back of dark green armor, and finally a scarred face. Uther stood in front of Nergal; strong-shouldered and formidable as the morning I met him in spite of his illness. There was no illness to be found in this Uther. There was no room for anything. It was like staring at a doll—a doll that looked at Hector and walked toward him. For the first time since I'd known Hector, he appeared on the verge of collapsing from anguish. Not even Marquess Ostia had been beyond Nergal's grasp. This wasn't just a disgusting display of his power; it was meant to demoralize.

"Shut up." I stepped forward swinging my sword through the puppet's neck (I dared not refer to it by the man it was created from) and kicked aside the body. "You're the only heartless puppet here."

Nergal shifted his gaze back to me. "What?"

"I know what happened to you. I visited the study you lived in during the Scouring on this island—the place you gave yourself up to the dark to receive its power. Now you are nothing but a vessel of the darkness. You are devoid of emotion, unable to feel pain or suffering… You are the puppet, Nergal! A puppet of the Dark, you sacrificed your very being to it for power, and now look what you’ve become. You're no different from your own creations. And though I may be one of yours, I will take great pleasure in seeing you destroyed by the creation whose mind you destroyed."

Nergal's smile returned. "You truly are a fool. You remember nothing at all, do you?"

Athos stepped past me. "Nergal, after all these years… You have not stopped to reconsider your ideas at all."

"The same is true of you, Athos." Nergal's smile wilted, and his gaze narrowed to restrain his hatred of his former companion. "You must see the truth of it! All living creatures take energy from somewhere. We all use it to create, to change it into something better. The knowledge of Arcadia has shown us the road to the ultimate transformation. And yet you will not take that road! Why do you reject the obvious?"

"I am not opposed to the quest for power, for greater knowledge," Athos replied. "However, that quest must be driven from within. To fuel your quest with the stolen lives of others, this brings not wisdom but abomination."

Nergal placed a hand on his forehead and cackled again. "I remember. I still remember! Those words are unchanged from when you first said them ages back. When you and the dragons conspired to bury me!" Nergal grasped the cloth around his head and ripped it off, revealing a nasty burn scar around the eye the cloth had been covering. "Look at this wound! The wound I took from your magic! It was a mistake. The only person who understood… The man I thought my truest friend… It was a mistake to try and destroy me." Nergal laughed again, but this time it came out more insane. Like realizing the truth about Athos' betrayal had reopened his grotesque injury and he was elated by the pain of it. "It confirmed some things for me. That trust brings betrayal. That friends bring weakness!"

I shook my head at this madness. "If that is what you learned from your encounter, then you are the fool. Do you honestly believe when Athos struck you down, his closest compatriot, he felt nothing!? My own friends have defied me with anger and wisdom every time I asked them to end me, and I’ve seen their pain at the mere thought of it. To believe Athos was not also wounded from your madness is absurd!" I finally brought my gaze on him with all the weight I could muster to strike back at my cracked creator. "You are beyond help, you craven! The fact that you still don't get it sickens me even more."

"Mark…" Athos breathed with a tone of admiration that filled my heart with even more strength.

"You may no longer feel any emotion,” I continued. “But at least your creations no longer have to suffer the same fate. I may have been your puppet—a tool to serve your black agenda. But I broke free. And unlike you who lost the heart that defined your humanity, I gained my own. I feel compassion. I feel happiness and excitement and love! But I also feel sorrow, and anger and fear and doubt. And I even feel pity. Yes, pity even for you! Pity that I gained what you lost. Something that kept these humans all driven to this point: hope. Despite everything you've thrown at us, they have held onto a hope that they could resist you. And in my time spent with them, I too have learned how to feel this hope. It is over for you, Nergal. In these final moments you have, I hope that you will finally see the gift you lost to your maltreated tool."

"Interesting…" Nergal said without any snide expression. "A pawn such as you has "pity" for your master? Amusing… Hold onto your hope, whelp, for I will relish crushing it before your very eyes. That is, of course, unless my morphs crush it first!" There was a flash, and Nergal disappeared.

"Come back here, Nergal!" I shouted into the darkness. How dare he slither away like a snake! From the beginning, I had been nothing to him but a toy to torture and use for his own pleasure. "Hector, Lyn, you take our western group and eliminate the Black Fang Morphs. Eliwood, you and Athos take the rest of our forces and destroy these abominations."

"What about Nergal?" Eliwood asked.

I gripped Norn tight and prepared myself to rush past the morphs when I had an opening. "That demon is somewhere in the darkness. He's mine, and mine alone! You all stay back."

Lyn grabbed me by the cloak with such unrestrained force I thought she would throw me to the ground. But she came around in front of me giving a glare that could have intimidated Marcus. "Don't you dare give us such a selfish command because you are angry! You should know better than to fall for his taunts. You are not the only one here who desires to put an end to that black-hearted fiend."

"She's right," Hector said, stepping in front of me too. "We've come this far together, haven't we? We deserve to take a piece of him too."

Eliwood maneuvered his horse behind them as well. "Before now, you were alone in this world, Mark. You were used, you escaped, and then you were used again. But as you said, you are no longer shackled to your past. You are no longer alone, so we are not going to let you step into that darkness alone. We are your friends, and we are with you whether you like it or not."

"Eliwood… Hector…" I said, feeling those emotions I stated with such earnestness toward Nergal.

"Don't forget me, Mark!" Nils spoke up, pulling my cloak. "And…Ninian. I'm sure she's here as well."

"Nils…" I placed a shaky hand on the boy's head to steady it.

At that moment, others in the company started voicing their support as well.

"I'm here for you too!"

"You're our leader! We follow you!"

"No one else will be taken by Nergal!"

"We fight together!"

Sain rode his horse up to me smiling big. Not that smile he usually wore when he was ready to impress one of the female members of the company. But one that struck me as incredibly similar to Kent's. One of trust and reverence, and he leaned forward on his horse to grip my shoulder.

"We've come a long way since Lundgren, Mark. I don’t know if he ever mentioned it to you. Kent was always too professional to express his sappy feelings, but he told me. He told me how impressed he was by your tenacity, admired it even. The first time he told me was after Araphen when we lost the support of the Marquess. I didn’t know how we could possibly defeat Lundgren’s army without support from a similar force. Yet, Kent never doubted you. He said he couldn’t because the moment he did, our journey would come to an end.” Sain locked his stare with mine. “And he didn’t want to fail you.”

My heart caught in my throat. “He… he what?”

Sain let out a sad laugh. “Ah, the fool. Always hiding his emotions behind his armor. But yes, it is true. It wasn’t just his duty to Lyn and Lord Hausen keeping him going. Kent was ready to die to fulfill his duty. You were the one who gave him hope that we could succeed and live to see it. That's who kept him going after Araphen. That's the Mark we followed when we left Caelin to fight against Darin and the Black Fang. And in the end, you were the one he sacrificed himself for to ensure that you continued to lead us." Sain dumped his head "You told him to run, and the man would not listen. He chose to face that darkness alone, and he did not come back. But he did not do that out of anger. Kent did that because he knew we needed you and you needed us. The brave fool made his decision believing it was the right one. And I know he made the right decision, too. So, don't let his sacrifice have been for nothing by throwing away your tactical mind now. Didn’t you say, ‘never enter a battle you’re sure to lose’?"

It was actually never enter a battle you’re sure you can’t win, but I couldn’t speak; I couldn't believe such words were coming from Sain's mouth. Of all the people to correct me, I never imagined it would be the company playboy.

Thank you, Kent.

“Thank you, Sain,” I finally said. “Don’t diminish yourself, though. If not for both you and Kent, Lyn and I would have perished outside Bulgar that day.”

Sain smiled again and acknowledged me with a nod. "And we’ll do so again. The rest of the company will keep the morphs occupied," he said, spinning his lance as he stared down Darin. "You all find and end Nergal." He glanced back at us. “For Kent.”

“For Kent,” I replied. Then Lyn's soft hand drew my gaze back to her. "It wasn’t just Kent and Sain who saved us. Remember how I found you all alone in the field? I would’ve died to those Brigands if you had not aided me, but you saved me from more than Brigands. I remember that day fondly because it was the day when the void of loneliness in my life was filled with the man I would soon come to love with all my heart. Everyone here has followed you not because you are our tactician, but because you are a beloved and precious friend. So, for this final battle, throw aside your strategies, cast away that anger you are harboring. Remember what you told me that night in the fort. Don't let the horror of your past continue to consume you. You have a new life now. Let us enter the darkness together, and let us defeat it together."

"Lyn…" I couldn't hold back the tears any longer.

Lyn gave me that bright smile that I loved so much, and she pulled me to her lips to remind me of her cemented devotion to me. "You are not a morph, Mark. Not anymore. The emotions you are feeling now prove that. You don't need to prove anything else to anyone. Not even yourself."

Though her words were powerful and full of courage, it wasn't that I wanted to face Nergal by myself, or thought we had no hope of defeating him. Despite my emotions, the fact remained that I was a morph of Nergal. My life was tied to his. When Nergal died, so would I, and my friends would watch me die when we achieved victory. Better that I strike down Nergal alone in the darkness where they could believe I had given my life to defeat him. But it appeared I would not be allowed to die alone. I took in a deep breath and stifled my tears. "Alright then. Let's put an end to Nergal for good."

Sain started giving out orders to the rest of the company the same way Kent had whenever I still needed to survey the battlefield before a fight. The company moved on the morphs, giving the lords, Athos, and me an opening to head further into the darkness. And Lyn moved in close to me so that she could whisper.

"Mark, before we face Nergal…”

I slowed my pace.

“I’ve been wondering… About Hector…"

"You mean about Lord Uther?" I guessed.

"He had Uther's quintessence… Did you know?"

"I don’t know how he acquired Uther’s quintessence. But Uther seemed off before we left for Nabata. I confronted him about it, and he told me the truth. For Hector's sake as well as our mission, I stayed silent. It was while we were in Bern that Oswin came to tell me that Uther had died. It was the same illness that took his father. The sickness came on suddenly. It took less than a year for the disease to spread."

Lyn's gaze fell. "So, when we met him in that fortress, he was…"

"He was dying. …I don't think he wanted any of us to know, especially Hector. He pushed himself too far."

"Hector… when… when did he…"

I glanced at Hector. He moved with purpose as he always did. To anyone, you'd never be able to guess that he had almost crumbled from shock. Lord Uther had been Hector's last remaining family member, and I didn't blame him if he had considered Nergal's offer. The man always put on an presence of strength, even when it was just Eliwood, and I. It was something I admired about him. I could always rest assured that he would be ready for anything that might surprise us. But now I wondered if it had all been a front to hide a more profound pain. But I made no mistake when I cut down that morph.

"Only recently…" I continued. "I think he figured it out when he saw Lord Uther wasn't at the castle. I'm sure he pressed Oswin to tell him. After that, so as not to distract us, Hector pretended nothing was amiss. I think you and I finally admitting how we felt about each other was a boon for him. He and Eliwood had always been pressing me to be honest with you."

Lyn's head spun to me in surprise. "That's… no- That's…"

"I know, Lyn…" I gently pulled her to me and stole a taste of her lips. "I love you, Lyn."

Lyn’s face lit up in the gloom, and she stroked my cheek. "I love you too, Mark."

I increased my pace to come up beside Hector. "Hector. I need to talk to you before we face Nergal."

"It's about my brother, isn't it?" He said, slowing down, but not turning to me. "Sorry I didn't tell you about him."

"It's all right," I replied. "I understand you had your reasons. But there's something else I wanted to ask you."

"You don't have to worry, Mark," Hector answered still not looking at me. "I would never accept Nergal's disgusting offer. Thanks for destroying that abomination for me."

"I know you wouldn't. I trust you, Hector. But I wanted to know if you have made peace with Oswin."

Hector finally gave me a quick glance. "Don't talk to me about him…"

I picked my words as if I were considering how to best penetrate his thick armor guarding more than just his physical body. "Hector, you've trusted my judgment since Santaruz. And I would have preferred Oswin with the company currently fighting the morphs rather than staying behind to prevent reinforcements. But I yielded when you ordered him to remain with Marcus and Group B."

Hector kept his gaze forward. "Then you should've said something. I wouldn't have argued with your decision."

"No, I shouldn't have. That would've been a poor tactical decision on my part. Having Oswin aid Group A would've been a detriment to us."

"What do you mean?" He asked, glancing back at me again. "That contradicts what you just said.”

"Not entirely. You see, I learned something I had been doing wrong as a tactician. When I made my decisions on who would be fighting where, there was one factor I forgot to consider above everything: a person's relationship with others in the company. Even you can see it. Certain people fight better when they are around someone else in particular. Pent, Louise, and Hawkeye, Nino and Jaffar...you and Florina."

I spotted a tiny jerk in Hector's body.

"Marcus pointed out that I hadn't been taking people's feelings into account when I gave orders. Putting the right people together can mean the difference between victory and defeat in battle. And so, after our campaign continued, I started taking people's relationships and moods into consideration whenever I came up with a plan. The same rules apply for putting the wrong people together. That is why I didn't overrule your order. I needed you and Armads."

"Then why are you bringing Oswin up?" Hector finally stopped to give me his full attention. Eliwood and Lyn stopped as well and turned to Athos to discuss something, but more to give us privacy than anything else.

"Because you're not angry with Oswin, are you?"

Hector continued to stare at me but did not say a word, so I continued.

"When Lord Uther was in trouble, you weren't at his side. You're angry with yourself for failing. I think we both know that's the truth. I know how you feel. I couldn't save Lord Elbert… I could not prevent one of my closest friends from dying because I was unable to control myself… I even ordered Eliwood to strike poor Ninian down. Over and over, I've failed, and I've blamed myself."

"Those aren't failures, Mark. You couldn't have known those things would happen…"

"I did with Kent," I quickly pointed out. "I couldn't find any way to escape Nergal's possession, but he did. Despite my arguments, he gave his life, not just to keep me from being taken away, but many others that could've died had he not stepped up. And for the longest time, I tried to put on that strong air to hide my sorrow. But every day his death has torn me apart inside. If it weren't for Lyn, I would still be blaming myself. But that's… that's just another way of running from the sadness of loss. Kent was thinking of everyone else when he sacrificed himself. And Lord Uther… and Oswin… They were thinking of you above all else. You must see that, but if you continue to pretend you do not, you will do their sacrifice a disservice. Don't let your brother's sacrifice be for nothing, Hector. Finish the mission he fought to let you focus on. That's all I have to say."

Hector grunted. “Mark it isn’t that-”

“Enough…”

Before Hector could say more, torches lit on the pillars around us and Nergal finally appeared in the dim light. He was standing before the Dragon's Gate at the end of the walkway where we had found Eliwood's father on our previous encounter. As we approached, Nergal kept up the wicked grin.

“You speak of sacrifices and honoring the dead, but it matters not for you will not even remember them once I take your quintessence and make you my new morphs.”

"Nergal!" Eliwood commanded his horse ahead of us.

"So you're here, Eliwood," Nergal answered. "I thought losing Ninian might distract you. Have you forgotten her so quickly? How heartless."

The mockery would not faze Eliwood. "I haven't forgotten. I'll never forget. It was my mistake that killed Ninian. Because of that, I will fight. I will not run away and hide in sorrow… I'm going to put an end to all of this!"

"Your reign of terror is over, Nergal," Hector called, readying Armads.

"I cannot understand you, Hector of Ostia," Nergal replied unimpressed. "Why would you do all of this for Eliwood? Is this miserable thing called friendship worth dying for?"

"I don't expect you to understand. You've forgotten what it means to be human!"

"Friendship is what kept us all fighting against you no matter what you threw against us," Lyn stated.

"Ah…" Nergal hissed. "Little girl from Sacae… You'd do well to vanish. One such as you is no match for me."

"You know nothing of my people, Nergal," she shot back. "The nomads of the plains do not abandon their fellow tribesmen. Eliwood and Hector are my dear friends… And so is our tactician. For he is the one who has not only brought me, but all of us here to put an end to your twisted plans."

"So, you are as foolish as he is," Nergal smirked.

"Foolish or not, we are here, Nergal," I stated, stepping toward him readying my weapon. "This is your end. We will make you pay for all the lives you have stolen in your fruitless pursuit of power. No more will die by your hand!"

"You will try."

"And they will succeed," Athos said, coming alongside me.

"Heh heh… Athos…" He spread his arms to the side. "Take a good look at me! At my tremendous power!"

"Already…words are useless." Athos procured the golden tome from under the cuffs of his robes. "As an old friend… I will fulfill my duty."

"Very well…" Globes of dark energy spawned in his hand and grew until they were the size of apples. "Be prepared. You are to be witnesses to a power that overwhelms all!" The dark globes disappeared in his hands, and then a giant hole tore open the empty space behind him, pulling in the air around us and causing the entire walkway to shudder. My body ached with exhaustion as I gazed upon the hole. I could feel the dark magic sucking essence into it, and my vision was beginning to fade. But just as the darkness closed in, a single beam of light shot down between Nergal and me. The beam of light focused on the black hole, narrowed, and then a single small star as bright as the sun traveled down the beam until it entered the hole and erupted in a brilliant golden shower, shaking the ground even further.

"Now heroes!" Athos yelled over the roaring of their magic. The golden light spun within the void holding its dreadful pull at bay. "Strike him with your weapons!"

None of us needed any more encouragement. We all charged forward ready to bring Nergal down. Lyn, being the fastest out of all of us, made it to Nergal first. He summoned more of the dark orbs and aimed some of the smaller ones her way, but she ducked and dove over them with ease and struck in spinning her body in a graceful arc. The swords danced swiftly in her hands, but Nergal's orbs defended him from most of her bladed whirlwind. Lyn slid her left foot out further to twist her weapons under the spheres, and two strikes broke through. Nergal grunted and maneuvered more of the shadowy orbs in her direction, pressing Lyn to retreat.

Fortunately, with Nergal's attention focused on her, Eliwood was able to charge his horse straight on our enemy. Bringing the shining Durandal around, he landed a devastating blow on Nergal's shoulder, causing several of the dark globes to expand and burst. A yelp of pain escaped Nergal's mouth as he twisted his arms around, quickly throwing the shadowy orbs toward his assailant. Eliwood commanded his horse to evade the attack and headed back toward Nergal for another strike.

Nergal saw the attack coming and halted his shadowy assault to phase his body. Eliwood's weapon sliced through thin air, and then a portion of the orbs came around to hound him. This tactic turned Nergal back around to Hector, who had pulled ahead of me and brought his axe back to strike. Nergal noticed him and recalled the orbs to act as a shield. Armads clashed against the orbs sending black lightning streaking out around them, bouncing over Hector's armor like locusts trying to escape a wildfire. The stone floor beneath them cracked from the intensity. But whether the lightning had little effect on him, or Hector was just Hector, he swung his axe around for a brutal uppercut that smashed through the orbs.

Nergal's shield broke apart like a snapping bone, and his shocked expression was a luscious sight to behold as I stepped around Hector to act on the opening he created, driving my sword upward toward Nergal's face. Those malevolent eyes spotted me just in time, however. His head moved out of the way, causing my sword to deflect off his shoulder instead. I didn't let up with my assault, and Hector joined in the unreserved onslaught. With a hiss, the orbs reformed into a single cylindrical form, rushing toward us like a geyser to protect their master.

Hector was the first to be hit by the orbs and was thrown away into a nearby column that broke apart and started falling toward me. The incoming debris forced me to stall my assault and step away. And once the pillar crashed down, the dark cylinder snaked over the rubble, humming ominously. I maneuvered my sword up just in time to block the initial strike but took such a massive hit that I was thrown back into the ground. Air rushed out of my lungs when I collided with the floor, and through my dazed vision, I could see the orbs coming back in.

For a moment, I hoped that Norn would stop time again as it had against Limstella. But I had no idea how to activate my sword manually. I had no choice but to dodge the attack. Lyn jumped to my defense, or rather, she and several of her clones appeared just like they had against Batta that first day. The Mani and Sol Katti each clone possessed sliced through the torrent of darkness so quickly, they made headway back to Nergal. His teeth were locked together in strain as he tried to push back against the advancing Sacaean. But the light from Athos's tome appeared and dissipated a heavy chunk of the orbs, providing Lyn with the support she needed. Getting to Nergal wasn't her intention, though.

Having been cleared of the orbs’ harassment, Eliwood's horse hurdled over the rubble and stampeded toward our opponent. Durandal flashed through the orbs like they were mere flies and smashed into Nergal's left side. A violent black shadow burst from the wound. Nergal staggered away, screeching in shock and agony. The shadow that had exploded from the injury sent out an unmerciful force that knocked Eliwood from his steed and sent Lyn and I tumbling away.

Hector was the only one able to stand his ground, emerging from the rumble with a resounding war cry as he charged in. Nergal managed to recover enough to regain control of his dark magic. The shrieking shadow died; the orbs bubbled and grew larger and somehow even darker before they hummed forward. The Ostian Bull would never stop. The incoming darkness did not deter him for a second. He plowed right through it, bringing Armads across Nergal's chest before crashing to the ground behind him and leaving an exasperated Nergal to stagger backward.

And that was the opening that we needed. Lyn and I jumped to our feet. Lyn used her speed to race around to the backside of Nergal and skidded into a pivot while waiting for me to close the distance. Nergal finally looked up, and I could see his eyes, abysmal and bleak as the void he had summoned. A biting chill swept over me as pain sprouted in my head, but I did not stop.

"NERGAL!" My arms bulged with strength, my feet trampled over the ruined stone beneath me, and the air made way for Norn as it pierced the spot where Nergal's heart would've been if he had one, while Lyn plunged her swords deep into his back. Nergal grunted, and the black hole behind us dispelled along with any of the remaining shadow orbs.

"Why? Why must I lose?" Nergal gasped, trying to cling to his wretched life. "More power… I must be stronger… I… Why? Why did I… want power? Aenir…"

As he spoke that name, the gemstone on Norn flashed, and my head throbbed. I ground my teeth together to endure the pain and kept my sword in place, using the sound of Norn digging into his flesh to bolster my fortitude. He would not use me to save himself this time. "No, Nergal," I said, in an attempt to block out the growing headache. His flesh gave, causing him to utter a satisfyingly painful groan. "Your power is at an end. I am no longer yours to control. I am not your morph! I am your slave no longer! Your creation has brought your downfall." It would only be a matter of time. The headache was foreshadowing my own end. As soon as Nergal took his last breath, I would fall along with him. So, I would relish this moment for as long as I could.

Nergal let out a weak cackle. But as pitiful as it was, it froze my blood all the same, and the pain escalated. "Ignorant creature..." His voice was barely a whisper now. "You've truly forgotten… I didn't create you… You joined me… willingly… I used you… as the archetype for my creations… Your quintessence… I used it to create all of them…

The pain in my head became excruciating. It felt like Nergal was hacking my skull apart with a hatchet to attack my brain directly. I glanced at the concern spreading over Lyn's face and used her as a buffer against the torment. "What… What do you mean?"

"What better quintessence is there…" Nergal sighed. "Than the endless quintessence of a dragon?"

"What!?"

Before I could do anything more, I fell to my knees against my will. I barely held Norn in place. There was no more pain. In fact, I suddenly felt stronger than ever. Multiple images flashed through my head. Images of dragons and humans in a city together, Nergal and Athos. A dead man being held by a crying woman. Nergal holding his hand out to me. I didn't understand any of these images!

Nergal was laughing even louder now. His bubbling magic twisted around his hands like a perverse serpent, and he grasped the hilt of my sword where the gemstone rested. "With my last breath… your friends will tremble… and… despair… before the true form… of their beloved tactician… as he fulfills my work! You will bring about… the desire we’ve longed for… You will destroy the humans… just as you wished!" He hissed out the last word before giving one final triumphant laugh. The gemstone pulsated with a dark light once more, and he collapsed to the ground.

"Mark?" Lyn's voice called out. "Mark!"

"What's happening to him!?" Hector shouted.

"It can't be…" I heard Eliwood say as his startled horse retreated from me.

Without any thought of my own, my body moved, pulling Norn from Nergal’s chest and sending me to the gate. The massive jade doors were already grinding across the ground as flames swept through the ever-increasing gap like agitated vipers trying to escape from a box. My body finally came to a stop in front of the gate, and then my hands rose into the air beckoning the flames toward me.

They obeyed. The gate opened wide enough, and an inferno exploded outward. I could hear the voices of my friends scream out in terror, and I worried that the flames would consume me. The fiery tongues reached me; they burst and flared off in other directions around me as if they had met a solid wall. For a brief moment, the fire was all I could see before me. But when it finally withered away, I beheld an even more terrifying sight that both my heart and mind seemed to be excited by for some inexplicable reason. I was no longer in control, just like when Nergal had taken control of me to injure Lord Hausen. But how? Nergal was dead!

Three colossal orange dragons emerged from the egress, letting loose titanic roars from jaws stuffed with fire. Their eyes were blazing suns, plumes of pure conflagration flared off their backsides like amorphous wings, and each step from their immense clawed feet shattered the ground on which they strode. Though I had read and even seen pictures of dragons during the days I spent in the libraries, these creatures were unlike anything I could ever have conceived.

And yet, they excited me.

My hands beckoned once again. "Come, my brothers. It is time we take back the land that was stolen from us so many years ago. Let us wreath this land in flame and exterminate the pestilence that locked you behind those gates."

Shock, confusion, and exhilaration all entered my body as the flames continued to scream past me. I was filled with trepidation and determination that tore at each other like wild animals while I felt my face crack into an insane smile. The words weren't my own, and yet I spoke them with unbridled enthusiasm. I couldn't understand why. Was this Nergal's final act of desperation? Had he left a failsafe inside me when he created me? His last act to ensure his plans came to fruition was to use me to summon the dragons. And I was utterly powerless to stop it.

But I wasn't a morph… He said… a dragon… Was I?

"Mark!" Hector's voice called from somewhere behind me. "What are you doing!? Get away from them!"

"What a calamity!" Athos pushed his voice to be heard above the roaring. "If dragons return to this world… The continent will be ash in less than a month!"

The force that had taken control of my body resonated with Athos' words. It knew the archsage spoke the truth and it reveled in the coming disaster. A disaster brought about by my uncontrollable power. After coming so far… enduring so much pain, overcoming evil opposition and gut-wrenching sorrow to finally put an end to Nergal and his lunacy, and it would be I, his unwitting pawn, that would destroy everything I worked so hard to achieve.

I… I couldn't let this happen. I had to end this at any cost. Now, more than any other time he had hijacked my mind, I had to resist Nergal's magic.

With what strength I still maintained, I focused on recapturing my voice to make it my own once again. My ears rang with sheer agony, and it felt as if my head was going to implode on itself. I shut my eyes, focusing all my strength on my mouth and voice and endeavored to speak.

"E… El… Eliwood!"

"Mark?" Eliwood responded. "Mark!"

"Hec-Hector," I called again. "Lyyyyn! Athos!"

"Mark!" Lyn's desperate voice shouted back. "You must get away from them!"

"No!" I shouted back continuing to concentrate on keeping my voice. "I'm… calling… the dragons… I must… halt… them." I could feel the invading force within me struggling to take back what it had lost. "Use the weapons! Strike… now!"

The sound of glass shattering barely pierced the ringing in my ears as Athos materialized next to me. "Hold strong, Mark. I will aid you in deterring these beasts." Athos put up his hands, and I could feel another force surging through me. Whatever he was doing, further strength flowed to fight against the power trying to control me. My salvation was just ahead, but it grew smaller with every second. Taking back myself was like trying to fit myself through a pin-sized hole while being pushed away by a relentless gale. I pushed my finger through that hole, found something to latch on to, and held on no matter how much my body raged against me.

Whatever was trying to take me wasn't the only threat, however. The dragons took notice of Athos and lumbered toward us. The flames began to spill out of their jagged maws as they moved closer. I tried my best to push them away somehow or pacify them. That proved to be a useless effort because I could feel myself slipping away when I lost focus of controlling myself. The first dragon opened its mouth and fire erupted toward us.

"Athos!" Eliwood shouted.

"Mark!" Lyn screamed.

I braced myself for the rushing blaze, but just as before, the flames found a wall and diverted course and, to my astonishment, ignited the stone structures around us instead. The second dragon unleashed its fire upon us as well with the same results. Whatever had prevented the flames from consuming me when the gate opened still protected both Athos and me. I could see Athos unscathed by the fiery onslaught, but his gray face betrayed great fatigue. Whatever power he was providing me with was draining quickly.

"So powerful…" He said through his debilitated breathing. "Can they be stopped?"

The sound of hooves clattering came up behind us. "Mark!" Eliwood's voice rang much clearer. "Lord Athos! Flee! The dragons are getting closer."

"No… Eliwood," I replied struggling to hold on to the only part of myself I still had control of. "If we can't stop them here, we are… lost."

Suddenly a bright flash filled the air around us, and the dragons retreated away from the blinding light.

"Bramimond!" I heard Athos say.

"Preparations… took time," said the voice I recognized as the being who revealed I wasn't human. "…ok. I require everyone's strength. Gather here the legendary power. Athos, lend me your aid. Remain strong, mysterious one."

There was another flash. I gained more control over myself.

"Ah!" Eliwood gasped. "This light…"

"Look!" Lyn called to us. "There!"

A sound like the light Lucius would summon from his tomes echoed throughout the chamber, drowning out all other noise for several seconds.

"With the last of my quintessence, bring her back…" Bramimond spoke in a calm, even tone. "Let the dragon girl's soul be restored."

There were several more flashes, and when it finally ceased, and the sound faded, I heard a collective gasp from those around me.

"Ninian!" Eliwood's voice was a mix of astonishment and exhilaration.

"Ninian…!" Nils voice echoed in the distance.

At first, I couldn't believe what I was hearing, but then her quiet voice spoke. "Where…?"

"Girl with the exalted blood of dragons,” Bramimond said, “combine your power with the son of Marduk."

“Marduk…?” Athos breathed the name out with unquestionable astonishment.

Ninian let out a painful breath. "It's… not possible… Use my power… in this world…"

"Do you not feel it?" Bramimond asked. "Your power returning?"

"What?" Ninian gasped. "Yes… I will try."

A gentle hand came to rest on my shoulder, and an invigorating sensation rushed throughout my body. I suddenly felt like I had control of myself again.

"Markov…" Ninian said. "Take my power… Use it to appease our raging brethren. Send them back through this gate. Do not… let them destroy the world we love…"

The other part of me raged against her, but whatever Ninian had done to me filled me with incredible strength. My entire body throbbed like a brazen hammer against searing steel as I took hold of that commanding vigor and focused all my efforts upon the dragons to urge them back into the gate. "That's enough…" I said. "I'm sorry… this was not our fault…"

I don't know how, but the dragons obeyed. They reluctantly trudged back into the gate. The ethereal veil between the worlds enveloped them one by one until they had all receded, and the gate shut away the fire.

"No more…" Ninian whispered.

Her power faded from me, I let my arms fall to the side, and I heard her collapse next to me.

"Ninian!" Eliwood cried out.

"It's okay," Nils said as he ran up to us. "She only fainted. Thank goodness… Ninian…"

"NOOOOOOO!" I suddenly roared.

The other force gripped my body once again in such a rage it felt as if my conscious mind was being crushed by a rockslide. I dropped to my knees, and my eyes slammed shut. The voices of my friends were muffled by the stinging agony sparking through my hands as they started to scratch at the devastated floor. Gritting my teeth seemed to be what the other force wished, so I used the rage to try and gain a foothold within myself again. When I opened my eyes, however, the last of my willpower disappeared. My hands had grown in size, and shimmering dark gray scales cracked with gold replaced my skin. But the transformation didn't stop there. My back arched, I could feel my entire body starting to shift, and every second, I rose further from the ground.

"No!" Lyn said aghast. "What is this!? What's happening to him?"

"Mark!" Hector shouted. "Mark, what's wrong!"

"Mark, don't let Nergal win!" Eliwood joined them. "Fight back against him. You can-"

"Silence!" I bellowed. The voice was not mine. "You humans are nothing more than insects! You're a plague that must be purged in fire! I will feast upon your flesh and crush your bones! I will bring desolation to this land and leave nothing but ruin in my wake! You will not stop the return of the dragons!"

My shadow grew larger… vaster… stretching further until it had consumed the group of people on the green walkway before me in a steadily encroaching sea of… This was it… This was the nightmare I had before waking up in Lyn’s Yurt! It was coming true! Just as I feared, and now I knew exactly what was happening. I wasn't a morph. I was a dragon, just like Nils and Ninian. But unlike them, I wanted to bring about the new age of my brethren by eradicating the humans. I could feel that desire raging deep inside me. And at the same time, I still felt another wish—like a whisper barely breaking through my yearning for genocide.

It was my voice. My human voice. The voice that had commanded the company, the voice that had shared laughs with my friends and moans of loss, the voice that had told a woman, a human woman, that I love her. That voice was still here—I was still here. And I had to do whatever I could to stop myself. Nergal would not win.

With all the strength I could find within myself, I pushed my voice to be heard. "Hector, Eliwood, Lyn. You must strike now! Do it before I call them back. Use the weapons. Strike me down now, or this whole world will be scourged in fire!"

"But Mark," Eliwood began to say just as he had in the dream.

"Do it now!" The words were almost lost in a roar that attempted to silence me.

Just as it had happened in the dream, Hector charged toward me bringing his axe back ready to strike. Eliwood watched Hector still indecisive on following my command. But a quick shake of his head affirmed his resolve to obey my orders to the end, and he kicked his horse to trail Hector. That only left Lyn. She couldn't even look at me. Her gaze was fixed on the ground trying to ignore what I had just ordered. I remembered the words from my dream. But this time…

"Lyn…" It was no longer my voice speaking. I could only force these last words. "My love. Please… Don't let me become the monster…"

Her tears trailed behind her when she took off into a full sprint, catching up to both Eliwood and Hector. A bright shimmering light radiated off the legendary weapons as they approached me. But they were not the only weapons that glowed. I looked down, and the gemstone in Norn was glowing brightly too. Not with the malicious color of the crystal, but a simple golden light flickering past the darkness that encased it. And that was the last thing I saw before fire consumed my vision.

Chapter Text

Chapter 22

I did not wake up in a Yurt in the middle of a field this time. A lovely, lonely girl of the plains was not there to greet me with a bowl of stew. Instead, I found myself in a much different place—a beautiful place. I was in a canyon with several shimmering waterfalls cascading over the cliffs into a lush oasis within the gulley. A colorful array of flowers spread across the green grass and sunlight flickered through the healthy leaves on the trees that surrounded the still pond at the center. And yet, that wasn't the most remarkable sight. Throughout the gulley was a multitude of dragons of different shapes and colors. There were the dragons bathed in shades of fire like those that had come through the gate with hulking forms equivalent to the sturdy rocks around them. Wingless dragons that had been Ninian's true form, though more blue than green. Dragons with scales the shade of a healthy forest with jagged skin and massive bodies similar to the reds were letting smaller dragons of the same variety feed on a successful hunt in a nearby cleft. Several reedy, brightly colored dragons with glossy wings and long snouts darted in and out of the waterfalls, playing an aerial game of tag. And slaking its thirst in the oasis was an antlered, silver and black dragon with curved fingers instead of claws and an eyeless head.

"It isn't right," said a voice similar to mine, but with a much more brutish tone behind it. By its own will, my head turned to three dragons. One of them looked almost exactly like Ninian in her dragon form. The other two, a wingless blue and a forest-green dragon, appeared more aged than the one who looked like Ninian. "The humans are fragile beings,” I continued speaking, “they were once our food. Those dragons are weak for abandoning their home to those inferior creatures and then come to occupy our home."

The forest-green dragon shook his head. "The time of humans being our food passed ages ago, Markov, and this war that has broken out between man and dragon is not something others wish to take part in. Both humans and dragons are dying in that war. That is why some of our brothers and sisters have chosen not to fight the humans. We will honor their choice and provide them with a new home with what space we have."

"But why do we stand by and do nothing for those fighting against the humans encroaching on dragon land?" I questioned. I was not in control of my voice or the movement of my body as I took a step toward the green dragon. "Why do we squander in peaceful isolation while our other brothers and sisters fight and die?" The lack of control was just like when Nergal had possessed me in Caelin. But Nergal was dead. I was dead. Wasn't I? Could this... Could this have been the memories of my past coming back before I died? Was I really a dragon?

"We stand by because dragons and humans lived together in peace before the war," Ninian’s lookalike said with a slight hint of superiority that this version of myself did not appreciate. "They possess intelligence and abilities that rivals us dragons. Even you can see it. That is how they fight and survive against us. They deserve to live as much as we do."

"You say that because you have partnered yourself with one of those humans," I replied.

"He is a peaceful human, and he wishes to learn more about us dragons. Not fight us. And there are other humans like him. They're fascinating creatures. They can do things even we dragons cannot. Dragons and humans share many aspects that make us incredibly similar and vastly different. We should coexist with the humans, not rule over them."

"Spare me your ideology, Aenir!" I snarled at her while snapping my jaws. "You're weak. You've always been weak! That is why you choose to defend those insects while they kill our brothers and sisters! The humans possess intelligence that allows them to fight back effectively against us. That is why they choose to fight us, not make peace. They cannot be trusted. They must be wiped out."

Aenir shook her head. "If you could only see what I've seen. The humans have compassion just as we do. They pair up and build families and tribes and work together just as we do. But you're blinded by your stubbornness and are unwilling to see that."

The other wingless dragon moved its long neck toward Aenir. "Aenir, do not antagonize your brother over-"

"And you are treacherous and naïve to overlook the transgressions of these vermin." I snapped back. "They are killing our kind, and you consider them our equals! If you wish to betray your own people to parlay with the humans, then go and die with them!"

"Enough!" the green dragon growled stepping toward me, causing me to shrink away. "Your sister is not overlooking what the humans have done to the other dragons, and neither are the others who are choosing not to fight. You are young, Markov. You have grown up in a land where dragons dominated. But this land has changed, and it will continue to do so. Humans are fragile creatures; they do not live as long as dragons. And yet they have evolved and achieved a state of existence that matches our own. Living creatures must adapt to survive, including us dragons, and that means there are times it is better to find peace so that many may live instead of fighting and losing more of our kind."

"Marduk!" A red dragon came up to us and ducked its head quickly before looking at the green dragon. "I apologize for the interruption, but Garith is requesting a meeting regarding the Eight and…" The red dragon glanced at the ground for a moment. "Idunn."

Marduk opened his mouth as if to say something in surprise, but he closed it and looked somewhat distraught as he nodded to the red dragon. "I see. Let us not keep him waiting then."

I watched as Marduk, who I could only assume to be my host's father, or rather my father if this was my past, follow the red dragon toward the oasis where several other aged dragons were waiting for them. I looked back at Aenir, but as I did, there was a flash, and another scene appeared before me. I couldn't take time to look at it because it remained for less than a second before another scene flashed followed by another and another. The images continued to flit before me until they finally stopped with me walking through a desert with Aenir.

"You still haven't explained to me why we are leaving," I replied with frustration.

"I did, Markov," she said without looking in my direction. "Mother and Father wished it." To my surprise, I found that I could see that the dragon was holding back a building sorrow, almost as if she were on the verge of tears.

"That’s not an explanation!” I snapped. “That was an morsel to shut me up. And I only did so because Mother and Father wanted use to leave while they stayed behind. I don't understand why they would do that!" I continued, clearly not seeing Aenir's distress. "Father said he was going to put an end to the war. He needs everyone who can fight. He needs us."

"Don't you get it, Markov?" Aenir rebuked me. "He is putting an end to the war so that we don't have to fight. He wanted us to leave so that we could find a new home to live in."

"But what about Mother? We left her there all alone. Does she know where we are going? How is Father supposed to find us if Mother doesn't know where we are going?"

Now the tears fell. "He's not coming back to us, Markov. And neither is Mother."

"Wh…" Confusion and shock rippled through me. "…what?"

"I am taking you to a village in Nabata." With a shake of her long head, she threw the tears away. "It is a village where dragons can be safe. Mother and Father want you to stay there."

"What about you?"

"I have to go find some other dragons. They need to be brought to the village for their safety as well."

"The humans…" Past me growled at the thought. "They are killing…"

"No!" Aenir roared, and she snapped her jaws at me. "Markov it is vital that you understand something. Not all dragons are peaceful. You know this. Father has had to banish some dragons from our village because they did bad things. Humans are just like us. There are bad humans who do bad things. But there are also good humans who have never harmed a dragon. And the village I am taking you to is populated with good humans and good dragons. They are like our kin back home. They do not wish to fight dragons but instead, wish to live in harmony. That is why Father wanted me to take you to this village. But this hatred must come to an end. I will not be there to watch out for you for some time, so you must expel your prejudices and learn to live with the humans. I know you hate me, Markov. I understand you feel betrayed." The tears returned, and my heart skipped a beat. "But I beg you… please let go of your hatred. If not for me, then for Mother and Father. They want you to continue living, and this is the only way you can."

Aenir stood up on her hind legs and pulled off the sword that she strapped to her arm. "Here, Father wanted me to give this to you. He said it was important that you always keep it with you, but he did not say why."

It was Norn! There was no mistaking it. It was the same gray and golden sword I had found in Nergal's study on Valor. The only difference was that there wasn't a gemstone in the hilt. The sword flashed, and another multitude of images sped past my eyes.

When they stopped again, I found myself in an open-air building with several shelves of books lining the walls and scrolls and papers scattered about the table at the center. Despite the human-sized shelves, the building itself was rather large. Much bigger than any of the libraries I had been in during the year before I joined Eliwood. And I towered over the shelves, picking at the spines of the books with a single clawed finger.

"Ridiculous human limitations," I grumbled to myself as I carefully pulled out a book to look at the cover. "Tiny writing. We're supposed to coexist, yet we conform to the human standards of living."

"Do you need some help?"

I looked down to find a woman with her head cocked in inquiry. Her brown hair was short with a few bangs falling over her face. She wore a brown outfit in a style that was a combination of Lyn and Ninian's clothing with the top being short sleeved while the bottom split along her legs and frilled at the bottom. The colors of the garb were red, brown, and warm yellow, complimenting her sun-kissed skin. But her amused expression reminded me of Hector. The look irked the dragon me. I could see the bitter words forming in my head ready to discourage the woman from staying here, but before I could speak, she grabbed a nearby ladder, rolled it over to the shelf, and ascended to where my claw had been picking at the books.

"This is the book you're looking for if I'm not mistaken," she said pulling out a large red book. "I've put this book away enough times when I've cleaned up after your sessions in here."

I opened my claw to receive the book, but she held it to herself and gave me an expectant look. "It's polite to say thank you when someone does a service for you. I would also request that if you are going to continue using this library that you put back the books you use and take your scrolls with you instead of leaving them strewn about. Others use this space."

"Do not give me orders, human," I snarled at her. "I can end your life in a matter of seconds if I so desired."

"Then why don't you?" she asked unflinchingly.

I growled and averted my gaze. "Because I have to live in this absurd cohabitation with you humans."

"I don't believe anyone is forcing you to live here."

"If my circumstances were different, I would leave. But unfortunately, I'm stuck here."

"Why?"

I shot a glare at her. "Because your kind forced me to leave my home and my kin."

"Ah, I see," she replied, nodding at the ground. "I understand how you feel. I had to leave my home too when dragons came through and burned all of our homes. Even centuries after the Scouring, humans must still fear dragons hiding in the mountains."

I continued to glare at the woman, who held an equally strong glare on me until I scowled and returned my gaze to the bookshelf defeated.

She continued as she descended the ladder. "I was just a little girl when I lost all my people to dragons. And coming here to Arcadia was an absolute nightmare. I feared this place was merely a façade for you dragons to herd us like cattle to slaughter. I have lived with that constant fear for the ten years I've been here with your kind. And even today, I still fear that you dragons will suddenly turn on all of us." The book made a loud thud as she dropped it on the table. "This book is a compilation of human military strategies used during the Scouring, and I've seen you reading books on combat tactics and creating mock battle plans. At least I hope they are mock. I won't deny I have considered that you intend to carry out what I fear the most from dragons." She looked back at me. "But I hope that will not be the case from you or any other dragon here."

"You are foolish to hope for that human," I replied.

"Oh, most certainly," she smirked. "Yet I will still choose to continue hoping."

"Why?"

My question was a surprise to me (human me) since I knew just how deep my hatred for humans ran even if not wholly justified. But even stranger was that the question appeared to surprise the woman as well. Apparently, she hadn't been expecting to have a conversation with such an unapproachable individual, because she gaped in astonishment, searching for words while staring at the table.

"Well… How about this? You tell me why you study military and combat tactics, and I will tell you why I have hope for you."

I thought that the dragon me would refuse the answer as determined has he had been with his hatred of the humans. He did not. His hatred had turned into curiosity, wishing to know the answer, and so he spoke.

"My father was the chieftain of my tribe. He had raised me in such a way to take up his position one day. However, the Scouring started, and being the son of my father, the leaders of other dragon tribes encouraged me to study the military strategies of humans so that I could aid in the war. My father did not argue their counsel. But he did not fight in the war, nor did he let anyone in our tribe fight. We were to remain neutral and only to defend ourselves if attacked first, and he refused my constant requests to join the war. I think my mother and sister had influenced his decision. My sister especially always spoke about finding peace with the humans rather than destroying them."

"Your sister…?" The woman rested her chin in her hand. "I never knew you had other family."

I nodded. "She brought me here over five hundred years ago. I haven't seen her since. Nor my parents."

"I see…" The woman pursed her lips and exhaled a slow, steady breath. "I know dragons live for a long time. But it's hard to believe you're at least five hundred years old. You look so young compared to the dragons that were alive during the Scouring."

"I've noticed that too… The other dragons tend to treat me like the rest of the adolescent whelplings because of how I look. It is frustrating."

The woman put a hand over her mouth. "I'm sure your attitude has nothing to do with it."

"What was that?"

She smiled at me while waving her hand glibly. "Nothing! Nothing… So, you have no other family members… Have you not gone searching for them in the time you've been here?"

I shook my head. "My sister told me to stay here. She said it was what my parents wanted. And when we traveled here… I made my sister cry. It hurt to see her cry. So, despite my distrust and anger for you humans, I have respected the laws. I want to make her happy when she returns."

The woman opened the book and flipped through it, taking the pages five at a time. "And you've been studying military strategy this entire time?"

"I am like you. I fear a time will come when you humans turn against us dragons." My tone regained its spite. "I am waiting for that day, and when it comes, you humans will not last the night."

The woman did not recoil from me or rebuke my words. Instead, she smiled in good humor. "A five-hundred-year-old grudge? I doubt even you would carry such a pointless weight. The way you talk about your family… It sounds more like you wish to honor your father by continuing to carry out your training."

"Don't presume to know me, human."

"It's Sedalia, actually. Not human. And I do not presume to know you, Markov. But I would like to, as you are the only dragon here that I do not know. And now I understand why."

I let out a smoky snort. "It's polite to uphold a bargain that is struck."

"Ah yes," Sedalia replied. "The reason I choose to believe you mean no ill will is because of this."

"This?"

She extended her hands to either side of her. "You and I are enjoying a civil, albeit daunting, conversation with each other. After so many years, if you dragons truly wished to see me and the rest of my kind destroyed, you would've done so. The humans here in Arcadia are not warriors. We have no weapons other than those used for hunting, and we lack the strength required to combat even the weakest of you dragons. I have no choice but to have faith that you all will continue to live peacefully with us."

"You are not completely defenseless," I answered. "You have those two newcomers."

Sedalia folded her arms. "Yes, but to be honest with you, they are the ones I do not trust, especially that Nergal fellow. My older brother assures me he is a good man. However, the fact that he knows Dark magic disturbs me. I do not blame you for being wary of him."

"And what of Athos?"

"You have more reason to be wary of him than I do," she said with a shrug. "He fought in the Scouring, but he appears to be far busier cheering the fact that humans and dragons are coexisting rather than condemning you and your kind. He is the one that offered to put up the barrier for our village after all. But again, I understand your caution."

I did not respond, so Sedalia strolled past me to the doorway out of the library and came to a stop before exiting and turned back to me. "My family is hosting a couple of dragons tomorrow. There will be lots of food. You're welcome to come if you like. My older brother would love to sit down and talk with you. He's been studying dragons and would be excited to learn more about you in particular if you lived during the Scouring. We are at the house across from the Tailor. But even if you don't come, I hope we can talk like this again soon, Markov. And…" She appeared to be thinking about saying something else, but then changed her mind, "don't worry about cleaning up." She gave me a good-natured laugh. "I know it's hard for someone of your size."

Images flashed past me again, and this time I found myself outside overlooking a table covered with a variety of food that was being lit by torches in the darkness of the night.

"By d’eef," a man with bushy brown hair sitting next to Sedalia exclaimed through the food he chewed on and stared up at me with eyes full of wonder.

Sedalia leaned over and smacked the back of his head. "Chew your food, Sebastian. Just because he's been here already doesn't mean we shouldn't still treat him like a guest."

Sebastian swallowed and then stared up at me with eyes still wide in awe. "So there were dragons that could dig through mountains?"

"Yes," I replied. My tone was far different than the one I had in the previous memory. There was cheerfulness and genuine humor lifting my words as I answered him. "An elder in my tribe told me stories that dragons were far bigger millions of years ago, and they warred with each other constantly over territory. Their fights were so violent that they would push up mountain ranges and split the land apart into what it is now. The severe altering of the landscape eventually led to dragons shrinking to the size we are now, and because of that, we no longer need to fight over territory."

"By de’," Sebastian started to say through another mouthful of food, but he quickly swallowed when Sedalia shot him a look. "By the eight!"

I chuckled at his excitement. "Yes, that's the same reaction my mother would have when I told her that story. Except she would then follow up with how the elder liked to chew on Smoke Grass, and I shouldn't be listening to his wild tales."

Everyone laughed, and the older woman at the end of the table leaned forward folding her hands. "A good mother always knows what things her son should be filling his head with. You said she and your father stayed behind when you came here?"

"Yes," the cheerfulness in my tone faded. "My sister brought me here, but she was crying when she did. She told me that mother and father would not be able to come with us, but she would return after she had found some other dragons… That was over five hundred years ago."

A quiet silence fell over us all, and the humans all looked around at each other before the older woman spoke again. "Markov…I know five hundred years may not seem like a long time for dragons. But all of us here think it's awful that you've had to live alone for that long. Even surrounded by all these other dragons, you've never seemed happy here."

"I know… I never realized it until your daughter invited me here that first night. You all were so nice to me even though I didn't say much and came off abrasive when I did. It’s so different than what I’m used to with you humans and even other dragons. I still don't understand it. Why have you all shown me such kindness? I have done nothing to deserve it."

The older man at the other end of the table spoke up. "That's because kindness is not something to be earned. It's something to be maintained. I can't say for sure what happened when you first came here to Arcadia, but if you were anything like you were the first night, I'm sure many of the humans feared you since the Scouring was still fresh in their minds. A long time has passed since then. Both humans and dragons have changed."

"But you all were forced to flee your village because of dragons like me."

"True," the man said with a nod of agreement. "But you were not one of those dragons. And we have no reason to consider you like those dragons either, other than your aloof behavior, which can be attributed to your past. If we were to reject you based on what you are called or what you look like without having any proof to support that rejection, we would be guilty of bigotry.” He leaned back in his chair and gestured at me. “Let's look at it from your perspective for a moment. One of the things you told us that first night was that you didn't trust us because humans fought and killed dragons during the Scouring. However, you have lived in this village for over five hundred years. Have any of the humans you've known in that time ever fought and killed any dragons here in Arcadia?"

My past self rifled through his memories. "No… but humans outside of Arcadia have killed dragons."

"You are right. And dragons outside Arcadia have killed humans. But you have not killed any humans, so we have no right to assume you would just because you are a dragon. There are good dragons, and there are bad dragons just like there are good humans and there are bad humans."

"I… I guess that makes sense. My sister tried to tell me that a long time ago." Suddenly my head dropped down. "I'm… I'm sorry… …I don't… I…" Tears were filling my vision.

"Markov!" Sedalia came running around to place a hand on my leg. "What's wrong? What has upset you?"

"Y-you all… you… remind me of… my family…"

"Oh, Markov…"

My head bobbed up and down dropping more tears. None of them said anything, but I could see the understanding on their faces, and I understood what my past self was experiencing. For five hundred years he had been repressing his loneliness behind an aversive mask. And this family had finally broken it like busting a beaver dam, and all of his sorrow was surging out.

"Markov…" Sedalia's mother stood up and came over next to her daughter. "I know we could never replace the family you lost, but it’s not good to live in isolation. If you're willing, we would love for you to be a part of our family. You don't need to suffer loneliness any longer."

"I can't put such a burden on you all. I am too big to feed every day, and I cannot fit in your house."

"Don't worry about that," Sedalia's father replied. "You've lived outside the city in that tent long enough. There is no reason you need to resign yourself to dark seclusion. Bring your tent here to our home. We'll make room for you here, and you can keep your hunting habits. Bring back what food you can catch, and we will help cook it for you."

"I have a better idea, dad," Sebastian said. He had an odd look of determination about him as he stood up from the table. "You might not have noticed it yet, Markov, but some dragons here in Arcadia have gained the power to take on human forms by manipulating the magical essence they have within them. I have been talking with these human dragons on how they achieved their form and what has changed. It's quite astounding, actually. Their smaller size allows them to eat the same amount as normal humans. There is no need to eat more because he or she is a dragon. If we were to get you into a human form, you could join us for all our meals, and you could sleep within our home as well. And there's more!"

Sebastian clasped his hands behind his back and strolled along the table with an air of mild pride in his stride. "Nergal has been just as fascinated with the human form some of the dragons have taken as I have. With what we’ve learned, we’ve been discussing a potential procedure to allow a dragon to transform in and out of their normal and human form at will. Since you are a dragon that has yet to become a human, I think you would be the perfect candidate to try out this new process. There's absolutely no risk to you, unlike a human dragon. If it doesn't work, you just remain a dragon, and we try one of the already successful methods. What do you say?"

"I wouldn't mind helping you with your experiment, Sebastian. Becoming a human would make it much easier for us to study the books together and form strategies. But…" I looked down and Sedalia and her mother. "…is it really okay for me to stay with you all?"

"Of course!" Sedalia said hopping with excitement.

"You don't need to concern yourself with burdening us," her father answered. "You're a part of our family now. It's been so long that you might have forgotten, but a family carries the burdens of each other. That's what makes them a family."

"You lived without a family for too long, Markov," Sedalia's mother said reaching a hand up to rub my cheek. "It's time for you to experience the joy of it once again."

More tears started to trickle out, and my eyes shut to stifle them. The images made a comeback once again in the darkness, and when I reopened my eyes, I was no longer with my new family.

Now, I loomed over a table with books and scrolls and unfamiliar tools. Sebastian sat at the table and next to him was Nergal who stared up at me with a big smile and a face unscarred by fire.

“Now that we have finally met in person, I must thank you, Markov,” Nergal said. “Not only that you have taken an interest in our research on Dragon’s magic and their human forms, but that you of all dragons would aid in our pursuits.”

I cocked my head. “My former resentment of the humans is well known in Arcadia, I understand, but I assumed Sebastian told you I’ve been conversing with more humans as of late.”

“He did,” Nergal said with a nod to Sebastian, “but I still didn’t believe you would gain an interest in me. Other dragons, and even some of the humans, aren’t particularly fond of me recently.”

“Why’s that?” I knew why, but the past me was oblivious to Nergal’s foul nature.

“Our research,” Sebastian said. “It involves a lot of magic manipulation most in Arcadia aren’t familiar with or view as treacherous.”

“The dragon’s magic has waned since the Scouring,” Nergal explained, “which is why some of them have chosen to take the form of humans as it puts less stress on their physical and mystical health. The dragons that remain in their original forms are quite possessive of their magic as it can be unpredictable, and the ones in their human forms must reserve their magic in case they need to return to their dragon forms. But the magic can take days, even weeks, to refresh after a transformation, and puts a great deal of strain on their mystical health. As such, most dragons decide on a form and stick to it indefinitely.”

“And that’s why we’re trying to create dragonstones,” Sebastian said.

“Dragonstones?” I asked.

Sebastian held up his hands side by side. “The concept is simple. Create a stone that dragons can store magic in.” He moved his hands over. “And when the need arises, they can use the magic in the stone to transform instead of their personal magic, allowing them to transform at will a number of times before the stone needs to be recharged.” Sebastian picked up one of the tomes on the table. “It’s a similar concept to the magic stored in tomes like these.”

“And how would a dragon store their magic in such a stone?”

Nergal folded his hands in front of his mouth. “That’s where my magic comes in and why other dragons aren’t too keen to work with us. The magic I study is an old magic some consider…evil.” Nergal eyed me for a few seconds before continuing. He must not have seen anything concerning, and I did not respond. Rather, the past me was having thoughts of intrigue. “You know of the magic that can summon fire, wind and lightning, and other magic that can heal. The magic I study can bend and alter life. Some of this magic can drain the strength of others, though I assure you I have never used it for such a purpose until now. You see I’ve been able to drain the magic of other tomes and harness them in my own to increase their potency. Thus, my next step was to see if I could drain…” he paused. “Transfer the ever-refreshing magic of dragons into other objects to be used by dragons or humans.”

Nergal flipped his hand with an irritated flourish. “Obviously, no one was lining up to be part of our experiment even after explaining our idea. Again, dragon magic is too unpredictable, and using my ancient magic could have disastrous results, I admit.”

“How did you come to learn this magic?” I asked, still intrigued by the conversation.

Nergal sat back in his chair and stroked the hair on his chin in contemplation. “I’m not entirely sure myself. In my studies of the ancient magic, I’ve read that others have lost their memories in the pursuit of power through this Dark magic. It’s said one of the eight heroes from the Scouring lost their identity completely to fully gain its power. My memories only reach as far back as wandering through the Nabata desert and meeting Athos, so there is a high probability that my magic destroyed my memories from before then. I must assume it was a sacrifice I was willing to make in the pursuit of advancing my knowledge, but it’s not one many others wish to make as well.

“But sacrifice is often necessary to advance,” I said. “Arcadia wouldn’t be the refuge it is now without the sacrifice dragons and humans made to create this place.”

Nergal set his hands on the table. “Exactly. Humans didn’t learn how to wield magic in tomes without trying. And this could be the next evolution for dragons.”

Thoughts raced through my mind at the possibilities of what dragonstones could mean for me and other dragons. But after witnessing how my past self had considered humans, to my surprise not a single thought was of maliciousness toward humans.

“And it also sounds like it could greatly aid other dragons. I would be happy to extend whatever aid I can for your research within reason.” I gave Sebastian a humored stare. “Sedalia will never let us hear the end of it if I were to be hurt in some way.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” Sebastian said, suppressing a laugh. “I promise we will take every precaution necessary in our experimentation. I, too, wouldn’t want my brother to be hurt.”

I felt my lips curl into a smile for what he called me.

“Now let’s talk your visage,” Nergal said. “Visage?” I asked.

“Yes, when dragons take on human form, their appearance like hair color, eye color, and body shape cannot be changed. However, through a Dragonstone giving you the ability to transform at will, you will be able to manipulate the magic in the stone and alter your visage to however you wish given enough time.” A big smile lighted Nergal’s face. “However, with my knowledge, I can expedite that process and grant you whatever form you wish. Do you have any preferences?”

“Well,” I glanced at Sebastian. “I have admired your brown hair. It is thick and wavy, and I have noticed many other humans approving you for it. I would love to have it as part of my visage.” I turned back to Nergal. “I would also like a cloak as green as a forest. It was the color of my father’s wings.”

“Clothing cannot be chosen,” Nergal said. “But I’m sure the tailor in town could create something like that to fit your human form.”

“In that case,” I considered a moment longer. Would it be possible to take on part of another dragon’s form in my human appearance?”

“Who’s visage are you taking from?” Nergal asked.

“My sister, Aenir. She showed me her human form when we first arrived here at Arcadia. She had wonderful blue eyes that put others around her at ease. Since I’m trying to build more relationships with you humans, having her eyes would help me in that endeavor since I am often viewed as standoffish by most.”

Nergal stared at me with a blank expression for several seconds. Then his face scrunched, and he winced and clenched his head as if overcome with excruciating pain.

“Are you alright, Nergal?” I asked, though lacking in any real concern. I could only assume because past me hadn’t yet recognized the mannerisms of humans.

“I…” Nergal stuttered. “I…what?” He glanced at Sebastian. “Sebastian, you, and Markov are here. What… what were we talking about?”

I was about to respond, but Sebastian spoke over me. “We were discussing our Dragonstone research with Markov and got on the subject of his visage.” He turned to me and smiled like nothing was amiss. “Markov, I think you should keep your golden eyes. It’s your most striking feature and would be helpful to others to keep at least one aspect of your dragon form for identification when you’re in and out of your human form.”

The past me didn’t catch on to Sebastian, but I did. The name Aenir triggered something in Nergal that caused him to lose a part of his memory. And if uttering her name caused something so detrimental, there’s no telling what seeing an aspect that belonged to my sister might do. I could feel the confusion in my past self, but he didn’t push the issue further. “I guess I see your point, Sebastian. If you think it wise, I will keep my eye color in my human form.”

“Then I assume you’ve agreed to help us,” Nergal said, rubbing sweat from his face. “Okay. Now, one final concern. The council has already warned us that they don’t approve of our experiments. Until the Dragonstone is successful, we must not make any mention of it to others. My old friend Athos more than anyone would see our research put to an end. He’s become too restrained since our arrival here at Arcadia.”

“That won’t be a problem,” I replied, with building loathing. “I have no love for one of the eight who slaughtered my kind in the Scouring. His desire to protect Arcadia is the only reason I tolerate him.” I set a single clawed finger on one of the scrolls. “Most everyone in Arcadia knows I study the archives here on a weekly basis. If anyone asks, we are just three individuals sharing our knowledge with each other.” I flashed a toothy grin. “And if anyone becomes meddlesome, I can revert to my unfriendly self.”

“Just don’t take it too far,” Sebastian said. “Otherwise, Sedalia might be the one who will come prying.” He made a fist and bounced it on my claw. “Thank you for your willingness to help, brother. What we accomplish will serve both dragon and humankind for years to come.”

That warm feeling was back; the one of belonging, of being wanted and loved by others. The feeling I had gained with Lyn, Eliwood and Hector. Even this past me, who still held a grudge for the humans, experienced this feeling. So, what happened to make him revert to his hatred?

“Of course, brother,” I said full of endearment. And then images flashed through my head again until they halted on a bright scene.

Now I was walking through the desert with a group of other humans all pulling sleds in pairs. Another man and I pulled a sled filled with an assortment of items tightly wrapped in sand-covered cloth. But rather than towering over the human, I was eye level with him.

"Can you just transform already?” The man groaned through heavy breathing. “You're making our job harder, Markov. If you were in your dragon form, we would've been back to Arcadia by now."

I shook my head in amusement and stared at him out of the corner of my eye. "I know it would be easier, Halford. But I finally managed to retain this human form yesterday, and for some reason, I'm finding myself far less exhausted in human form than dragon form." I reached into my pocket and pulled out an object, holding it in front of me. It looked just like the gemstone in Norn. However, it was as clear as glass with gold flecks sprinkled within it instead of black and purple, and it refracted the sunlight that passed through it into a variety of colors as I turned it over in my hand. "These stones are an incredible marvel. It's almost like an endless supply of energy."

Halford groaned out his impatience. "Yeah, wonderful things those crystals are for you dragons! How about you let me experience a fraction of that relief, and make it easier to pull this sled."

"That would defeat the purpose of me being in human form. I need to get used to doing things as a human now. I never realized all the benefits of being a smaller size. Finding books is so much easier, along with writing, and chairs are so much more comfortable to sit on than the solid ground! I’m more excited to experience the plushness of a cushion at the dinner table than I am for the food! But those are positive aspects of being a human. If I'm going to understand you humans better, I need to experience the difficulties you face as well."

"I can tell you about the difficulties we face over a drink in the tavern all you…" We came to a small dune, and he paused as we dug in our feet the best we could to get our sled over the dune. "…wwwwANT rather than breaking my back carrying this stuff across the sand."

"I understand things better by actually experiencing them for myself."

"You'll get sick of it eventually," he said as he readjusted his grip on the handles. "Six weeks of exhausting yourself in this blistering heat will have you back in your true form."

"Maybe," I replied. "But hopefully in this time, you can lose some of that weight while you deal with my stubbornness."

"Says the individual that weighs two and a half tons."

"Two tons, mind you. That's another benefit to being in human form. If I lose a few pounds in human form, then I lose a few hundred pounds as a dragon."

Halford dropped his head and grumbled to the ground something about magic being unfair. When he looked back up though, his mien snapped to alert. "Hey, where is everybody?"

I followed his gaze to find that we were approaching Arcadia, but there were no guards at the gate or anyone we could see within the walls. All of us increased our pace. When we had brought the sleds into the storage platform, I squeezed the gemstone in my hand and was back in my dragon form no doubt considering the potential of hostile conflict. The other humans and I split up in the town to try and discover where everyone was. I found the signs of a struggle as I turned the corner of one of the buildings. A rat scampered through a lonely hole in the wall of one building that had its top blown off, and another building still had a wooden beam that hung from a fracture while the rest of the building collapsed in on itself. The destruction continued on through a few more buildings though the devastation decreased the further it went along. But there were no signs of life or death. I did recognize the line of buildings. The first building was where Sebastian, Nergal and I would meet when we began working on my dragonstone.

Terror raced through me along with several thoughts of why this destruction happened. Then Halford called from the direction of the council building. We entered to find most of the town had congregated within. The building was large and open to contain multiple dragons within it, as there were several of them on the council. However, there were still a few dragons that craned their necks through a window while remaining outside. Their necessity within the building was low as there was an injured dragon being treated off to one side along with numerous humans who all appeared to have severe burn marks and other malformed injuries.

And yet despite their injuries, they were not the center of attention. A large crowd had huddled at the far end of the building. I spotted a human I was acquainted with at the back end of the group, and I went up to him. "Samuel, what…"

Before I could say another word, my height had allowed me to see over the crowd, and behold what they had gathered around. There was a number of humans crying over the bodies of others that had died. Whatever occurred in town resulted in these deaths, but there was one human that my eyes locked on. Sedalia buried her face in the shoulder of her mother, who was cradling the damaged body of Sebastian.

The wounds he suffered were far more disturbing than any other injured being in the building I’d seen thus far. His body was frighteningly hollow as if all his muscles and organs had shriveled up, and his eyes were sunken and eerily faded. And he was not the only one to suffer this fate. As I looked around at the other dead bodies, I could see several more who had died in this fashion, and their loved ones were left to weep into their emaciated corpses. I had seen this kind of death before with Eliwood and the others.

"It was Nergal," Samuel told me with a sigh. "Turns out he was studying Dark magic in secret and learned to steal life essence of other creatures. We heard a commotion in one of the buildings. And that's when we discovered what he had done."

"And Nergal? Is he dead?"

A different voice answered. "No, we have banished him from Arcadia."

My head turned downward to find a less aged Athos standing next to me with a few injuries of his own.

"The dastard still lives?" I growled. Samuel took a step back from me. "After what he did to my brother and others of your own kind? You let him go!?"

Athos did not make eye contact with me. "Nergal and I have been friends long before we found this paradise. He assured me his study of Dark magic was for knowledge’s sake, and I foolishly trusted him. At first, he only practiced on small rodents and lizards. We warned him not to continue in this practice, but-"

"Spare me your excuses, human!" My voice spiked with rage and others in the room started to move toward me and only stopped when Athos held out a hand. "This tragedy is your fault, Athos! You are the one who brought Nergal to our home! You brought calamity to all of us, and even now, you overlook them. You are just as contemptible as that fiend you call friend. If it weren't for our laws, I would end your life right now."

"Markov," one of the elder dragons spoke up with a cautioning tone that told me not to go any further. "It was not Athos' decision alone to let Nergal live."

I snorted and stormed out of the building.

"Markov, where are you going?" The elder dragon called.

"To do what you all have always been too passive to carry out." I descended the steps out of the building in two determined strides.

"Markov!" Sedalia came running out of the building. "I understand you're angry. I'm angry too. But please don't throw your life away for revenge. Nergal has power beyond a single dragon. You cannot hope to face him alone."

"I'm not letting him get away with this, Sedalia. He killed our brother."

"And he will kill you too! Will you allow him to take my other brother away?"

"I won't die!" My volume startled Sedalia, and she nearly stumbled into Athos who was coming out of the building. "You know nothing of who I am. I am the son of Marduk, chieftain of the Divine Dragons of Elibe. Nergal has no hope of overcoming my power. I will find him, and I will crush his bones and burn his flesh until he becomes another pile of grit in this desert."

Athos shook his head. "You let your rage blind you, Markov. Your hubris will be your undoing if you go after Nergal."

"Save your words murderer, and do not follow me. You killed my kind five hundred years ago. I have not forgotten that, and I will never forgive that. Arcadia's laws will not protect you outside its walls. If you try to stop me, I will kill you too."

"I do not believe that." Athos voice seemed to boom as he spoke. "If you truly hated me, the laws of this city would not stop you. The anger you stoke over your brother’s death proves you let that hatred go. You love humans. Do not give into to the lies your rage tells you, Markov!”

“Silence, murderer!”

“No!” Athos’s voice boomed causing all those around him to step away and even past me to flinch in shock. “You cling to a hatred that is no longer yours. You have changed, you have found a family, and learned to love other humans the way you love the dragons. This is your home, these are your people, dragons and humans alike. I have seen it! I urge you to rethink your desire to hunt Nergal down. I pray that somewhere along the way you will realize the truth about yourself, Markov. And if you return, I believe that you and I will finally be able to talk as friends. But if the hatred blinds you, and if you do find Nergal, then be wary. His magic does more than kill."

There was another flash, but I was not assaulted by images again. Instead, I found myself back out in the desert. The sun's light blinded me while I was lifted into the air by a firm grasp. I averted my eyes and saw a freshly scarred Nergal grinning at me as his eyes whipped back and forth.

"Such power,” Nergal said. “I feel it surging through your bones. Our success with the dragonstones was beyond my expectations. Sebastian would be overjoyed by this.”

"He trusted you, dastard," I said through gritted teeth. "You betrayed the hospitality that we gave you. You're a foul demon!"

Nergal gave me a nasty cackle. "And you're a hypocrite! Did you not also harbor hatred for the humans? Why only hate me? Other humans are just as evil as I. They show you a little bit of kindness, and suddenly you forgive the countless years of oppression that the humans inflicted on the dragons? Humans started the Scouring! They wished to eradicate dragons from Elibe, and nearly succeeded! You and I share the same grievances. I too have a hatred for my kind. Humans are selfish and belligerent. Even with the dragons gone, they continue to war against each other and innocents are killed in their selfish conflicts. If they are given freedom to live as they please, they will destroy the land. I want to be rid of them just as much as you! I want to bring dragons back into Elibe, recreate the humans, and resurrect my beloved Aenir!”

"You… You what?"

The force holding me in the air released me, but Nergal kept his hand up wary that I might lunge at him. "I have seen the depravity of humans first hand. I know who you are, Markov. Your sister told me much about you in the time we spent together."

"Aenir…" Even I, the observer of all of this, was taken aback by his words. "You are the human she loved?"

"That's right," Nergal replied solemnly. "She and I met before the Scouring erupted. We both had an innate desire to know more about each other's kind, and we soon fell in love. She was the first dragon I knew who learned how to take human form. We had two children together, and then years later. The humans started the Scouring. Aenir had been visiting her family when it happened. She took you to Arcadia, and then she was going to come and get us as well, but the humans captured her. I tried to save her. But I wasn't strong enough. I lost Aenir, my children disappeared, and I found myself wandering the deserts of Nabata alone until Athos found me. But while we worked on your dragonstone, I regained my memories. I remembered what the humans did to my family, and I started planning my revenge."

"And you began by killing your apprentice?"

"No. Despite what those in Arcadia would have you believe, I did not kill Sebastian. He was always an overly ambitious student. The progression of knowledge was his constant drive. He volunteered to act as a test subject for some magic we’d been studying." Nergal shook his head, but I could spot the deceit in it. He was lying to me, yet it was nearly undetectable. I could only spot his falsehood because I knew who he really was. But my host didn't know Nergal as I did, and he fell for the façade that made Nergal appear…human. "I misspoke a word in the incantation, and Sebastian was dead. Others found out and attacked me before I could explain what happened, and I ended up killing them as well until they drove me out of Arcadia."

"So what do we do now?"

"What?" Nergal’s eyes widened with surprise.

"I care little for your expulsion from Arcadia. What’s done is done. But you said you wanted to bring dragons back to this world and bring back Aenir. Can you actually bring her back from death?”

He nodded. “Perhaps. That was my goal when I was studying Dark magic before I lost my memories. When I regained them, I remembered my research, and there is a way to put quintessence back into one that is long dead.”

Nergal left out the part of how it required stealing quintessence from other living beings and the being wasn’t resurrected, just a hollow recreation, but past me was ignorant of the fact and didn’t ask for further explanation. “Then I will help you.”

"Just like that? Why the sudden change of heart after coming out here to kill me?"

"I did not know you were the one Aenir loved. And I did not know you wished to bring dragons back into this world. If humans killed her, I want to avenge her too, and I also wish to bring dragons back. But in the five hundred years I wasted away in that pitiful sanctuary, I did not believe the dragons could ever return. I can see it in your eyes. You know a way. Tell me what we must do." My past self had become enamored with the possibilities of dragons returning and the resurrection of Aenir that he had bought into the lie.

Nergal smiled at me. It was that same smile he’d worn the multiple times he had terrorized the lords and me throughout the campaign—a dark smile I was all too familiar with. "I know the location of the gate between this land, and the land the dragons were banished to. There are some dragons I am acquainted with that went through, and others we can bring to our side. Can you call the dragons? Can you command them?"

"Yes, commanding the dragons to destroy the humans is what I have dedicated my life to all these years." The gemstone glowed in my hand, and I towered over Nergal. If only my past self had taken more time to study the expressions of humans in his five hundred years in Arcadia, he might have been able to see Nergal’s treachery. "I will do whatever you need of me. Together, we will return this land to its rightful owners." I held out my other claw to him, and Nergal set his hand over it. A dark vortex started to swirl between us, and then the world faded into a void of white. In the space, a figure appeared. It was the ghostly woman who had led me to Norn on Valor. She smiled, and an overwhelming sense of familiarity rushed through me before she vanished in a bright flash and the white turned to black.

Has he done anything new?

No. He has sudden movements every so often and then… nothing.

He’s still breathing. That’s what matters. I don’t believe Athos would have done what he did if he didn’t think it would save him. Mark has pulled us through more grueling trials, I’m sure he will make it through this as well. Until then, I’ll keep bringing you meals.

Thank you, Dorcas.

Footsteps walked away and a door shut causing my body to shudder and someone gasped next to my bed.

Mark? Are you awake?

My eyes opened, and all I could see was a muddled mess of colors. But I could feel the soft silk I laid upon—I could breathe again. I wasn't dead. I blinked again, and the world finally focused. Lyn stood over me with wide and hopeful eyes shot with anxiety. When she saw my eyes were open, tears welled up from underneath, and a huge smile burst on her face while her arms wrapped around my neck.

"Mark…” She squeezed me tighter. “You’re back, right? It is you… Mark?”

“I think so.” I assumed she meant the dragon me. I didn’t feel his hatred in me. I was back in my human body, and nothing indicated I was witnessing something from my past. Especially since… “You’re here. So I must be back.”

A sob burst out followed by, “Thank goodness…"

"What happened?" I said sitting up with her. "Where are we?" I looked around at the wood-paneled room. A single lantern hung from the ceiling, providing a moderate amount of light to the table covered with scrolls and objects I recognized as navigational equipment. Several silk sheets covered the bed I was in, and various paintings of indiscriminate scenes or people hung on the walls of this room—a room fit for someone of royalty or high status. But most noticeable of all was that the entire room seemed to rock slowly. "I don’t remember how I got here. Am I dreaming again?"

"No," Lyn replied. "We're on Fargus's ship. It's over, Mark. We won!"

"What do you mean?" I said absentmindedly, still trying to process reality.

"Nergal was defeated," she explained. "And we managed to reverse whatever he had done to you."

That's when the memory of the Dragon's Gate flashed through my mind. "My transformation. I'm a dragon. Just like Nils and Ninian." I turned to Lyn with unbridled excitement. "I saw it all!"

"Saw what?"

"My past! I remember it."

"You do?" Lyn jumped on my excitement and moved her stool in closer to me. "So where are you from?"

I relayed everything I had seen before waking up, and Lyn hung on my every word, especially the parts about other dragons living in peaceful communities before the war. My mind had even been able to finally process the images I had only been able to glimpse in my flashbacks, like some of the residents of Arcadia reacting poorly to me when my sister first brought me there, and the joyful time spent as a member of Sedalia's family. I wasn't surprised by Lyn's interest; she knew as much about my life as I did when we first met. However, it was I who became more intrigued with my own story when I remembered how I had lived with Athos in Arcadia, and a new excitement welled up in me.

"Athos! He was there too! He must remember me! I must speak with him. I have to apologize." I tossed the covers over and moved to get out of bed, but Lyn pressed a hand against my chest to keep me in the bed; her mien had turned from day to night. Her elated eyes blinked back some tears and now had a sudden perturbing glint to them.

"He knows Mark. After your transformation, he explained how he had been wrong about you being a Morph. He told all of us that you were one of the dragons he had known in Arcadia."

"Great," I said happy to have one topic already explained. I tried to get out of the bed again, but Lyn pushed me back with even more force. "Lyn, what are you doing? I must speak with Athos. I will tell you about it as well, but the last words I exchanged with him while I was still a dragon were not the kindest. I owe him an apology."

Lyn dumped her head. "You can't, Mark."

"What do you mean?"

"Mark…" her volume had fallen to just above a whisper as I saw her attempting to stifle more tears through the strands of her hair. "How do you think you are still alive after you asked us to kill you?"

"I…" A sour taste embittered my mouth as a disturbing possibility stood out.

"After you asked us…ordered us to kill you," there was a hint of bitterness laced on her words, "you spoke no other words—only roars that shook us from within. Eliwood and Hector's weapons proved effective at defending against your attacks, so I took up the golden sword you had found. We fought you as you wished, but at the same time we held on to the hope that we could find some way to bring you back to us…"

Lyn pressed her hands into her lap, and they tightened into fists. "We succeeded. Not in fulfilling that hope… In carrying out your order. Another strike from Eliwood's weapon… it- …you fell to the ground… just like Ninian… you became human again..." She paused for a moment to press her hands over her face while she regained control of her breathing. "But you did not wake up. Just like Ninian… no, no more tears…" Lyn took a deep breath and met my eyes again. Her eyes had become green puddles that wrenched my heart with regret for giving her no other option than to kill me.

"Athos said that he remembered you. You were a very different being back then. He never knew you had managed to transform into a human like some of the other dragons because you had held a great deal of resentment for the humans and never looked at him with anything more than contempt. When he knew you as our tactician, you had been tainted so deeply by Nergal's Dark magic that he could only assume you to be one of Nergal's morphs rather than the dragon who despised his kind. He had no idea until it was already too late. But he did not wish to let another of his mistakes ruin any more lives. So he used the last of his own quintessence in an attempt to resurrect you, but still, you did not wake. We had assumed his sacrifice to have been in vain until now."

Considering that Lyn must have stayed in this cabin with me since leaving Valor, I had little doubt that her retelling of the events that took place after my transformation was done with great effort despite that strength she tried to present. So, I decided to give her a break and continued with my memories. "I see… In that case, I’ll continue. I'm Nils’s and Ninian's uncle. Their mother was my sister."

"What was she like?" Lyn asked. She brightened again as she regained her composure.

"The polar opposite of me really; at least before my amnesia. I had an unquenchable hatred for the humans during the Scouring, but humans fascinated her, and she always admonished me for my hatred of them. She admired the humans for having intelligence that matched our own, and therefore believed dragons and humans should coexist. We fought about that many times until she eventually proved her point with Arcadia. I might have thought like her eventually. I almost did in fact. Until Nergal…"

"What about him?"

I remembered the words I had said to Nergal in my final memory. "Nergal and my sister were in love." I turned to Lyn and could see my realization spreading to her as well.

"Nergal was…" Her mouth hung open, but no other words came out. She wouldn’t say it.

"…Nils’s and Ninian's father.” I finished. “In the vision of the past I saw before I found my weapon on Valor, Nergal was talking to them when they were children. He mentioned my sister's name and they called her mommy and Nergal daddy."

Lyn groaned out her disgust. "And he used them to further his own black-hearted goals. That damn monster…"

He isn't the only one, a thought crossed through my head.

"What about your sister? What happened to her? And Nils and Ninian?"

"I don't know anything about what happened to Nils or Ninian. My sister took me to Arcadia during the Scouring, but she did not stay with me. She told me she had to find some other dragons. I can only assume she meant her children. But she was captured and killed by the humans. Based on the vision I saw on Valor, Nils and Ninian must have gone through the Dragon's Gate. But they came back. Possibly because of me…"

"Because of you? Why?"

"Nergal was banished from Arcadia because he used his Dark magic to steal the life essence from someone I had become close with. And when I heard he had been banished and not killed, I became infuriated. I rebuked Athos for the mercy he had shown his friend… I almost took my anger out on him. But instead, I left Arcadia to hunt down Nergal. But I did not kill him." I gulped down a realization. "Nergal took me and used my quintessence as the archetype for his morphs and no doubt to also bring Nils and Ninian to him for his sadistic goals…" I let my words fade. A debilitating fear had gripped my heart with its chilling grasp ever since I began this explanation. I remembered what happened when I did find Nergal.

Lyn, always so aware of other's deeper feelings, picked up on my silence. "There's something else on your mind, Mark." The softness of her hand encased my own, causing apprehension to crawl through my body like cockroaches being startled from their home. "What is it?"

I pulled my hand away from her. "You shouldn't touch a monster."

"Mark, where is this coming from now?" Lyn said with an easy laugh. "We've been over this. Morph or Dragon, Nergal was the monster, not you. He used you against your will the same way he did with Nils and Ninian."

"No, he didn't, Lyn. I am a dragon that wants humans dead. When I found Nergal in the Nabata desert, I did not try to kill him. I joined him."

For a moment, Lyn only stared at me. She must have thought she heard me wrong, but when my countenance did not change, her eyes grew wide with shock. "Y-you what!?"

"I joined him. He told me how humans had started the war against the dragons, and they were the ones who killed my sister. He wanted to destroy the humans for what they did to her, and he would do that by bringing the dragons back into Elibe. I had always despised the humans. My time in Arcadia never doused my burning hatred, only smothered it for a time. So, when I found out that Nergal had the same ambitions as me, I joined him. What happened after that I do not know, but I gave myself over to his will. What he did to me at the Dragon's Gate when we faced him was revive that hatred. That is why I tried to summon other dragons and tried to kill you all. You are in danger around me! Why did you all let Athos resurrect me!? Why didn't you stop him from resurrecting a monster!?"

My words were like daggers being pushed in slowly, and I saw how much my anger twisted those daggers before Lyn dropped her head. "I don't think you are a danger to us, Mark. Nor does anyone else think that."

"You heard me say all those things with your own ears, Lyn! That wasn’t a possession! I was never possessed! It was all me! Those are things that I have held on to for years. They were things that caused me to join Nergal. They were things that had me grip a sword and drive it through your grandfather!"

"And that's terrible." Lyn grabbed my hand and locked my gaze with hers. "But I think you will remember that I've said and done horrible things as well. Things backed by seething hatred and rage. Things that I have meant with severe sincerity. Things I am no longer proud to admit that I was honest with their utterance. And yet it was you, this human-hating dragon, who convinced me to let go of that animosity—to not hold on to what happened to my tribe against every bandit or pirate we've encountered. You even encouraged me to move on from the pain of my past, to forget about the bandits that killed my tribe, and to stop harboring resentment and instead… learn how to love."

She reached out with her other hand and took my face, holding it so tightly that I could not escape the sternness that set her eyes as solid as diamonds. A fear that the hand she clutched would transform into that bestial claw and tear her apart seized me immediately. But her grip was firm, and at the same time, it was tender, spreading a vitalizing feeling through my body that clashed with my dread, and I knew what that feeling was—a feeling I could not deny lay within me for this compassionate woman. My breaths grew longer and calmer as the seconds passed, my body becoming more at ease as her thumb caressed my cheek.

"Do you remember the night Athos revealed to us that he thought you were a Morph? We had a similar discussion about you being a monster. You accepted the fact that it wasn't by your own will that the possessions were happening to you.”

“They weren’t possessions Lyn.”

“Yes, they were. You were being possessed by a being that was not you, even if it was dragon you. And it was not you because you were afraid of what you might do to me. But I was not. In fact, I tightly clutched the arms of the man I loved as he held me in our sleep. Not once during the night did I ever fear he would hurt me. Quite the opposite. I never felt safer than I did wrapped in his arms."

I tried to avert my gaze from Lyn's simple, sweet smile, but she held me tight. "But that was when I thought I didn't have a choice—that the possessions really were against my will. Nergal wasn't trying to take control of me. He was trying to reverse whatever happened to me and bring me back as his ally. My hatred for humans was just being repressed. My hatred is my own."

Lyn took my hand and moved it over to something sitting on the table next to us. She closed my finger around something, and when I looked over to see what it was, I saw that I was holding Norn. I withdrew my hand so fast that Norn tumbled off the table and fell under the bed. And when I looked back at Lyn, she was smiling again.

"Then why don't you kill me now? Why didn't you kill me at the Dragon's Gate? Why did you struggle against yourself to banish the other dragons back to their realm? If you hate humans so much, why did you forgive a man that killed our friends and save his life multiple times? If you hate humans so much, why did you lead a company of humans in putting an end to the man that wanted to bring dragons back? If you hate humans so much, why did you become friends with us humans? Why did you seek out a prince to help him find his father? Why did you continue to stand by my side, a simple nomad girl from far away plains, again and again? Why would you do that if you hated me? Why would you work tirelessly to reunite me with my grandfather if you wanted me dead?” She threw up a hand. “My granduncle Lundgren wanted me dead, and you struggled through physical harm and constant opposition to make sure I survived. And why…" A sob tumbled out of her mouth. "Why, if you wanted to rend my flesh and crush my bones… why did you beg me to kill you so many times? What was your reason for asking me to do something that would have torn me apart worse than any weapon or claw could achieve? Was that your plan? Was that how you wished to hurt me? Did you want to leave me broken in my despair so that I would live in constant agony? I don't… I don't believe that!" She cried freely now, and she pressed her head down against my hand. "You may have joined Nergal a long time ago… You may have hated humans a long time ago… But I didn't see that terrible hatred in your golden eyes that night Athos claimed you were a morph. I only saw…"

"Lyn… I…"

"We all have dark thoughts, Mark!" she yelled at me, bringing her head back up. "We all feel hatred, we all think things we're not proud of, we all are monsters to some extent. Even Eliwood. But you and I don't consider him a monster. And that's because we don't have to be defined by the dark thoughts we eventually have throughout our lives. From the moment I found you in the fields of my homeland, you have proven time and again you are a person that I can trust!"

"You can’t trust me! I can’t even trust myself. All those times the dragon in me took over, I nearly killed you or others and it was me! It was my own will. We can’t-"

"That's enough, Mark!" A stinging pain came across my cheek. "You’re doing it again! You’re trying to justify hurting yourself with your tactical outlook. But I’m going to use your tactics against you! Athos, one of the eight legends, gave up the last of his power to see you brought back. You said you almost unleashed your rage against him in Arcadia before you left. He experienced your hatred of the humans for himself. And yet he was still willing to sacrifice himself so that you could live. Why would one of the heroes of the Scouring, who fought rampant dragons like you keep making yourself out to be, do that if he considered you dangerous?"

I began to answer, but Lyn cut me off.

"It's because he didn't. He knew who you were as our tactician. He knew what you have done for me, and Eliwood, and Hector, and him, and everyone in our company. He knew you as the human Mark. Not the dragon Mark. That is the Mark I know is sitting before me because he is once again so terrified of being a danger to others that he would rather die than hurt the people he profoundly and honestly cares about. Damn you, Mark! How can you be so blind?!"

She… she was right. Not only was she right about how scared I was of harming those around me, but could I really argue against the wisdom of the archsage? No matter what I thought up to validate the need to put an end to myself, according to Lyn, I had already died. And Athos, in his great wisdom, knowing my true identity and my temperament, decided I should be brought back by his own quintessence. The night at the fort, when I had felt I needed to apologize to Lyn for the things I had said to her, I didn't at the time, even though I had hurt her. I had the facts, and Lyn hadn’t. Now she had the facts, and now it was time. "Lyn… I'm so sorry…"

With a gentle tug of my cloak, I was mere inches from her face, and for a moment I thought she was going to violently shake me until I was willing to accept what she wanted me to. Instead, she held me there so that I could see every painful emotion that tainted her face. "If you're still afraid of the beast within you, then don't face it alone. Let me help you as you helped me."

She pulled me to her lips. The blissful elation from when she gripped my hand intensified into blazing excitement. I couldn't understand this at all. How could a human I wanted to destroy enliven a raging beast like me with such overwhelming joy? I shouldn't have felt this way. A monster like me didn't deserve it. But… that's the point Lyn was trying to make, wasn't she?

Another memory appeared in my mind. There was a woman with short brown hair and sun-kissed skin, and a man with a winning smile and a mouth full of food sat next to her at a table. At the ends of the table were another man and woman, and they all looked up at me with welcoming countenances. I had loved other humans before meeting Lyn. I had a human family in Arcadia before I joined Nergal.

They were not the only humans that had trusted me then. I had threatened to kill Athos before I left Arcadia. He did not believe me when I said those words. And he was convinced that if we ever found each other again, he and I would talk as friends instead of enemies.

He had been right, of course.

Perhaps Lyn was right, too. I wasn't that monstrous dragon who willingly joined Nergal, just like I wasn't a morph. I was Mark: an amnesiac tactician that was found by a woman in the plains of Sacae, after which I had no other desire than to travel with her. I stood by her side, risking my own life for hers until she had been reunited with her grandfather. Then I offered to help another human search for his father until I started losing control of my body, to which I felt the best course of action was to put an end to me to protect the humans I loved. And despite all the conflict I went through, I led these people to bring an end to a madman that had used my anger, and stopped their land from being consumed in the fire of my brethren.

But probably the most damning evidence of all… If I honestly did hate these humans—if I genuinely wished to see them burn—why, in the embrace of this human, was my heart beating like Wallace beat his armor before battle? I wasn't confused. I knew exactly how I felt about Lyn. Every time I asked her to kill me I did so because I loved her and could not bear the thought of ever hurting her. And though I still feared the fact that a part of me was a vindictive dragon, I knew, without a single shred of doubt, that Mark would never let Markov hurt her.

Never.

I finally let my happiness form a smile when our lips parted, and I cupped the back of Lyn's head to hold her bright face within my gaze no longer fearing that I would destroy it. But fearing the darkness I would be left in without it. "So… you truly wish to spend your life with someone who is probably over a thousand years old?"

Lyn giggled as she came back in to give me another affectionate nip. "All things considered, I think that will be the easiest thing to live with."

Chapter Text

Epilogue

I emerged back into the living world greeted by the sound of victorious cheers, the excited grasping of my hands, and heartfelt hugs filled with joy for my survival. Even the actual lords I served regarded me as their triumphant king returned home from a hard-fought battle. As Lyn had said, not one person feared me as a dragon.

After the reunion with the company, I was able to sit down with Lyn, Eliwood and Hector as well as Pent, Louise and Hawkeye to find out what happened after my transformation and the following prevention of my destructive intents. The lords had used their legendary weapons against me with Lyn taking up Norn. Eliwood had been the one to deal the final blow, and I had reverted to my human form with severe damage the healers had been working to mend since we returned to Fargus’ ship.

But before then, Athos had approached them after my defeat. Pent said he had never seen the archsage filled with such regret and utter sorrow.

While the healers worked on me, Athos recounted his experience during the war. The humans were in a desperate position six months into the Scouring. A mighty Demon Dragon had risen up, and the morale of the dragons had increased exponentially, giving them an upper hand. The humans managed to gain one strategic victory over the dragons. But their victory had felt hollow, and the retaliation of the dragons seemed imminent. The dragons did retaliate, but not in the way the heroes expected. A group of eight dragons came to the humans led by a ninth dragon, my father, Marduk.

The Demon Dragon who had appeared was a dragon kidnapped from our tribe and forced to become a Demon Dragon by our warring brethren. Marduk and the other dragons could not overlook such a heinous act made by our own kind, and so met to confer with the humans. They wanted to put an end to the Scouring, and offered to provide the humans with powerful weapons that could combat the dragons. It was a startling offer the humans were eager to accept, but the dragons had their own request. They did not wish to see their own kind destroyed with weapons made by them. Instead, they wanted the weapons to be used to banish the warmongering dragons to another world through the Dragon's Gate, and use the weapons to kill only as a last resort.

The humans consented to this request, but wise members among the humans questioned human wellbeing with the creation of such weapons. The power to defeat dragons would make the weapons incredibly dangerous to humankind were they to fall into the wrong hands. To ensure the weapons weren't used for another purpose after banishing the dragons, Marduk transferred his quintessence into a Binding Blade to seal the weapons' power. The sword would lock the legendary weapons and act as a seal on their power after they had fulfilled their purpose in order to ensure they were not used for evil. As an even further precaution, Bramimond crafted the Fire Emblem to seal the Binding Blade away in the Shrine of Seals.

Eight trusted heroes were selected to carry the legendary weapons. However, the power was beyond what either the humans or the dragons had expected. The might of the weapons threw Elibe's climate out of balance causing nature to draw magic power from the universe in a catastrophe known as the "Ending Winter”. This event immensely weakened the dragons they fought, and the humans succeeded in banishing them through the Dragon's Gate. The remaining dragons went into hiding or found their way to Arcadia. After peace finally came to Elibe, the eight heroes took their weapons and dispersed throughout Elibe to hide their power and establish their nations. With the seals on the weapons activated, Bramimond took the Binding Blade into hiding until Athos had called upon him to awaken the weapons Eliwood and Hector wielded.

Years later, Athos had met Nergal, and the two of them discovered the village of Arcadia where he unknowingly met the son of one of the dragons that had given his life to end the war. But my cold behavior prevented us from ever having conversations about who I was and, consequently, my father. Despite our final conversation, Athos still believed that he and I would be able to talk as friends one day, even after I left Arcadia.

When I did not return to Arcadia, Athos had assumed me having passed through the Dragon's Gate or killed in my brash pursuit of vengeance. He never believed I would fall to Nergal and be used for a baleful plan to bring the warmongering dragons back to Elibe. When we first came to Athos in the Nabata desert, he assumed me, as I even believed myself to be, a mere tactician in service to a triplet of lords, and ultimately a morph of Nergal's after discovering my instances of possession. It wasn't until I had stepped up to drive the dragons back through the gate did Athos realize who I truly was. And the shocking revelation that the dragon who had threatened to kill him, had lost his memory, became friends with him as he had hoped, and now fought to protect humanity as the archsage had during the war…

Was it any wonder that Athos did not hesitate in using what little power he had left to transfer the last of his quintessence to me so that I could continue to live out the new life I had found? Though the possibility of remembering my past may have caused me to relapse back to my hatred for the humans, he had faith that the memories I had made in my amnesia with my friends would keep the beast within me at bay.

Truly the wisest man in all Elibe. Such a selfless gift fueled more motivation into my resistance against Markov’s hatred.

We returned to Ostia after arriving back on the mainland. Eliwood and Hector would be taking up leadership of their respective homes, and every member of the company was honored for the roles they carried out in the campaign. And with Nergal's evil finally at an end, the company parted ways.

Fargus and his crew were given special honors in Lycia for their constant loyalty and steadfast resolve in a conflict they were never directly involved in. Hector requested they join the Lycian navy and for Fargus to become its commander. Fargus refused the offer claiming he would never serve under mooncalves, but should Lycia ever need the assistance of his privateers, he would gladly return to remind the landlubbers who ruled the oceans.

Marcus returned to Pherae and was made the commander of its knights. Eliwood requested that he act as an advisor for him after he became the next Marquess, which Marcus gladly accepted. Whenever the worrisome locals asked him about considering retirement, he would promptly explain the lack of discipline among the young squires he had dedicated his life to training.

Our campaign against Nergal also proved highly beneficial for the oblivious knight Lowen. The experience he gained on our journey helped him grow into a shrewder, more discerning knight that earned him the position of one of the Lycian League's ambassadors.

Rebecca took longer than Lyn to overcome her prejudices against bandits. Though her resentment for bandits did not fade away as Lyn's did, the time she spent training with Lyn had caused her to become more merciful when dealing with such felons, viewing them as deplorable reprobates rather than savage animals to be put down. She returned to her father pledging her service to House Pherae and defending her village from brigands while still taking care of the family she started with a Caelin knight upon her return.

With the money he earned from this campaign, Dorcas was able to finish paying off the remaining debt he owed after moving his family to Tuscana and getting treatment for Natalie. Dorcas became the magistrate of his village, and Natalie rapidly recovers each day. From his most recent letter, they are expecting a child soon.

Bartre found a woman of his own in Ostia a few days after we returned, and left with her. No one has heard from them since, but there were rumors that the woman was a renowned Sword Master.

Hector and Oswin reconciled with each other after we left the Dread Isle. Oswin now serves as a vassal to his new Marquess. His calm and reasonable mentality has served Lycia's ruling government quite well in contrast to Hector's boisterous voice. He also serves as an ambassador for Lycia alongside Lowen.

I could never tell what was happening with Matthew throughout our campaign. Not until I found him about to murder Jaffar. I knew bringing Jaffar and Nino into our group would be dangerous. But I never imagined Matthew would have gone as far as he did. I should have known better.

Since our first journey to the Dread Isle when we lost Leila, he had never been the same as when I first met him. His always charming and sly demeanor had deteriorated into something malicious and vindictive, and I often worried about his mental stability. Others told me they too had attempted to talk to him after Leila's death but were met with cold silence. I shouldn't have been surprised when I found him about to murder Jaffar. All the same, I'm glad Leila was still with him and prevented him from doing something he would regret.

When Leila was honored for her services to Ostia upon our return, Matthew was unsurprisingly absent. Both he and Leila had been crucial to our campaign. We would not have returned home victorious without both of their undercover work. And wherever he went, I hoped Matthew found contentment.

Serra returned to Ostia as well in service as a grand cleric to the House. She spent much of her time tending to her own affairs now that she was no longer required to travel across Elibe. However, lately, she has been finding more free time on her hands. I heard whispers from her servants that they suffer from lack of sleep due to her constant requests throughout the night.

Guy's time with the company allowed him to overcome the crippling notion of being a failure as a Swordsman from Sacae. Lyn proved to be a great mentor to him during our campaign allowing him to overcome his detrimental inferiority complex and continue to hone his form as a swordsman. He has since returned to his tribe in Sacae and been renowned as the Saint of Swords.

Rath likewise returned to his tribe where he was praised as a hero and received a prestigious greeting from his father for fulfilling the prophecy that had forced him to leave his tribe so long ago. Before he left, he came to me as well and warned me to never falter in my devotion to Lyn for the nomads of Sacae did not take kindly to outsiders mistreating one of their people, especially one who had lost her entire tribe. But he gave me the warning with a smile that said I never given him any reason to doubt me.

I could never wrap my head around the motives of the secluded healer Priscilla. The fact she had been so willing to lend her healing abilities to our company after we rescued her from her forced marriage imprisonment astounded me. I understood she wished to repay her debt to us, but she did so and more. She and Serra were both vital to the company's well being. I likely would have died on the several occasions Nergal possessed me if not for her. Priscilla always seemed to have a knack for aiding in a speedy recovery after each episode, and it crossed my mind to request that she remain in Lycia. But of course, with Nergal defeated and my true nature revealed, there was no reason for her to stay. And it was likely she could not fulfill such a request as she had family waiting for her back in Etruria. Erk finally saw her back to her home where her adopted parents met her with tears of joy. Erk was asked to succeed the retiring Lord Pent, but he refused, wishing to continue devoting his life to the study of magic.

Despite having survived my assault on him, Lord Hausen passed away a few weeks after we returned. Fears that I may have been responsible for his passing constantly crept into my mind, but Lyn continually assured me that his old age had finally caught up with him. Lyn had no desire to take over the rule of Caelin, so she abdicated rule to Hector and Ostia knowing it would be in good hands.

A statue of Kent was erected in Caelin to honor his sacrifice during the campaign. When asked to give a speech at his memorial, I argued the request with the fact that my possession resulting in his death would be taken poorly by the people. Lyn did not give me a choice, but her support helped me to overcome my fear and create an honest eulogy. The earnest account of the advice and companionship he provided for me during the campaign proved reverent to the people of Caelin. And my acknowledgment of the unyielding devotion to his people he always carried with him into battle was met with grateful tears and appreciative handshakes after his memorial.

Sain resigned as a knight in service to Caelin. He and Rebecca married after our return and is happily living a comfortable life protecting his home from bandits alongside his wife and eagerly waiting for the day he can teach his boys the art of wooing girls. Wil, on the other hand, remained in service to House Caelin. His devotion to the company during our campaign had impressed Hector, and he made Wil the commander of Ostia's Caelin archer division that remains unmatched.

I regretted not having more time to get to know the detached mercenary, Raven, during our travels. Not that we would've had much to talk about. He always followed orders often achieving his mission beyond what I would've expected. He took any praise with an indifferent grunt and a simple nod of acceptance. Then he vanished without a word after we returned to Pherae. A report from Lucius placed him in Araphen, but it could not be confirmed. Lucius promised me he would follow up if he heard more from Raven. I declined the offer, not wishing for Lucius to feel obligated in keeping tabs on his companion since he started a small orphanage in Araphen where he cares for helpless children.

Canas returned to his home in Ilia and started a family of his own. He teaches the dark arts of magic to others to promote the safe practice of its dangerous nature, so that it might be used for protection rather than destruction.

Florina's sisters Fiora and Farina returned to Ilia as well. Fiora started her own mercenary company and donated the money she earned to needy families living in destitution. Farina, however, far surpassed her duties as a commander of the Pegasus Knights, allowing her to work independently and earn higher prices for her work. Though, Fiora mentioned how envious she’d become of our Wyvern Knight, Heath, who also traveled to Ilia. He became rather respected as the only Wyvern Knight in the nation. This unique aspect led to many people seeking him out with lucrative job offers. From the jobs he takes, he fights not for the money, but the people in need.

Dart stayed with Fargus after our victory at the Dragon's Gate. It was reported to me one day that Dart had taken a grave wound while protecting Fargus in a battle. He vanished at sea, but I heard reports of someone with his description turning up in Rebecca's village. I never ventured to discover the truth, but during his time in the company, I felt that he and Rebecca held an uncanny resemblance to each other.

With most of the leadership in the Black Fang decimated due to Nergal's cruel takeover, Legault took it upon himself to reestablish the group under its founder's ideology. Now renamed the Dusk Fang, the group works from the shadows as it did before, serving to protect the weak oppressed by those whose hubris had grown too large as had always been Brendan Reed's intention.

As the other two remaining senior members of the Black Fang, Jaffar and Nino were asked to run the Dusk Fang's Lycian chapter. They obliged the request for a couple of months, but Jaffar suddenly disappeared one day without a word to anyone, including Nino. I soon found out why. After Hector had pardoned Jaffar's crimes, some disgruntled nobles had put a price on his head. I discovered this unfortunate truth when bounty hunters started showing up and asking me questions about Jaffar.

With my knowledge of clever misdirection (though I had to be careful since I was a terrible liar), I was able to dissuade some of the bounty hunters from their hunt by claiming that he traveled to a village in the Nabata desert that was populated by both humans and dragons. However, without knowing where Jaffar actually was, I feared I might be telling the truth.

Jaffar had taken up most of the leadership of the Dusk Fang chapter in Lycia. Because of this, Nino left in search of her true family's home and what secrets they might have guarded. She returned successful in her quest. However, when I told her about the bounty hunters asking for Jaffar, she gave me her usual innocent smile and said she would have to take a break from her studies for something important. I never pressed her as to why (I didn't need to), and she left a book she had found from her family with me, promising we would read it together when she returned.

Isadora remained as a knight of the imperial guard serving as Lady Eleanora's personal guard up until the day the knight finally wed. Karel returned to his life as a traveling swordsman. There was never much word on him, but I did hear that he had challenged Guy to the title of Saint of Swords.

Wallace decided it was time for him to finally return home with Caelin under Ostian rule. Though after traveling to his home to present him with a medal for his service, it seemed he still hadn’t gained a sense of direction. Even more surprising, his wife was utterly serene with the fact. I couldn't help but admire her devotion.

Rumors flew across Elibe that due to her betrayal to the crown, Bern had Vaida executed. That may have been the official story, but my own sources told me she was working behind the scenes serving as an advisor to Prince Zephiel. I could only hope that her short time in the company had softened her callous heart and her advisement would help to promote peace between the other nations.

It wasn't until our campaign finally ended that I learned Hawkeye was descended from Sedalia. When I told him and Pent and Louise about my memories, he explained how it had been passed down that his great great great grandmother always said she had two brothers: one human and one dragon. He returned to Arcadia to live peacefully with his daughter, whom he trains to be a guardian of the desert. Pent decided to take over Athos' research in Nabata. But to do so, he had to resign as the mage general of Etruria. This choice caused quite the uproar among the nobles, but with Louise by his side, he was able to endure the ridicule he received, and they both seemed truly happy with their decision. They also promised to inform me if they discovered anything about my father and mother in their research in order to aid in fully recovering my memories.

And before they left, they relayed a final message from Athos to me. The archsage wanted to apologize for being oblivious to Nergal's dark path until it was already too late. He had felt responsible for the death of my stepbrother. And when he found out who I truly was and the change I had undergone, it was one of three times Athos had truly been astounded in his lifetime. The other two being my father's willingness to help end the Scouring for the humans and finding the paradise of Arcadia. For him, the choice was simple: he would not allow Nils and Ninian to lose another family member. Pent and Louise said that as he transferred the last of his power to me, he had finally found true peace and passed happily.

My talks with Ninian were among my favorite as she filled some of the remaining blanks of what happened in my past after my last memory of joining Nergal. She and Nils had speculated that because I had been under Nergal's control for so long, his Dark magic allowed him to possess me even if I were far away, and why my memory hadn't returned after escaping him.

According to her, Ninian had been an Oracle in the land of dragons when she heard someone calling to her. She told her brother, and they had assumed Elibe to be safe, and were being called to come back. They opened the gate from their side, even though they weren't supposed to, and when they stepped through, I was the only one waiting for them outside the gate. I was in my dragon form at the time, but I reverted to my human form and I taught them how to take the form of a human in order to adapt to the new world after the Ending Winter. The siblings followed my instructions, and once they had achieved human form, Nergal and his morphs captured them.

For the next few months, Nergal and his men had imprisoned them. They hardly ever saw me, but they heard my quintessence was being used to create more morphs. And whenever they did get to see me, I did not speak or move, and I was never alone to be asked any questions. One day, we left Valor because Nergal was meeting with the Black Fang at their headquarters on the mainland. While we were traveling through Sacae one night, Nils started a fire in the camp and he and his sister escaped on horseback. Confusion had ensued, so they never knew what my fate had been, but they assumed me to still be allied with Nergal.

So, when Lyn and I had come to Ninian's rescue with Nils on our way to Caelin, they were surprised to not only find me still human, but also that I did not seem to recognize them at all. They had been wary of me during that time fearing that I may still have been secretly working with Nergal. But after we completed our campaign in Caelin, they concluded that was not the case and that our first encounter was a brainwashing or puppeteering. However, they still did not reveal who they were to me, or who I actually was.

Ninian said it was her idea to keep our identities a secret from everyone including me, even when I questioned them on why I had been calling for the dragons during our first venture to the Dread Isle. Their reasoning—I appeared so happy around Lyn and the other lords; they did not wish to trigger a possible relapse into my brainwashed state, especially with my possessions and how she too had been brainwashed by Nergal for a time.

As for Nils… Well, I didn't ask too much about what happened to him, until I felt the time was right.

"So he went back through the Dragon's Gate?" I asked Ninian as we sat together in a guest room in Castle Ostia. Today was Eliwood and Hector's coronation ceremony, and we were waiting for Eliwood to finish being adequately attired by his servants.

"Yes, it was our fault that this tragedy happened in the first place, so I decided-"

"Ninian," I said throwing up a hand. "Please, please do not blame yourself for what happened."

A warm smile lifted her face. "Eliwood said a similar thing when I told him that I needed to return through the gate. But Nils…" The smile faded. "He asked if I wanted… He understood that I desired to stay here in Elibe. To be with Eliwood—he asked Lord Eliwood to cherish me. Eliwood promised he would. He said he would make me happy." The tears were starting to form. "He said he was going alone. He would use his power to seal the gate. And he told me to live as happ…" A sob finally broke out of her mouth. "As happy a life I could…for as long as I could…" Her hands were over her face. "Oh, Nils!"

I took a moment to let her expel what she needed to. But each moan wrenched my heart. And the fact that I had been comatose during that whole time and unable to give my voice in the matter left an even deeper wound. "I'm so sorry, Ninian. It's my fault. I let my anger get the better of me, I let Nergal influence me, and he used me to call you two through the gate. The fault was not with you two, but with me. You two could have lived safely behind the gate."

"No, Uncle Mark," Ninian said, finding her composure. "We wouldn't have been happy."

I looked back up at Ninian. Her face was still red with tears, but that warm smile remained. "If it wasn't for you calling us. Nils and I would never have come to this world. We would never have rediscovered the beauty of our birthplace. And I…" She wiped away another tear. "I would never have reunited with the uncle I never knew, and…" She looked away as her cheeks became even more flushed, but not due to tears.

"So here you two are!" Eliwood walked into the room dressed in a dazzling set of regal white clothes. It was a stark difference to the armor he had worn during our campaign, yet his wild red hair stood out even more now. For old time's sake, I put on a goofy smirk.

"Are you becoming the next Marquess or joining the church of St. Elimine? Lucius never mentioned such."

"What?" Eliwood looked down at himself. "Ah, these clothes. I look silly, don't I. Formal dress is so stiff, I can't stand it."

"Far too dainty for the hardened son of Roland who wielded the legendary sword against me. I can feel the dragon raging in me for being defeated by such pomposity.”

Both Ninian and Eliwood laughed. "Indeed. I am glad you survived to attend our ascension ceremonies. Now that everything is finally resolved, I'll succeed my father as Marquess Pherae, and Hector will take up his brother's mantle. To be honest, I don't know if I'm equal to my task, but I'm going to do my best for all the people who live here."

"That's all anyone can ask of their leader, isn't it? That’s all you asked of me during the campaign. And as the Wandering Tactician of Elibe, who shrewdly observed you throughout a grueling campaign, I can’t think of anyone better suited to the position than you.”

Eliwood gave a small nod. "Mark, you… Thank you. Thank you for supporting me in everything. I… No, all of Lycia owes you a great debt."

"Eliwood…" I was about to make a statement about me being a dragon that wished to destroy Lycia. But I remembered Lyn's tear-stricken face back on Fargus's ship. "I was just doing my job."

"Eliwood," Ninian spoke up. "Should we tell him?"

I glanced at her then back at Eliwood. "Tell me what?"

"Mark, we'd like to name our first child after you. Ninian and I talked it over. You've done so much for us, and we truly want this."

I was about to respond to such a request when a loud voice boomed into the room. "You better not be trying to claim Mark as an exclusive tutor for your future children!"

Hector walked in dressed in a formal black suit with a red cloak draped over his shoulders. Florina was right behind him clothed in a royal dress similar to what Ninian was wearing, which was unsurprising since both Eliwood and Hector's ascension would include their weddings too. “I don’t care how much you’re paying him; his services belong to anyone who wishes to hire his services. As the future head of the Lycian league, one of my first edicts is to abolish private funding for exclusive rights and power among the nobles. And that includes us, Eliwood!”

“Sounds more like you want to hire me,” I said. “And if that’s the case, good luck telling the other nations that wish to buy my services they have to abide by your edicts.”

“As a citizen of Lycia,” Hector said, “I would hope your loyalties lie with us first.”

“I don’t remember becoming an official citizen.”

“You are now,” Hector challenged.

"Umm… Lord Hector…” Florina spoke up. “I don't think Mark cares about who pays him the most… He already turned down the compensation you offered him for the campaign... so… why would he allow Eliwood to… buy his services…?"

By the eight, Florina! Don’t destroy my future business prospects.

"Eh? Hmmm… I guess that makes sense, doesn't it?"

"It does." Lyn walked in behind them dressed in a blue outfit most of the noble Ostian ladies were wearing, and she did not appear to be enjoying it. "Stupid, excessive cloth. How do women walk around in these things all day without fainting from lack of air??" She placed a hand on her stomach and inhaled deeply. "Must be why they all behave like they don’t have a brain. The air can’t get up there.” She reached behind her dress and started fiddling with the ties. “And I hate to frustrate your request, but unfortunately neither Mark nor I will be able to tutor your children or provide service to Lycia for some time because we'll already be busy taking care of our own children in Sacae." Something popped and she let out a satisfied exhale.

"We will?" I asked, raising a brow. "What makes you say that? Our marriage isn't for another week. And we haven't… done… anything…" I shot Hector a scornful glare. Had he lied to me about how procreation worked?!

Lyn gave me a mischievous grin before Hector could respond. "You and I repressed our feelings during most of the campaign, and even after we confessed to each other, you still wished to wait to take things all the way until after the campaign was over. Well, now it's over, and still you’ve pushed me to wait until our wedding. But after that, if I'm not pregnant by the time we return to Sacae, I will have no choice but to consider myself barren."

That ridiculous grin was on Hector's face in an instant, and even Florina smiled knowingly. My cheeks flushed with heat, so I turned to Eliwood and Ninian only to be met with the same childish expressions.

"What?!" I said trying to release some of the building embarrassment.

"It’s still so hard to believe your claim that you’re some kind of wrathful dragon," Eliwood barely managed to say over his poorly restrained snickering. "Even with your wedding coming up, you're still as bashful as that night before we arrived in Laus."

"Yeah, how does a dragon get so embarrassed about admitting how much the smile that could light up the night left you so weak in the knees," Hector attributed.

"The what?" Lyn inquired, confusion building in her mien.

"Well, that's the way Mark described it the night we had to explain to him what lovers were," Hector answered as I shoved my face into my hands out of sheer mortification. "He said your smile shined as brightly as the sun."

Lyn blinked, shocked by Hector's words. Her response started with restraining a snort, but it quickly grew into uncontrollable laughter, and she had to throw a hand over her mouth to restrain it.

"Thank you," Hector followed up, throwing his hands in front of his face. "It would be a poor coronation if you blinded me before it."

The sheer seriousness in his delivery forced Lyn to double over into a chair with laughter. I continued to rub my face against my hands hoping that I could just wipe away this memory and become and an amnesiac again.

"Glad to see that I'm still providing you all with entertainment.” I turned back to Eliwood and Ninian to move on from this stupid topic. “As for naming your child, I'm honored that you would choose me, but Lyn and I have already decided to name our child after my father or mother, but as those names are rather strange, we decided if it was a boy to name him Mark as well."

"Yes," Lyn said, taking a breath. "I'm sorry, Eliwood."

"But," I spoke up, thinking of something. "If you would like to, you could name your child after my family’s name."

"Your family name?" Eliwood asked with interest. "You remember it?"

"Yes. It's Royxis."

"Oooh, I like that name," Ninian replied clasping her hands together. “Royxis,” she repeated with perfect accentuation.

"Royshixsh…” Eliwood said scratching his chin. "It’s difficult to speak in the human tongue. Maybe we could do what Mark did with his name and shorten it."

"Roy," Ninian said with a nod.

"What if you have a girl?" Hector pointed out.

"Leila," Ninian said, and my heart skipped a beat. “In honor of the spy who gave her life to ensure our campaign was successful.”

"I’m sure she would be honored," I replied, but Hector grunted.

“Blast! That’s a great name for a girl.” He set his hands on his hips and growled, “Gonna have to find a similar name if we have a girl.”

A bell starting to toll outside drew all our attention.

"That's our cue, Eliwood," Hector said. "Time to go make it official." He held his arm out for Florina and the two them exited the room. Eliwood took Ninian's hand, and they followed. I stood up from my chair and went to Lyn. She had calmed down, and now she wore her signature sweet smile—the same smile she had given me when I first woke up in her Yurt all those years ago. And this time I no longer needed to resist the urge to kiss that smile. With the goofy faces of Hector and Eliwood thankfully absent, I leaned down, gripped the stuffed arms of the chair, and indulged myself upon her sweet lips, and she satisfied my impulse, wrapping her hands behind my head and pulling me in closer to her. We treated ourselves for several seconds until the bell outside tolled again.

"We better get going," I said still nuzzling her neck.

Lyn let out a sigh. "I really can't wait until we're married." She stood up, slid her arm under mine, and cozied herself on my arm, intertwining our fingers, holding me here—now. "So your last name is Royshis?"

“Royxis,” I repeated for her. “You have to flutter your tongue when you say it.”

“Roysh… Royshhhh…” She rolled her eyes. “I guess it’s easier for the longer tongues of dragons. How are you able to pronounce it even with a human tongue?”

I cocked my head. “I guess being a dragon for over five hundred years allows certain things to stick.”

"But you said you were over a thousand years old. Have you recovered all your memories from beyond then?"

I reached into the back of my mind scanning through every memory I had. My life with my family before and during the Scouring, my sister and I leaving our home, my time spent in Arcadia, and of course my confrontation with Nergal. They were all memories of my past, and yet I still felt incomplete. I still had this strange memory of a prince with blue hair and a small girl with pointed ears that I could not place. And then there was one with an ashen woman with golden snakes that hovered around and looked similar to the ones on my sword. "I don't believe so. But in the grand scheme of things, they don't matter all that much. Because in the end…" I reached over and brushed aside a few strands of hair that had fallen in front of Lyn's face. "I already have the best memories with me."

Lyn's smile grew big as she leaned in and kissed me once again. "And we will continue to make more together."

I smiled as well, and then we left the room behind.

Fifteen Years Later…

Eliwood stood quietly, gazing at the portraits that lined the walls of the foyer he stood in. They were just as big as the portraits in Castle Pherae. Portraits meant to display the grandeur of the previous marquesses that had ruled the land. After becoming Marquess Pherae, Eliwood had the portrait of his father moved to the throne room in his castle. Eliwood intended for it to be a reminder for himself. His father had been a benevolent ruler during his time. Pherae, as well as most of Lycia, had prospered for many years under his father's leadership. For the fifteen years Eliwood had been Marquess after Nergal's defeat, he had continued carrying on his father's legacy, but now he feared this time of prosperity would be coming to an end.

The words the archsage had said before he passed played in his head, but he did not think further on them. There would be time for that later. His eyes continued scanning the portraits until they finally came to a stop on one. The man in the picture was an imposing figure. His stoic face scarred from battle and his damaged armor told stories of the wars they bore witness to. Lord Uther had been the personification of Lycia's strength for decades, and his brother had continued to maintain that strength in the years following his ascension.

Many questioned Hector's ability to take his brother's place primarily due to his constant absence during his brother's reign and the confrontational personality he used to browbeat anyone who argued his decisions. Many nobles had voiced their outrage when he announced that he formed an alliance between the Nomads of Sacae and the Lycian League.

And Hector was anything but insincere with his declarations. To prove a point, Hector offered the nobles an unorthodox opportunity to reverse his decision. He would hold a melee, and if any nobles could hire a champion that could defeat the Sacaean ambassador, then he would break off the alliance. The nobles jumped at this opportunity, bringing the strongest champions from all over Elibe to face the ambassador. One by one they failed to defeat the Sacaean, and in a desperate (and vindictive) move, the nobles tried to throw five opponents at the ambassador at once. A disgusting move that Hector attempted to call off. However, one of his advisors urged Hector to let the fight proceed, and the resulting skirmish ended with the ambassador staunchly trouncing the five champions with barely more than a few cuts. Mark had been right; Hector needed to have more faith in Guy.

As punishment for their underhanded ploy, the nobles were forced to publicly acknowledge the alliance between Lycia and Sacae. Of course, this did not go over well with the nobles. The old tradition of racism that infected the upper class of Lycia would not go quietly. A couple nobles attempted to hire the newly formed Dusk Fang to assassinate Hector only to be turned down with a warning never to approach the Dusk Fang again. This, in turn, started a rumor that Hector secretly employed the Dusk Fang, but at this point, the nobles had lost too much repute to be taken seriously by the common folk.

Hector may have come on a bit firm with implementing his changes. The significant discord among the people in Lycia could not be overlooked. But Hector's new policies had gained the attention of other nations, and the support they provided made Lycia one of the most influential nations in Elibe. However, that strength was being put to the test, and Hector had requested Eliwood's presence to discuss a growing concern with their neighbors in Bern.

Heavy footsteps rattled the balcony above Eliwood in an odd irregularity. He followed them until a large man came into view, thudding down the stairs. Stress had taken its toll on the man as his face showed his age, and though his upper lip indicated a fresh shaving, he had given up on disposing of the ruddy blue beard that hung along his jaw like loose moss. The man descended the last steps, and Eliwood finally noticed that his delay was due to a small child clutching the back of his leg.

"Thanks for coming, Eliwood!" Hector said as he limped across the foyer to greet his friend.

"Hector!" Eliwood replied taking his hand. "Long time, no see!"

"First time since my brother's funeral," Hector said with a solemn nod. "Fifteen years now. And look at us. We've both grown older, haven't we?"

"Uh-huh. Time certainly does speed right by. My father's disappearance… his death… the fight with Nergal… and with Mark—I mean Markov. The memories are so vivid, it might have happened yesterday."

"Nergal…" Hector released a long grunt and crossed his arms. "What a blackheart he was. And Mark certainly wasn't a pushover. If he hadn't restrained himself, we might not be here talking to each other. I've had enough of battles like that."

"Indeed," Eliwood replied with a meditative nod. "But let's not forget what enduring those struggles earned us. Our coronation days were well received throughout Elibe, and Lyn and Mark's marriage ceremony provided a bridge in relations for both Lycia and the nomads of Sacae."

"Ha," Hector grinned broadly, "that was a grand night indeed. I didn't think the celebrations would ever stop that night. Lyn and Mark disappeared long before the third round of drinks had arrived. I think that bright light we saw in the distance was them."

Both of them shared a laugh, and then Hector glanced over Eliwood's shoulder. "Hm? Is that your son over there?"

Eliwood nodded. "I've been wanting to introduce you, but there's been no chance. Roy! Come here!"

The small redheaded boy who had been patiently standing by came to his father's side. "Did you need something, Father?"

"Say hello to Marquess Ostia!"

At the mention of the big man's title, Roy straightened up like a soldier being barked at by a superior officer. "Ye-yes, sir! A pleasure to meet you, Lord Hector. My name is Roy."

The boy's strict discipline was amusing to Hector. "Roy, is it? Nice to meet you, lad." He set his hands on his hips and inhaled deeply. "Well, I guess that means I should introduce my daughter then! Lilina!" He gently shook the leg that the child hung from.

A blue-haired girl peeked out from behind Hector but did not say a word.

"What? Are you being shy? You're just like your mother. You don't have to be nervous. This is your father's old friend and his son."

Lilina still did not say a word, so Eliwood spoke instead. "Hello, Lilina. This is Roy. He's the same age as you."

"Nice to meet you," she finally said in a barely audible voice.

"Lilina?" Roy seemed to steadily relax as he gazed at the girl. "Let's be friends. We can play over there."

Lilina appeared to be unsure about the request, so she looked up at her father.

"It's ok," Hector replied. "Go on." He gave his daughter a push toward Roy.

"Ah!" Lilina squeaked. For a moment she stared at Roy still dubious of what to do.

But Roy had the right amount of confidence to make up for her lack of it. He smiled and offered his hand to her, and she took it with her own smile. Then the two of them ran off into the courtyard while their laughter filled the hall.

"What a cute child," Eliwood said, watching them go. "Good thing she took after her mother."

"What?" Hector barked. "She looks just like me, doesn't she?"

Eliwood's goofy smile grew even wider. "You're a sarcastic one, Marquess Ostia!"

Hector threw a flippant hand at Eliwood. "Come on, now. We reserve that kind of pestering for Mark!"

Eliwood burst out laughing. "The only thing older about you is your appearance. Don't tell me you still behave like that even now that you're the marquess!"

"I'm always on top of my duties as marquess. But when I'm around you, I want to relax, so, please…"

"Hector," Eliwood's mien became serious. "By the way, I heard that the king of Bern died. It was fairly sudden, too."

Hector folded his arms. "I can't be certain, but according to one of our spies, he was killed in an assassination attempt on Prince Zephiel."

"The prince? Again?" Eliwood said becoming more curious. "I trust he was unharmed."

"It's a strange tale… At first, I'd heard that the prince was killed. Then new information came three days later saying that it was the king who had died."

Eliwood stared at the ground for a moment and then looked back at Hector. "Do you remember Archsage Athos' prediction? Is something happening in Bern?"

Hector looked away. "I don't know… But Mark thinks something is. He came for Armads."

Eliwood's eyes widened. "He asked for your weapon too? He came to retrieve Durandal about a month ago."

"Yes, he said he wanted to make sure the weapons didn't fall into the wrong hands. And we've never doubted Mark's choices before, so I offered to lock them away in a cave here. He accepted my offer with Durandal, but he wanted to keep the weapons separated and took Armads back to the Western Isles. He didn't say much else after that. That's part of the reason I requested your presence. I sent an envoy to Lyn, and she said he had set out to see us after some generals from Bern had come to hire him as a military advisor.”

"Mark said the same thing to me when he came for Durandal. They were apparently quite persistent. He seemed very troubled about the generals, but he would not mention why. He also said that he had told Lyn to take their daughter and go to Florina's sisters in Ilia."

Hector scratched his beard. "Florina mentioned that too…"

"Father!" Lilina called from the courtyard. "Can I show Roy my pony?"

"Yes, go ahead. Be careful!"

"OK!" she called back as she and Roy ran off to the stables.

Hector watched them until they were out of sight and then turned back to Eliwood with a deathly somber stare. "When Mark was leaving, I asked him where he was going after the Western Isles. There was sorrow in his face when he answered me. He said he had to find a solution. He had another premonition—of a terrible event in Bern that involved our children. I trust Mark; we know what a premonition from him means. For the sake of our children's futures, I'll stop anything that may happen. I'll sacrifice my life to make it so."

"Once again, Lycia brings hope," Eliwood said repeating the words Athos had said to them before he had passed the last of his quintessence to Mark. "…If that turns out to be wrong?" Eliwood shook his head. "No. It must happen…”

To be concluded in the Xenologue…

Chapter Text

Xenologue

It started with a dream; one I’d had before. The sound came slowly, a murmur rumbling out of the darkness. A lonesome form took shape before me in the space of endless swirling dark scaled snakes. A man with pale skin and an inconsequential face, other than the scar on his cheek, sat like a dejected stump in the slithering, melancholy colors around us. He stared at me with tired black eyes that seemed familiar to me in the simplest way. His medium length hair was an unhealthy mess of black strands, and he wore slack clothes similar to mine. A deep cut white tunic of profuse size often worn by travelers was tied off with a linen belt around his waist, and a pair of white pants studded with black buttons along the legs were tucked into long dark boots. A cloak of significant length and the same color as the snakes around us hung from his head as well, puddling out across whatever surface held us above the shifting scales below.

How we sat, I could not say, and neither of us spoke a word to each other. I knew the sound I heard did not come from this man—somehow. If he spoke a voice, and thus, a language, I was unfamiliar with it. Rather, the sound that came was more akin to a soft wind that carried with it a memory I could not grasp, for who can grasp the wind? So I listened quietly and stared into the man’s vacant eyes, waiting for him to speak, or stand, or run, or jump, or attack. Anything! But like me, he only stared back.

How long we stared at each other, I would not remember. This was not my first meeting with the mysterious man in my dreams (for this was a dream I knew), nor would it likely be the last. Every time I came here. I found no other purpose in the void of enormous snakes, and neither, it seemed, did the man. What need is there for purpose in a dream? Nightmares at least compelled you to flee or scream. But in a dream? Beautiful snake oil—there was only a quiet stillness here—endless calm. Nothing was real, not the snakes, not the man, not me, and the fanciful moment would ultimately leave me with nothing but a lingering hunger to return once I awoke. My physical form currently did not reside with this man in this endless looping. Such truth disappointed me for a reason I could not comprehend. But I chose not to awaken myself either because I always found myself beguiled by my silent companion with every meeting. As morose as his appearance was, he somehow provided me with a measure of tranquility, and some tinge of comforting familiarity, I thought, at least in appearance. I owned a cloak like his one time. A verdant thing much brighter and livelier than the sullen cloth hanging from his drooping head and shoulders, though now I only wore a tunic, trousers and boots similar to his own. Could the man have been me? Was this my future, or maybe a memory of the past? I could only hope my broken mind might light on something in this recurring encounter. On we went, gazing at each other, neither of us desiring for anything more. Of course, that was merely what I believed, I had no hint to the man’s thoughts, nor did I care to know. I would’ve been content to stare at him for all of eternity, if an actual voice, slick as oil and overtly amused, did not ring out in the shadow of the snakes.

“Are you awake?”

The snakes and the man faded as light broke through them like some yawning, holy beast, swallowing the dream to bring me back to reality. My crusted eyes opened to the glow of torches that lit the green walls embossed with foreign symbols and depictions of winged creatures that enclosed a massive, but otherwise empty room. I stretched my fingers that had become taut from lack of movement along the callous stone of the throne I sat in. Closing my eyes again, I inhaled slowly and deeply, preparing to let the suspiration expel my tight lethargy. The air remained bitterly cold as always, but there was a new smell permeating it. Something that did not smell of fire and flaked skin shed by the other occupants of this temple for another season. It smelled like blood and metal, broken sores and unwashed sweat, ripe food, dirtied cloth, but most of all, fear. I turned to my companion standing next to me. A man garbed in robes of intense scarlet that matched his hair and sharp crimson eyes. He turned to me with a smirk.

“We have visitors, Markov.”

So we did. Lightly armored footsteps clanked their way through the chamber as the new figure approached. A young man with royal armor of blue trimmed in gold with a matching headband that clashed brightly against his blazing red hair. His head swiveled, observing his surroundings, and a dull pain started to grow in the back of my head. I’d seen this man before; I just couldn't remember where. The obscure awareness didn’t surprise me, however. I’d awoken in this room several months ago with no recollection of how I’d come to be here or who I was.

I’d first met my scarlet companion at my awakening when he had been the only other person present when I awoke, and he had relayed to me that my awakening was due to my power being returned by the Dark Dragon, and though we currently resembled humans, it was an unfortunate necessity. We were the last true dragons. For months we’d idled in this dreary chamber, awaiting the return of a human king who had the unprecedented desire to return our power to us. That king never came. Instead, two women appeared several days before now, one, a human of mid age, and the other just having reached the cusps of her adulthood. Yet her true age in human years was unknown, and ultimately irrelevant for a dragon such as her. We dragons lived for thousands of years, and therefore aged far slower than the fragile humans. Appearance wise, she may have been a few hundred years younger than me.

The human woman’s distraught mien told us that her dear king had been slain before she even spoke the tragic words. Idunn, the dragon girl with her and the king’s key to returning our power, would have to be protected for the king’s plans to be fulfilled. We of course complied and told her to take the girl further into the temple where its power was at its densest. Idunn had not spoken at all. Nor did she even seem to know where she was. Her eyes, one a harsh red and the other a soft green, were empty and stared blankly from underneath the violet robe she shrouded herself in. When the older woman bid her to follow, Idunn did not render attention to her or us. She simply obeyed.

All things considered, this azure clad newcomer must have been the one to slay the king, and came to this temple in pursuit of Idunn. But I found myself disbelieving that he could accomplish such an impressive feat as regicide. His body lacked earned muscle and any signs of degradation brought on by time’s influence. If I stood, he would be half my height. Not a child, but not a man—a youth, and human no less, in the boundaries of maturity. He turned, examining the intricate walls with hooked curiosity, and that’s when I saw a sword sheathed on his back.

“That sword!” my voice broke out.

The boy spun around, trained hand grasping the handle of his weapon. But when he saw me, his stance loosened. “What…?” “You would stand before us again, humans?” my companion spoke.

“Who are you?” The boy asked. “When did you…” The boy glanced briefly to his side and then back to us.

“I am Jahn, and this is Markov. We are the last remaining dragons of the Dragon Temple.”

“The last dragons?” His strident blue eyes looked over both of us carefully. “You seem…different from the other dragons…” He fixed a cautious gaze on Jahn. “Are you the Dark Dragon?”

Jahn snorted his amusement. “The dragons which you have been fighting are War Dragons who know nothing but battle. And the Dark Dragon is something completely different from us. I am a pure, full-blooded dragon that fought you humans in the faraway past.” “Different?” The boy asked. “Wasn’t the Dark Dragon supposed to be the leader of the dragons?”

I had never heard any of the War Dragons of the temple refer to Idunn as their leader, nor Jahn, and even I had never thought of Idunn in such regard. I knew nothing else except that she was the key to reclaiming our power.

“The Dark Dragon is an ‘object’ meant to bring hope to us dragons again. It is no leader.”

While I’d never considered Idunn a leader of the dragons, object would not have been the word I would have used to refer to her. I, likewise, considered Idunn the bright shining hope for us dragons, and until now, Jahn had always spoken reverently of her power and the new world she would bring for us. As such, his discourteous reference to our hope surprised and irritated me. But I held my tongue for now.

“What?” the boy said with clear shock. “Then what is the Dark Dragon?”

“It seems you have much to learn.” Jahn always liked to toy with others like they were insects captured for his entertainment. I was no exception, but I’d learned how to play his narcissistic games. The boy would not get answers to his questions without earning them. And I would not give him the answers he wanted either. A part of me wanted to see what this boy-become-Kingslayer could do.

“Tell me! What is the Dark Dragon? We… I have to fully understand my enemy before I fight!”

The fool had revealed his emotions, and now Jahn would take great pleasure in using them against him. “Well… I have no reason to tell you. And, yet, I have no reason to not tell you. What should I do?”

The boy stared steadily at him. Even he seemed to know he had already lost this crafty exchange.

“…Very well. I shall test you to see if you are worthy of hearing the truth. We are deep inside the temple. Fight your way through to us. Then I shall explain everything.”

“But you’re right here!”

“What you are seeing is just an illusion.” Jahn was highly selective with who he allowed to see and speak to him. “If you wish to know the truth, then come to me. If you prove yourself worthy of my time, then you shall hear it.” Jahn swung a lazy hand in front of him and the image of the boy wavered away.

“There’s more of them,” I said. “The boy tried to hide it. He blundered his words.”

Jahn took a sharp inhale through his teeth. “There are, but that is not why he blundered his words. The boy wishes to take full responsibility for his reasons for coming to the temple. He feels guilty for coming to kill us and the Dark Dragon.”

“Guilty? Why would he hesitate over actions he intends to carry out?”

“Humans are devious creatures,” Jahn said, tilting his head in a languished manner. “They lie, steal, and kill. And yet they are haunted by the actions they themselves choose to carry out. They cannot sleep with the memories, so they form mental delusions that they were left with no choice so they might chill their burning guilt. They alone cannot be the ones to blame; others are to blame for their own actions. They started a war with us dragons and drove us from our homes. Still they portray themselves as spotless sheep justified into action through fabricated circumstances.”

“And you believe that boy is here to kill us?”

Jahn eyed me from the corner of his vision. “You do not?”

I shook my head. “I don’t know. But I feel like I’ve met that boy before.”

“An amnesiac like you is prone to have bits of memory float to the surface from time to time. After all, you recognized his sword. It is one of the many weapons the humans used to defeat us during the Scouring.”

“No, I’ve seen him somewhere before. And nothing from the Scouring—I know I did not fight in the Scouring.”

“You are certain of that?” Jahn inquired smoothly.

“Fairly certain. We’ve been in this temple for months. If I had fought alongside you in the Scouring, surely I would have some speck of a memory of you. Yet, I do not. Why is that? My amnesia can only be blamed for so much.”

“We have discussed this. You and I did not fight alongside each other. You would have no memory of me.”

“Yet you do not know if I fought in the Scouring either?”

“I do not,” Jahn replied. “Nor did I make that claim. It was merely a conjecture based on your familiarity with the weapon. When you came into this temple with deep wounds and not a single hint of your past, I could only assume you were one of the many dragons driven into hiding after our defeat. The familiarity of the boy is more likely from his weapon than himself. As I said, it was one of the many weapons used against us. Even if you did not fight in the Scouring, that weapon is meant to destroy us dragons.”

“You’re probably right,” I conceded. But I’ve never had this dull headache until now.

After another few minutes, there was a flash in the room, and the boy reappeared in front of us.

“You…” His glare was solely for Jahn. “Are you real this time? Or…”

Jahn threw back his head in laughter. “This is but the entrance. This temple was built into the mountains. You have a long way yet to reach me. Still, you seem to be strong enough not to die immediately.”

“Of course. We’ve gone through many hardships.” Jahn was right. The boy did not hide the fact that there were others with him.

“So I see.” Silence came between us all as Jahn took a moment to look over the boy. Could he have been wondering the same thing I did? Could this boy truly be capable of defeating us? He had killed a king after all. With an army of his own, no doubt, but nonetheless a monumental achievement for someone of his age.

“Very well, I shall tell you a little about the Dark Dragon. The Dark Dragon is not the leader of the dragons as you thought. The Dark Dragon was created by us to bring us victory.”

“Created…? So it wasn’t the Dark Dragon that was making more dragons…”

“The dragons you speak of are correctly referred to as War Dragons. As I said before, they are different from pure dragons such as Markov and me. Indeed, the War Dragons are created by the Dark Dragon. And the Dark Dragon was created out of a Divine Dragon, the most powerful of our kind.”

I slowly glanced at Jahn out of the corner of my eye. He had not shared that bit of information with me whenever we had discussed Idunn. I never considered Jahn to be a completely dishonest individual. More that he was someone who would never share the entire truth if it did not suit him. And now I questioned how much else he had been keeping from me in regards to the Dark Dragon.

“Created out of the Divine Dragon?” the boy asked just as astonished by the statement. “Then the Dark Dragon is actually…The Divine Dragon agreed to become the Dark Dragon?”

“Agreed?” Jahn’s countenance did not shift. “No. We destroyed its soul so that it would follow our leader’s every command.”

“What…!” The boy recoiled as if Jahn had struck him, and my hands clasped the arms of my chair so fiercely that my fingernails ground against the smooth stone. Another truth Jahn had failed to reveal to me, one that was far more abhorrent, and Jahn spoke of the despicable act as if it were a mundane occurrence!

“We desperately needed the power of the Divine Dragon. Our entire species was at stake.”

“You needed the power of the Divine Dragon…” The boy tried to make sense of what Jahn told him, but like me, he could barely stomach the thought. He appeared on the verge of collapsing from shock. “But…why did you have to destroy its soul!?”

“Why, you ask. If you want that answer, then seek me out again. I shall witness more of your power…” Jahn swiped his hand and the boy vanished again. I did not waste any time to ask my questions.

“I wish to know why we destroyed the Dark Dragon’s soul as well,” I asked without bothering to hide the accusation I levied against him. “Why would we do something so repugnant to one of our own kind?”

Jahn didn’t appear remorseful nor particularly pleased with what he had revealed. He was neutral; his usual stoicism retained as he answered me. “When you will get that answer will depend entirely on the boy’s strength. In the meantime however, I will ask of you why you seem to have such revulsion for an action taken to preserve our species in a time of war.”

“That action destroyed the soul of one of our own, stole her free will, and forced her to obey.” Idunn’s blank expression and silence made perfect, disturbing sense now. “Tell me why I shouldn’t be disgusted, dear brother.”

“Because the humans have done far worse to their own in times of peace. Do you not remember the reason the King of Bern came to us, wishing to restore our power?”

“That…” I had indeed forgotten the king’s reason for seeking our restoration. Not due to my amnesia, but the sudden revelation of Idunn’s current state. “I… Are the humans really so bad?”

“That boy killed our liberator and has now come to put an end to the last of the dragons so that humans never have to fear dragons rising up to take back their land. That is what they do to anyone who threatens what they conquered. Humans are filled with envy and hatred. They are parasites choking the land of its resources to satiate their gluttonous desires. They have no concept of peace. When their war with us ended, they started wars with each other. Borders were created, and they enslaved the weakest among them, and yet you believe us evil for a single desperate act? Markov, my brother, you point out the dirt in the water of our well, but you know nothing of the great polluted sea outside.”

I submitted to him and dumped my head, trying to drain the disgust I held for something I only just heard of with no context as to why. But it still gummed itself to my heart. “Even with our existence at stake, I do not believe capturing one of our kind and destroying her soul is acceptable.”

“That is because you do not remember how the other Divine Dragons abandoned us.” “Abandoned us?”

Jahn nodded solemnly. “I will explain if the boy survives to call on us again. But you have forgotten much in your amnesia. You’ve forgotten the reason for the Scouring and…” He looked at me sharply out of the corner of his eye again. “Perhaps you have forgotten your hatred for the humans?”

“No. I know the humans are what you have said. I’ve known that for a long time. And this human has come to kill us and our hope for a future.” The realization hit me. “Brother, that boy is killing our own kind. Why do you toy with him and allow him to come further?”

“Is it not so obvious?” Jahn said raising and interrogative brow.

“I cannot say it is.”

He smiled in good humor. “You have lost more of yourself than I believed, then. I toy with him to delay him. He has no reason to ask us questions, yet his self-ridden guilt and his fragile pride compels him to suspend his march. The War Dragons he fights are no match for him. And neither are we in our current state. But Idunn is not so weak. Her power is soon to return. But even if we had the power to destroy the humans right now, I would still refrain.”

“Why is that, brother?”

“For you, of course. Since our first meeting with the boy, you have recovered more of your mind in this short time than at any point during our time in this temple. This could be the opportunity we’ve been searching for to regain your lost memories.”

“You believe this boy is the key to my memories?”

Jahn shrugged. “It could be the boy, or it could be the sword. Or it could simply be coincidence. I cannot be certain of anything other than the fact that you have uncovered something with the boy’s appearance. The humans will come regardless, and Idunn will soon regain her power. And then we will have our answers.”

Another flash stole our attention, and the boy stood before us once again.

“Not bad,” Jahn replied with a hint of admiration for the boy, “not bad at all. I wonder how far you will come.”

“I want you to go on with your story,” the boy said forwardly

Jahn nodded. “No matter how much we fought, you Humans just seemed to multiply endlessly. Eventually, we began to lose because of the humans’ sheer numbers. Therefore, we wanted to create a Dark Dragon that would create War Dragons.”

“War Dragons…” the boy repeated. “Dragons meant only for battle.”

“That is correct. However, the Divine Dragons did not agree with us. They said we would be defying the laws of nature. And as we were discussing how we could persuade the Divine Dragons to help us, they suddenly disappeared.”

“Why?”

“Most likely, they left us to prevent us from taking advantage of them. We were never able to find the Divine Dragons, but fortunately, we were able to capture one.”

“And they became the Dark Dragon?”

“Yes. That Divine Dragon, Idunn, became the Dark Dragon. Apparently, she had hesitation in escaping with the rest of the Divine Dragons because she feared that we would go into conflict with each other.” A deep, cutting hiss slipped through Jahn’s gnashed teeth. “Hesitation…such nonsense is only for humans. We dragons have no need for it.”

“Then that hesitation worked against her…”

“When the Divine Dragons disappeared, she refused to go with them. That was when we were fortunate enough to find her. Idunn was still young, but she had no problems in fulfilling our purposes, except for one… Her heart was not with us. She would not follow our commands.”

“So you destroyed her heart…”

“Exactly. We destroyed her soul to make her follow our every command.”

“That’s…terrible.” I shared the boy’s sentiment, but did not reveal it to Jahn. I had more questions.

“That’s enough for now. If you want to know more, then show me more of your power!” The boy vanished after Jahn slashed his hand through the air once again, and I jumped into my moment for questions.

“So we destroyed Idunn’s soul because she was the only Divine Dragon left?”

“Correct.”

“And the Divine Dragons abandoned us?” “They did. They never condemned the humans even while their own kind were slain before their very eyes and refused to aid us when we begged for them to lend their power.”

“Did we destroy Idunn’s soul out of spite?”

The words weren’t meant to be cutting or accusatorial. Yet Jahn’s face contorted in inquiry as if I had tried slashing him with a sword, as if the sudden question was a vicious substance he could not touch. There was a great gap of silence, and when Jahn finally spoke, his voice was cold. “Don’t be foolish. Spite is a silly emotion. Our reason was for preservation. The Divine Dragons were the strongest of us dragons, and they cared nothing for us. Since they would not aid us, we took what we needed to survive.”

“I believe you, brother,” I said, trying to counteract the unexpected venom my inquiry had for Jahn. “Forgive me for my questioning, but this drastic action of preservation is why I feel I must ask you again. If we hurt our own kind and there are those of us who forsake the weaker, then what makes us different from the humans?”

“We did not start the war with the humans.”

“We didn’t,” I said in agreement. “But what are we doing now?”

“Retaking what belongs to us.”

I stared at him for a brief moment only now beginning to question if that fire that burned deep in his eyes actually betrayed raging emotions he claimed not to have. Then, out of necessary strategy, I broke my gaze away. However similar he claimed us to be, I did have these emotions Jahn so easily regarded as pointless. With my fragmented memory starting to repair itself, and the revelations of Idunn’s origins being carried out by the dragons themselves, was it any wonder I’d become distraught? And what of Jahn? Surely he felt betrayed for my cross-examination. The individual who was supposed to be a boon companion to him was becoming a reluctant tenant.

For the months as far as my existing memories stretched back, Jahn and I had been the only company for each other in this gloomy temple, but Jahn himself had been injured during the Scouring and forced to recover here for much longer. It wasn’t until the King of Bern unlocked the Dark Dragon’s power that his strength returned, and he found me unconscious in a field somewhere in Bern and brought me back to this temple to recover my own strength. To be alone for almost 1000 years waiting for your hated enemies to find you and finish you was a tragic fate. Did he fear? Did he cry? I’d never seen it. Perhaps that was the reason he put on a mask of stoicism. He wished to separate himself from such tormenting moments. And it had to have been a grand providence for him to not only find me, but to also discover a hope to regain what was taken from him! When Jahn told me all this, I endeavored to provide what support I could until Idunn’s power was restored and we could take back our home in spite of his roguish tendencies. All these months, we had fed on that hope while we waited patiently for our salvation. But that was all before this new history.

Jahn had not revealed the whole truth to me that much I was certain of. Though a peaceful silence had grown between us, Jahn’s thoughts were resounding—I knew. My questioning was wholly justifiable, but it did not please my companion. I risked losing this game of truth if I continued to turn against him, so I took to the silence, rethinking my questions until the boy appeared again in another flash.

“You have taken another step forward,” Jahn said, his elation restored. “But the way is still long.”

“We shall reach you!”

“You have a stout heart,” Jahn patronized. “What do you wish to hear next?”

“You succeeded in creating the Dark Dragon. The Dark Dragon produced War Dragons. Then why did you lose to the humans?”

“Indeed, the Dark Dragon continued to produce War Dragons to use in the battlefield. We were able to turn the tables on the humans.”

Another memory crept into my empty mind as Jahn continued. A fringe recollection of a wizened human with a withering white beard and a decrepit stick that allowed him to stand. He carried a book of fire with him; fierce flames leapt from the pages as he opened it and read the ageless text. Another spark in my mind formed the boy before us, now older, astride a decorated horse and wielding a greatsword swathed in swirling flames. Next to him was a walking fortress of a man with a grin of triumph as he struck down his enemies with a golden axe that lightning sprung from with each devastating swing. Finally, there was a woman with lush green hair and a bright smile that caused my heart to jump suddenly. The sudden racing of my heartbeat grew as her image took form in my head, but Jahn brought up something else that raptured my interest.

“However, the humans soon found out about the Dark Dragon. They concluded that their numbers alone would not be enough to defeat us. Therefore, they put their efforts into constructing powerful weapons that would pierce our scales. They are what you call the Divine Weapons.”

“That part is the same as our legends,” the boy said.

“The most powerful and potent were chosen out of the humans to wield their newly crafted weapons. They came and charged this temple. However, when the immense power of the weapons and our power clashed near Bern, something unexpected happened.”

“What happened?”

“The laws of nature started to collapse. Snow began to fall in mid summer. Stars shone in the middle of day…”

“Is that the Ending Winter? I heard that that happened because you dragons unleashed too much power into the world…”

Jahn’s face contorted. It was astonishing that the boy knew of such ancient history. “Is that how your legends go?”

The boy nodded. “The power of the Divine Weapons was then used to restore order to the world. That’s what our legends say.”

“So,” Jahn said through a tired sigh, “all bad things that happened are our fault? I would have expected you humans to think like that. However, the truth is what I said.”

“Then…” The boy picked his words carefully. As serene as Jahn presented himself, it was obvious the boy understood he risked further answers to his questions, and I had likely added to Jahn’s growing irritation with my previous inquiries. “The Divine weapons were sealed away so as to not let such a disaster happen again? Then all those traps that protected them were to warn us…”

Jahn smiled again. I wondered if the boy could tell it was the smile of a snake. “You sealed them away? That was a good decision. But they seem to be in your hands right now.”

The boy did not respond.

“Do not worry. The weapons do not seem to have as much power as they did in the past. They are unable to bring about such a disaster again.”

I had a feeling the boy knew that Jahn was lying.

“The great disaster hurt us dragons greatly,” Jahn said, his voice oozing with allegation.

“How?”

“The disaster was originally the reason that we lost to the humans. …I shall continue when you advance a little further.” Jahn raised his hand, but this time I caught it before he could dismiss the boy.

“Hold for a moment, brother. I wish to ask this human a question.”

Jahn stared at me; his crimson eyes searching mine for some sign of duplicity. When he found none (for there was none), he dropped his hand.

“What is your name, boy?” I addressed the human with Jahn’s indifference to settle any misconception my companion might have for my intervention. “You are familiar to me, but my mind is addled and such memories are lost to me. Would you tell me where you hail from that it might aid in reclaiming them?”

“My name is Roy,” he said. “You led my father, Eliwood, many years ago, Mark.”

I was inflicted with such a sharp pain to the back of my head I turned around for a brief moment thinking something had struck me through the stone chair. The name of his father stuck out clear to me as the image from earlier. That was the name of the man on horseback; I was sure of it!

“Your daughter is here too,” Roy continued.

“Daughter?!” At that word, I nearly jumped out of my seat. “You mean to claim that I fathered a human and she stands with you?”

“Part human, but yes, and she’s been looking for you. We will join you soon.” This time Roy walked away before Jahn could vanish him, and I sunk into the throne trying to process this revelation. I didn’t know how I was supposed to feel about having a daughter. But I did know how Jahn wanted me to feel.

“It seems my past is darker than we imagined,” I said settling back. The cold embrace of the stone throne was much more noticeable now.

“In what way do you mean?” Jahn responded without the slightest unrest.

How he managed to conceal his discomfort was beyond me. To hear I had a daughter, and a human no less, must have left him as equally baffled as I. Still more, there was a certain peculiarity I noticed in my companion since Roy entered the temple. Why did Jahn, a pureblooded dragon whose goal was to return the land to the dragons, seem ever more joyful with Roy and his company for killing fellow dragons, War Dragons though they may be, on his conquest to reach us?

He continued, “Are you angry with such a revelation?”

“Angry is not the word I would use, more perplexed than anything. The boy claims I led humans. Even worse, I seem to have a human daughter accompanying him? Such possibilities could prove to be a personal hindrance for me in our goal to restore our kind. I would not wish to turn against my brother.”

Not yet, at least. If Jahn did have an ulterior aim, he kept it buried as deep as a corpse he did not wish to be found.

“Come now, brother,” Jahn replied with a dismissing smile. “Have you not considered that he could be lying to drive a wedge between our confidence. You are aware of the military strategy to cause dissension amongst the enemy; a divided foe is easier to conquer than a united one. It is a common scheme of war as you’ve said before.”

“And if it is true?”

“Well, should I prepare for a turncoat?”

“My mind is splintered. I have only your word and fragmented memories to speak of my identity, and now this boy claims a different past. Even now, you and I take the form of the ones that come to kill us out of necessity as you say; yet why should I not believe this to be my true form? Am I really a dragon? Roy did confirm it, but each confirmation spawns even more questions.”

Jahn’s smile wilted. “You would believe the enemy’s words so easily?”

“You have misunderstood me, dear brother,” I said throwing my hand over my chest. I needed him to believe I was still being played in his game. “You have been ever the most patient of companions since my awakening. I have no intention to betray a friend regardless of my past. If the boy speaks truly, then it is but a mistake I made in the past, and in the present I shall rectify it. I only desire to restore my mind so that I may know how.”

Jahn accepted my answer with a nod and relaxed again. “Should the boy general succeed, there is great hope that you will receive what you desire.”

“It is possible. But the boy general still has further to go.”

And more of our kind to kill.

When Roy appeared before us again after another flash, my heart became wrapped with bitter concern at the sight of him. The royal blue armor he wore bore marks left by fire and parts of the cloth had been torn and tattered. In spite of the damage, his demeanor remained strong and firm. Ambition drove this boy—an ambition that I would have regarded as nefarious considering his purpose in this temple. Yet the longer I stared at him, the more another face began to form. One I had trusted… and had trusted me.

“You have come again,” Jahn said. “You are doing better than I expected.”

Roy did not accept the dead praise. “…Please continue the story.”

“When the order of nature collapsed, we dragons took a fatal blow. The forces of nature weakened, and it became difficult for us to retain our original dragon form.” Jahn gave me an obvious nod. “Therefore, we decided to conserve our magic and take human form instead.”

Roy turned to his right and spoke as if someone stood next to him. “So he doesn’t know about these…” He pointed at the ground.

“Yes,” Jahn continued with a slight pause likely to think about what Roy pointed to. “We were rendered utterly powerless against the humans. We were just as weak, no, even weaker than the humans in their pathetic form. The humans took advantage of our handicap and started attacking the dragons that had taken human form.”

“Why did you choose the human form?”

“In the new order of nature, the human was the form that required the least amount of energy to transform into while still allowing us enough power to fight back as useless as it was. The Eight Heroes mercilessly crushed us, helpless in our human form. I, too, suffered a deep wound.”

“Do you have hate for the humans who wounded you?” Roy asked.

I glanced at Jahn curious to the answer to that question too.

“Hate?” Jahn did not think long at all about his answer. “Only humans have such ridiculous emotions. We battled to maintain our species, and we lost. That is all.”

I could not deny the cleverness Jahn wielded like a second weapon. You would think to get a straight answer from Jahn, and you would, but like the weapon being redirected at the last minute, it was not the kind of answer you were expecting, and it only left you with more questions.

“This time, however, you humans might lose. Some human named Zephiel brought the Dark Dragon to life again.”

“Then Zephiel did break the Dark Dragon’s seal!”

“That is correct. If you want to hear more, then show me more of your worthiness.” I had been too caught up with wondering who Zephiel was that I could not stop Jahn from disappearing Roy before I could ask him another question. So I continued with my current contemplation.

“Who is this Zephiel that you two speak of?”

“He is the King of Bern,” Jahn said. “The one who broke the seal that his ancestor Hartmut, the founder of Bern, put on the Dark Dragon and intended to return our kind to its rightful place before the boy killed him.”

“Ah, you never mentioned his name before. How did Zephiel intend to do that? By breaking the Dark Dragon’s seal?”

“Yes.” He appeared completely disinterested with my line of questioning as if I were a child who had asked him to repeat something for the tenth time.

“But something went wrong.” I inferred. “Otherwise, we would not be here. How was Idunn freed and yet still not able to fulfill Zephiel’s plans?”

“Another of our kind infiltrated the temple when they discovered Zephiel’s plan and set a new curse on the Dark Dragon. Idunn’s power could not be fully restored and the War Dragons she had created were severely weakened. And so King Zephiel set about finding away to break the curse so that Idunn’s power would return. King Zephiel may be dead, but our mission may not have failed yet.” A smile, so small and nonchalant, flicked up his cheek. “Others are working to break that curse as we speak.”

“And this one of our kind that cursed the Dark Dragon. What became of them?”

“I cannot say. They fled the temple to avoid capture. We had no idea that the curse had taken place. After the Seal was broken, I was able to leave the temple to meet Zephiel. And when we returned, we discovered the Dark Dragon had been cursed.”

I placed the pieces of the puzzle exactly as I intended. “So this boy is here to kill Idunn before the curse can be broken.”

“It is as you say.”

“Something still confuses me though.”

Jahn raised a brow to me. “And that is?”

“Why did the one who put a curse on the Dark Dragon not kill her instead?”

Jahn burst out laughing. “Oh, brother. You amuse me greatly sometimes.”

“I have said something amusing?”

“Quite so.”

“You cannot expect me to believe that one with the power to curse the Dark Dragon could not also kill her.”

“You have the right of it. But why else would they not kill the Dark Dragon?”

I let out a laborious sigh. “At the moment, my mind is too muddled to think much more critically.”

“Then I shall provide a hint. What dragon would be strong enough to kill or curse the Dark Dragon?”

It didn’t take long for the answer to click into place. “One of her own kind; a Divine Dragon.”

“Correct. And the Divine Dragons did not join our fight against the humans. Why?”

“I don’t know.”

“Then let me ask you this. Why did the Divine Dragon Idunn stay behind?”

“She did not want our kind to fight amongst each other. Oh! The Divine Dragon felt compassion for Idunn and thus cursed her instead of killing her.”

“That is correct. And Zephiel speculated that the one who set the curse likely did so in a moment of fleeting passion. Such is the weakness of those that give themselves over to pitiful emotions. After fleeing, the Divine Dragon likely realized it was a mistake not to kill the Dark Dragon but knew they could not correct it on their own. So they sought out an army to aid them.”

“You are saying this Divine Dragon is in the company of Roy then?” A startling thought crossed my mind, but I did not dare utter it aloud.

“It is possible. But now I have a question of divergence for you, brother.”

I tilted my head in his direction with adroit composure to continue to play the role of a lost soul who believed Jahn to be my boon companion.

“In your slumber, you had another strange dream,” Jahn said.

“Nothing escapes you, brother,” I replied to feed his ever-gluttonous pride.

Jahn shrugged and smiled, gladly accepting the morsel of praise. “It is not so hard. You growl like your true form during such dreams, but do not wake. Normally, I would wait until you wished for discussion. However, with the boy general’s entrance into our sanctum and parts of your memory returning, my curiosity has seized me with great discomfort, and I wish to ask the nature of your dream. Did you see the boy in your dream, or this daughter he claims you fathered?”

“No,” I replied recalling the darkness I witnessed before awaking. “To tell you truthfully, I do not know what I saw. There was a lone figure in a sea of swirling snakes.”

“Swirling snakes?” Jahn’s interest doubled itself. “Was the figure the Dark Dragon?”

“I do not believe it was her. It looked more human than dragon. Definitely not Idunn’s human form and male by the looks of them. The infinite darkness that surrounded us seemed to originate from them. The person never said a word, nor did they move. We floated in an endless void staring at each other without a single word. Yet within that time, I felt a strange familiarity with the person—closer, I will say, than what I feel with you, dear brother.

“Why is that? I cannot say. I have no memories therefore I have only my feelings to ponder on my past. And thus I ask myself, ‘Why? Why is it that this voiceless entity comes to me every time I slumber? Why does my body feel terribly cold, yet burn with excitement? How can I feel an elated familiarity to them, and at the same time, be utterly afraid of them?’ With this most recent instance, those two feelings were inside of me, locked in a cage much too small, and they fought to decide my true impression, for the victor would receive its freedom. I woke up before the victor was determined, but just before I awoke, excitement had gained the advantage over my fear.”

Something new happened with Jahn and I after that. Silence, except for the crackling torches, came between us once again, but this time a gap formed as well. Each second that passed shifted Jahn’s countenance with increasing disturbance. By now, I had already determined Jahn used the term brother as a courtesy. Whether it was out of genuine trust, or selfish ambition I could not distinguish, but what I knew now with absolute certainty was that he did not know me.

So who was this being he called brother? What unsettling plane of existence had I spawned from that it was more than likely a blessing not to have any memory of? What would happen should my memories return, and further still, could this Roy and daughter of mine be bringing something more terrible than I first imagined? Could the dream be a premonition?

Those were the questions currently running through my head. I could not blame Jahn for the distance he silently placed between us; a similar disturbance grew within me, but I did not let it show on my face. Torches lined the walls of the room like sentinels standing watch and kept on burning with dragon fire so bright that shadows could not even hide in the ceiling high above us. Even so, the room seemed a deal darker than it had seconds earlier. Jahn had tried a new move in his little game and now regretted it. Relief lighted on his face when Roy appeared in another flash.

“Jahn! I know you’re there.”

“Hm…” The hum did not have a specific recipient. Jahn looked at Roy, shining with his patronizing smile again. “It seems that you did indeed defeat Zephiel… You might make it far enough to be able to fight us.”

Roy dove right into his questions. “What relation did the Dark Dragon have to Zephiel?”

“You know that the founder of Bern is Hartmut, the leader of the Eight Heroes, do you not?”

“I know that.”

“Then do you know that Hartmut didn’t kill the Dark Dragon, but only sealed it away?”

“I know. But I still don’t know why he did that.”

Jahn brought a hand under his chin. “Hm… I see. The Eight Heroes eventually defeated our leader, and they made their way deep into the temple to find the Dark Dragon. However, when they arrived at the Dark Dragon’s chamber, all they saw was a human girl, looking off into space. It was Idunn.”

“They didn’t fight?”

“The Dark Dragon had its soul destroyed to follow our leader’s commands. Since our leader had been killed, there were no further commands to follow.”

“Then what happened to the Dark Dragon?”

“The Eight Heroes naturally hesitated. They had expected to see the most powerful dragon, but all they saw was a girl who wouldn’t respond even if spoken to.”

Having my dream brought back up, I now wondered if the being I saw and Idunn might have some connection to each other. Here again, the questions I’d had about my dream filled my head as if they were sharp rocks, and thinking about them tore through my brain.

“But the Dark Dragon still had to be defeated,” Jahn continued, “so the Eight Heroes prepared for battle. Idunn then must have reacted to their attacks. She changed into the Dark Dragon and fought back, just like the War Dragons who have no heart. Hartmut then used a blade even stronger than the Divine Weapons and slashed at the Dark Dragon’s scales.”

Roy’s hand went straight for the handle of the sword on his back. “The Binding Blade!”

“I don’t know what you humans call it,” Jahn said with a roll of his head, “but that must be it. Anyway, when that sword cut through the Dark Dragon’s flesh, it suddenly fell unconscious.”

Roy’s countenance brightened at that. “It didn’t die?”

“Yes. Apparently, the sword reacted to its wielder’s feelings and changed its power accordingly.”

“So Hartmut didn’t want to kill it,” Roy said. “The Binding Blade reacted to his emotions and only knocked the Dark Dragon unconscious?”

“I understand that Hartmut did know a little bit about the Dark Dragon. Then, after seeing it as the little girl, Idunn, he must have felt pity. It is another emotion that we dragons cannot comprehend.”

“Pity…” Roy said in a mournful breath.

“Pity… another emotion that we Dragons cannot comprehend.” If that is so, then what is this grievous sensation in my heart for what happened to Idunn? I thought to myself. And why do you call me brother in that affectionate manner if you do not feel emotions?

“And thus,” Jahn continued, “at the bottom of his heart, he didn’t want to kill her. In my opinion, I would never leave something that would be a danger to me alive.”

No, I suppose you wouldn’t now, would you, Jahn?

“So Hartmut’s feelings changed the sword’s strength…” Roy said.

“Hartmut persuaded his comrades and decided to seal the Dark Dragon. He built a temple deep in the forests of Bern and sealed Idunn away using the sword and a gemstone. They are what you call the Binding Blade and the Fire Emblem. He then created a nation near the temple that would watch over and protect the seal from being broken. That is Bern.”

Roy eyed Jahn with a pensive stare. “…How do you know all this? Were you watching?”

“No. I had been deeply wounded so I was leading a hidden life healing myself. I heard the story about the seal from Zephiel. Although, he said that he had read about it in the ancient scrolls kept in the castle library.”

That was a lie! Jahn’s clear and even voice did not alter subtly, nor did he make some sort of gesture to betray him. He had said the words as precisely as he had with every other truth he’d spoken to Roy. However, something deep in the wreckage of my broken mind screamed out that he lied! Zephiel was not the one who told him all of this information. Though, it also did not reveal the actual truth to me. Jahn’s words had left me skeptical throughout Roy’s journey to reach us. He was a trickster revealing only what he wanted us to see and just enough to satisfy us to believe him. But more lay behind the curtain. I had to pull it down!

“How did you meet Zephiel?” Roy asked.

“How did I meet him? Hm… If you reach me, I will tell you. It is not far now.” He swiped his hand in front of him, sending Roy away.

I did not resume our palaver right away. After our previous exchange, asking Jahn any more probing questions without rousing further suspicion would risk his silence. I could only discover his plans by continuing to play the game he still believed me to be obliviously mired in. If I did, then his hubris might continue to loosen his tongue. There were seven rooms before ours. All Roy needed to clear was one more room and next they would be upon us. And then we would all have answers. So I remained silent until I had come up with an innocent question.

“What will you do when this is over?” I asked him plainly.

“After this?” Jahn’s tone was slick with wariness just as I had expected. “Are you so convinced of our victory against this boy that’s come to kill our species’ last hope?”

“You seem to be so,” I replied easily. I had inferred that Jahn knew something I did not, and that all his smooth talk of an emotionless existence hid the true nature of his confidence. “You have praised the boy’s progress in slaying our brethren in order to reach us while his forces bear the weapons meant to destroy our kind. Yet in this entire time, you have not once shown any sign of concern over our enemies. I can only assume our victory is assured. Do I assume improperly?”

Jahn glanced out at the entrance to our room; his crimson eyes brooded with bright anticipation. “Fear is a debilitating emotion that clouds rationale and focus. The boy general is infested with it and so are those with him. That is why I am confident the boy general will fail for there is still much for him to fear.”

“Such as?” I ventured for more.

“You will see soon enough,” Jahn said. “But to answer your previous question, I have been in this temple for much longer than you have, brother. The world no longer belongs to dragons, and I have only witnessed its current state through the illusions I have sent to communicate with the King of Bern. To speak truthfully, it would be wiser for us to stay in this temple until Idunn has regained her full power and produces more War Dragons. As powerful as we are, it would be foolhardy to rush out into a world we know nothing of where a second army might be lurking.

“After that…” Jahn contemplated the question, and his face continued to show no emotion. “What does it matter?”

“You have no desires you wish to fulfill after being in this temple for so long?”

“There is no desire, only purpose. We will destroy the boy and his forces. Idunn will rebuild the dragons and we will take back the world that was stolen from us.”

“And what do you want to do after that?” I asked again.

Jahn turned back to me with building irritation. “What more is there to do? I will exist outside of this temple. What will you do?”

I threw my hands up. “I have no memory outside of who I am, and even that knowledge is vague at best! So my desire is to venture into our world to discover my past. How would you like to defend your hollow existence? You cannot tell me you desire nothing in the outside world. If that is the case, then why leave this temple at all?”

“Desire is nothing more than foolish emotion that the humans agonize over.”

“Yet you desire for Idunn to regain her power so that we might take back the land for ourselves.”

“That is not desire, that is destiny.”

“That is an evasion.”

The room flashed again and Roy stood before us more resolute than ever before.

“You have come far,” Jahn said. He grinned wide. “We are in the chamber right in front of you. It has been long since I last met humans in my true form. I have not left this place ever since the war.”

Roy stepped back in shock. You… You were always here?”

“One thousand years…” Jahn said. “Having survived the Scouring, I waited, healing my wounds in the process. I waited for the resurrection of the Dark Dragon that would bring hope to us dragons again. And that time finally came. The Dark Dragon’s seal was broken, and I felt power flowing in my veins again.”

“How does the Dark Dragon’s seal being broken make your strength recover?”

“The Dragon Temple’s power depends on the Dark Dragon’s power, and thus the Dark Dragon’s life force. If the Dark Dragon were to be sealed, it would seal her life energy away, and I could not have recovered to full strength by using the temple’s power.”

“I see…” Roy replied. I wondered if he had the same question I did.

“After my strength fully recovered, I set out to look for the person who had broken the seal. I used my illusion to search him out and ask his intentions. I did not wish to go outside in my true form, knowing that you humans now ran the world.”

“Wait…” Roy interrupted. “I thought the dragons in their human form lost most of their powers. Then how are you creating this illusion?”

One of the many questions I had for his explanation. I stared at Jahn watching for the sign of his duplicity.

“This temple is for the dragons. It is the only place that dragons can use a little of their power even in human form. I am a fairly powerful dragon. Even in human form, as long as I stay in here, creating an illusion is easy. Still, I am not able to create actual things like the Dark Dragon can.”

But there’s still one thing that doesn’t add up.

“So…” Roy replied eager for the conclusion Jahn had withheld out of entertainment. “You found Zephiel.”

“Yes. I found Zephiel and asked him, ‘Why did you break the Dark Dragon’s seal?’ Zephiel was an odd man. He didn’t seem to be the least bit surprised. He looked me right back in the eye and asked who I was. After I told him that I was a dragon, he started to smile mysteriously. He then said, ‘My intentions are to give the world to your kind.’”

Roy remained silent. He must have already known the King of Bern’s intentions.

“I cannot say that I fully trusted him,” Jahn continued, “but he was still the Dark Dragon’s new master, so I decided to work with him. Zephiel then ordered the Dark Dragon to lead the world in the place of foolish humans.”

“But Zephiel is dead,” Roy said. “What is the Dark Dragon doing now?”

“Although he is gone, Idunn resides in the chamber behind me. She is waiting for the chance to free the world.”

“But her master is now gone! Are you her new master?”

“I did not need to become her master. She was commanded to carry out Zephiel’s orders even if he were to die. Idunn has absolute obedience to her master. She will make sure that you humans are banished from this land.”

“What?” Roy stepped forward eyes racing around Jahn for the reason. “Her soul was destroyed, and now she’s bound to orders given by a person long dead?”

“Do you feel pity, like Hartmut did?” Jahn shook his head. “You humans are truly difficult to understand. But let me tell you this. No matter how hard you try, humans and dragons will never be able to live in harmony. The gap between our species is impossible to fill.”

“That’s not true!” Roy came back with a fire raging in his voice that could have rivaled the War Dragons. Even Jahn shifted slightly in surprise of the boy’s heat. “I know a place where dragons and humans live together. I am part dragon and so is my comrade. Dragons and humans both were brought into the same world. They can, and will understand each other!”

“Dragons and humans, living together in harmony? Rubbish…”

No… The boy did not lie. Those passionate words were spoken with unequivocal conviction, and another fragment of memories floated to the surface of my mind. It was just an image, but I saw a village buried deep within the rolling dunes of a vast desert. Humans and dragons lived there with each other. It was a real place; I knew this for certain…somehow.

“I have no intention of listening to such nonsense. Now, enter my domain. Let us see who has more power!” Jahn swiped his hand, and the resolute mien of Roy faded away.

“So our enemies come,” I said to Jahn.

“Yes, and now it is time for you to pick a side. Will you fight with your kin, or will you believe the devious humans?”

“Before I answer, there is still one thing that I am curious about.”

Jahn regarded me with his stoic attention.

“As you said, Zephiel broke the seal on the Dark Dragon to return her power because he wished for the land to be returned to the dragons. And this happened not so long before I first woke up in this temple because the Dark Dragon restored our power. Then the Dark Dragon started creating War Dragons again to help Zephiel give the land back to us dragons. Do I have the right of it?”

“That is correct,” Jahn said.

“Then what I don’t understand is why you and I, pure-blooded dragons, far stronger than the War Dragons Idunn created, did not go out and aid Zephiel in his conquest against the other humans. As dangerous as it may have been for us, surely Zephiel would have provided us forces to protect his two most powerful allies. And even with only two of us, his victory over Roy would have been certain. The boy could not have possessed the legendary weapons at the time. We would’ve decimated his forces. So why did we stay in this temple?”

“Your mind had been lost after you awoke,” Jahn repeated with a strange patience. “It would not have been safe for you to fight.”

“Most certainly. Good warriors are strong, but the ones who survive have wits, so it would’ve been extremely dangerous for me to fight without them. But am I to believe then that Zephiel did not have a sound mind? It would not surprise me considering his hatred for his own kind, but surely the king of a nation would have more tactical sense.”

Jahn narrowed his eyes, conveying his confusion. “What do you imply?”

“Zephiel intended to give the land back to the dragons by raising an army of dragons through the Dark Dragon. Yet, he did not wait until I had recovered my mind for us to join him or until the Dark Dragon had produced a sufficient number of War Dragons to ensure his victory. Cursed though the Dark Dragon may have been, surely starting a war with the other humans was foolhardy. He should’ve waited until he found a way to break the curse and restore the Dark Dragon’s power or my mind.

“Instead, as you told it, he began his conquest on his own, without a guarantee of his victory, forcing the other human nations to retaliate against his limited army. Even the greenest of tyros knows the advantage of numbers. Why did he not bring you and I and Idunn with him? Even if my mind is broken, I can still fight. I have proven so in this temple. The three of us plus the War Dragons would’ve overwhelmed the humans who had yet to recover the Divine Weapons. And now this boy general comes with all the weapons and is wiping out our brethren! Why did Zephiel not wait until our power was fully recovered? I do not believe Zephiel would’ve been so reckless.”

“I tried to warn the king of beginning the war too early. But humans are prone to folly. He saw his army, and he saw what War Dragons he had. He had gained willing allies from some nations and forced the loyalties of others. His hubris overtook him, I would not allow it to take us as well, so I allowed him his thirst for conquest while I remained to tend to you.”

“But you didn’t warn him, did you?” I said. “Don’t be so modest. You’re a clever being! You stayed in this temple for a thousand years and know the value of patience. I do not believe that even with blinding pride that an ambitious individual such as Zephiel would reject advice from one such as you. No, there was something else that forced his hand to act so early. There was a reason why he could not wait for us pure-blooded Dragons to recover and for the Dark Dragon to produce enough War Dragons. And I believe you know what that reason was.”

“You believe I have lied to you?”

“Not lied. Only withheld the truth. And I wish to know what it is. Why did Zephiel launch his conquest so soon?”

For the first time since Roy entered the temple, Jahn turned to face me fully. His hands were clasped tightly, but his expression was still preposterously serene as he fixed me with a frown. “So be it. The Dark Dragon cannot produce any more War Dragons. And though my power has been restored, it’s full potential has been locked with the Dark Dragon’s.”

“It has? How?”

“There was more to the Divine Dragon’s power I couldn’t have predicted. That curse the Divine Dragon put on Idunn did not just weaken her. It locked her power once again, along with ours. They came to this temple and reactivated the seals with the same power that was used to create the Divine Weapons.”

“The same power? I thought all the Divine Dragons that helped to create the Divine Weapons died with their creation or disappeared during the Scouring.”

“And I foolishly believed the same thing.” A smirk of strange satisfaction crawled up his cheek. “Yet here you are.”

“What?”

Jahn raised his arm, and as he did fire spawned from his palm and engulfed the arm. He extended his arm upward, fingers becoming pointed claws and thickening with every second. The sleeve slipped down to reveal that his toasted skin had turned a rusted red and shimmered as the skin became hardened scales. Jahn’s calm gratification remained as he watched his arm transform, and then in a flash of flames, his stoic countenance morphed into the demeanor of a madman that he threw upon me. The newly altered arm shot forward. Tongues of fire sprung off it like a nest of vipers striking at an intruder. The fire did not burn me. It coiled around me, binding my body to the stone throne and sapping my strength.

“J-Jahn…” I managed to groan out. “Wha… what are… you doing?”

“Ending the farce.” A merciless laugh burst from his mouth. “The boy has broken all the seals you set up. You can no longer warn him of his folly.”

“Seals? Are you… Are you saying… I am the Divine Dragon… you speak of?”

“Indeed you are,” Jahn roared with triumph, “and you were just as foolish as the human that sealed Idunn all those years ago. You had a chance to kill the Dark Dragon with your Divine Weapon that froze time, yet you chose instead to seal all our power away in this temple. But you interfered with destiny and you lost your memories in the process.”

“Why did you not… kill me?”

“Oh we considered it,” Jahn said with a nod. “But that would’ve been a waste. Our victory over the humans is apparent with one Dark Dragon, but with two? Why, it’s assured!” He closed his hand into a fist and the flames tightened around me spreading across my flesh and gathering on my chest above my heart. Fierce pain seared into my chest. The burning tendrils flickered and were the last things I saw as my vision faded. “Now, sleep. Destroying the heart of a Divine Dragon takes a great deal of time. But when you wake, I promise it will not be so different from your first awakening.”

My strength failed me and my resistance to stay conscious faded while I dipped into darkness, but I did not remain that way for long. The snakes and man from my dreams reappeared with the darkness. His depressing visage looked the way it always had. Hunched, tired, forlorn, and silent. And once again, a surge of happiness bubbled up inside me at the sight of him. Though Jahn said my seals had been broken, I still did not regain any of my departed memories. I only had this single familiarity—an inexplicable companionship tied like a knotted rope to this man. I knew of nothing else. And that was okay. The idea of having some sort of memories, even if I could not remember them, brought me a small joy in this endless void.

“He returns again,” a voice suddenly echoed around me. “What will he do this time?”

I spun around shocked to actually hear a voice.

“Oh? A new reaction? To my voice! Do you hear me now, brother?” The man’s weary eyes found life and he lifted his head slowly, a smile breaking across his scarred face.

“Broth-!?” My throat was dry and tight. The word stung with such ferocity on its way out that my hands grasped my throat out of instinct.

I heard the man’s words, but his mouth did not move. “Such an adverse reaction means you’ve managed to take form in my prison, but it is filled with poison to prevent physical speech.” The man pointed a gloved finger at his mouth. “You and I are the same. Do not try to speak. If you can hear me, then your power has returned. Speak to me through your mind as I am.”

My mind?

I obeyed, thinking of my question rather than saying it. “Who are you?”

“Your brother, Forest,” the man said. “I have been locked away in another realm. For the past 800 years, I’ve searched the other realms for one of our brethren. And when I finally found you, I attempted to connect our minds through your dreams, but it was as if you were only a picture to me. You could not hear me; and my movements are restricted in this prison. You only floated there with that ridiculous smile like I was some sort of caged animal on display for your amusement. If you hear me now, then your power must have been sealed somehow, but now you have regained it. Tell me, brother, is that the reason for your current form?”

“My current form?” I glanced down at my body, and then back to Forest. “This is not my normal form?”

“It is not. You are not caged here like me, so you are not forced to take the form of humans. But I suppose for the many millennia we’ve been apart, many things could change. Your power, at least, seems to have remained.”

“What power is that? Why do you call me brother? Are you a dragon too? What is this other realm you speak of?”

“Do you have no memory?”

“I do not.”

Forest’s head dipped. “We are more than dragons; that is only the form we take in the physical world because it provides us with the greatest reserves for our immeasurable power. Our true forms are far beyond mortal comprehension. They would consider us gods, but to each other, we are what mortals call Fate. We are the keepers of order and the instigators of chaos. The realms of time and space cannot operate without both so we move between the realms to sow the required seeds. We tear down empires when they become dominant and rebuild them with more equality. If prosperity grows to produce sloth, we start wars to burn the fat. In all, we maintain balance. You and I are brothers in this job. As for me, I arrived at a different realm for chaos, but I was unaware of the magic it contained. Now, I am trapped and have no choice but to reach out for aid.”

“And I am to believe that you speak the truth? The last to call me ‘brother’ betrayed me.”

Forest nodded. “Without your memories, your caution is sound. I have nothing to give in assurance other than this conversation we share. Were you different from I, we would not be conversing.”

It did seem probable. For the number of times this man had appeared in my dreams, this was the first time we’d achieved communication. “Even if I take your words as truth, I’m afraid there is little that I can do. I am trapped in a stasis of my own.”

“Is that so?” Forest gave a deep laugh, prolonged and hollow that made the snakes vibrate. “Then our communication is for our own entertainment. Be that as it may, after 800 years of solitude, I will consider it a blessing. Come then, brother. Tell me of your world, and what you accomplished. Did you establish order or breed chaos?”

I told Forest what I could remember. There was not much to say due to my amnesia and the apparent betrayal by Jahn. I retold what I’d learned about the world outside the temple. About the king, Zephiel, who wished to return the world to the dragons, and how I had sealed the power of the dragons for a reason unknown to me. Of course, that was all on the word of a dragon that betrayed me. I could not know if anything I now knew to be true. Except, perhaps, for what the boy general had told me. I did not mention that revelation to Forest, for even the boy’s words had to be considered with moderate doubt. So instead, I asked Forest about his realm.

“The world is called Magvel,” Forest explained, “and much like your Elibe it is split into different nations. These nations lived in relative peace, but never advanced beyond their established borders. I entered the realm bringing along monsters of my creation to present a common enemy to the humans of the world. I succeeded in uniting the humans. However, I was unaware of five magical stones that they possessed, and I became imprisoned by their magic when they confronted me.

“I still have monsters in the world, but they are mindless while I am restrained and cannot stand up to human intelligence. I’ve been working to try and corrupt the hearts of the more susceptible humans in the land, but finding a worthy puppet is a slow and arbitrary process. That is the reason I reached out to our siblings in hopes one may provide aid. If the stones can be destroyed I can escape the realm.”

“But what about ensuring balance in the realm?” I asked.

“The stones are a crutch to the humans of Magvel. If another Fate were to destroy the Sacred Stones then the humans would feel helpless without them, stand united out of necessity, and advance beyond their dependence on the stones. Balance would be maintained for a time. Long enough for us to let it on its own. My goal is my own freedom. We Fate may be immortal, but 800 years of imprisonment weighs on the mind.”

“That is something else I wished to ask you. How did-”

A light materialized in front of me suddenly, no bigger than a seed, but it grew steadily, wiping away the shadows and snakes in its brilliance.

“I’m waking up!” I managed to finally speak the words.

“Let us hope it is freedom that awaits you,” Forest replied cheerfully. The light had not given him the ability to speak for himself. “Should it be so, I pray our time has convinced you to come free me from my prison.”

“I will consider it,” I answered honestly before the light consumed us. It was all I could give him. Without my memories, I could not begin to guess how to travel to a new realm let alone trust him. I had already been betrayed once, and that situation was returning. But to my relief, when the light faded, Jahn did not stand before me. A girl with fair hair of gold spilling down from her head stood over me with a staff that emitted the light that had filled my vision until now. Two others stood behind her; one of them was the boy general, Roy. He appeared more regal in person. The enameled azure plate trimmed with gold was blotched with scorch marks and pale jagged lines drawn by bestial claws. The cloth around his neck had been tattered and blackened severely. Some of the damage was recent while others were scars on the armor I remembered seeing when he first appeared. Just by looking at him, I could understand how this boy who had yet to grow hair on his cheeks had led an army to overthrow a king. He was handsome in appearance and confident in his stance. Though young, he exuded the aura of a man of war and a master in combat.

However, it was the other girl next to him with hair the color of a summer forest, fidgeting with a corner of her green cloak that was slightly too big for her. She drew my attention like water did for a man dying of thirst. Though her cloak also held signs of battle, they were not nearly as severe as Roy’s. She hugged a green book decorated with small jewels to her chest and her golden eyes trembled radiantly in the remaining light of the healer’s staff. And when I finally beheld the full view of her, a warm, joyful memory finally surfaced.

“Summer Breeze…”

A sharp inhale and the girl’s golden eyes burst wide in shock. A thud reverberated in the stillness of the room from the book that had slipped from her arms. The book fell open just like her gaped mouth, and she dropped to her knees next to me causing something metal to clang from within her cloak. “That name…” Tears shot down her face. “Y-you remember? But I thought…”

“Your actual name, I’m afraid, remains a mystery, as does everything else.” I reached a hand up and cupped her cheek to catch those tears that twinkled like tiny diamonds on a rapidly reddening face. For some brilliant reason, this just felt right. “The term of endearment is but a faint memory in the back of my broken mind. But your face brings me inexplicable joy. If Roy here says I have a daughter, it could only be you.”

The girl clutched my hand fiercely to nuzzle against it a second longer before she sniffed to compose herself. “Well… Let’s return the rest of them, or mother will be even angrier.” She clutched my hand, tightening her grip for a few seconds longer, and a ghost of a smile appearing. Then she slowly drew it away from her face requiring all the strength she could foster to do so. A sword of stormy gray emerged from the folds of her cloak. There was a sizeable gemstone of translucent perfection flecked with gold fixed in the center of the hilt, and as my daughter, in a trembling, yet lovely voice, began a chant, gentle beams of multicolored light burst out of the crystal’s epicenter.

Should I ever lose myself again, place the sword in my hand and perform this spell, I finally remembered.

“Ah yes.” Everything came back in an instant. “I doubt there’s anything we could do to prevent your mother’s wrath at this point. She’s not one to accept excuses, no matter how important or dire they may have been. It took all my effort to convince her to take you and hide in Ilia.” I laughed happily, thinking of how big the welt on my jaw would be after returning. “I’ve been a poor husband, indeed. Baby steps, however. I’ve been a poor father too. I’m so sorry I left you, Morgan.”

The remaining strength she’d been holding on to evaporated. My daughter’s teeth clenched in a mix of sorrow and happiness, and the tears made their return. “Dad!”

I wrapped my arms around her, fearing I’d slip away into oblivion once again if I let her go. I held her for as long as those tears kept flowing. Time meant nothing to me in this temple. Since Jahn’s relationship with me had been a charade, I could not guess how long it had been since coming to this temple—how long I’d been away from my dear Morgan. I do remember that she had been younger, Roy too. His father had asked me to teach him military tactics when he was but a small boy and I did along with Morgan while her mother taught them how to fight with the sword. Morgan had been especially fervent with her lessons. She had inherited her mother’s undying fire for sure, always being the one to ask me if I was awake every morning when dew was still forming on the grass.

That’s why I called her my Summer Breeze. She was as passionate and relentless as those warm summer winds that blew over the plains. It would take hours for her mother and I to tame the ball of spitfire who wanted one more hour to study the Battle at Felder’s Crossing. And when that fateful day came when I knew I must send my beloved family away, she had been far more obstinate than I’d ever seen out of her mother during our campaign against Nergal. The only reason I was able to leave without her clinging to my cloak was giving her that cloak and an absurd amount of tactics homework I expected her to finish by my return. No doubt she finished that homework within a week. How she waited this long to come after me I could not begin to fathom. More than likely it came with the changes age brings with it, same as it did for Roy.

Regardless of their age now, I was the one that failed. They waited for my return much too long. “You all had to fight the wars of your parents. I’m sorry I could not prevent that, but if all I’ve heard up to this point is true, you’ve accomplished what I could not. I’m so proud of both of you.”

“You left so suddenly,” Roy said for Morgan who still emptied her sorrow into my shirt. He was more inquisitive than indignant. “What happened? How did you end up in this temple with that dragon?”

“To tell you the truth, it was a wild reason. One I wish I had not suffered. Before I met your father, I had a premonition where he and others fought me to prevent the return of the dragons. At the time, I was suffering amnesia and did not have a devoted daughter to come find me and bring back my past. Knowing nothing, I could do nothing except to walk the same path as your father, Lord Eliwood. That was not the case with another premonition. It involved you all and King Zephiel. Though I did not know why, I had knowledge and opportunities to investigate. And so, I left to chase a vision.

“It came to me three days before Zephiel’s coronation. That morning my spies reported Zephiel had died. But three days later, he was alive and the king was dead, and Zephiel ascended to his father’s seat. Nobody could explain what happened, but I had my suspicions. Another month passed with no solid answers until emissaries from Bern arrived to convey the King’s wish to hire me as his chief tactician. The request alarmed me greatly. Back when I served Eliwood, I made a pledge to Zephiel’s mother, Queen Hellene, that I would provide my services to King Zephiel when he ascended the throne in exchange for information that would help us with our mission. But after a series of events, she released me from the pledge. My name and repute are well known throughout Elibe, however, and so I could only assume that Zephiel wanted me for reasons beyond education.”

“He meant to have your advice in the coming war,” Roy stated for me.

I pointed a nod of agreement at him. “That seemed the most likely conclusion, did it not? Combat came naturally to Zephiel and there would’ve been little more in the way of strategy that I could’ve taught him. As you said, it seemed to me that he wanted counsel, not instruction. And what other reason would he need insight from a tactician of war?”

“So you consented to his request,” Roy said.

“I did. I knew if I accepted the offer, I’d be advising a war, yet I would’ve been a fool to reject an opportunity for answers. I accepted the offer, but asked for half a year’s time since I was under contract for a military escort from Lycia to Etruria. And in that time, I sent my family to Ilia and hid away the Divine Weapons from our previous campaign.”

“We could’ve come with you,” Morgan said, finding her strength again to speak as confidently as she had the day I told them I must leave them.

“That you could was a constant wish in my heart all the way to Bern, Summer Breeze. You and your mother are both strong and resourceful, but it would’ve been a dangerous risk. If either of you were captured, I would have had no choice but to do Bern’s bidding. I had not intended to be in the service of Bern for long. I only wished to determine the details of Zephiel’s plans if he did indeed intend for war and return to you and your mother with all haste. But it became more complicated than that.”

“How so?” Roy asked.

I fell silent for a moment, recollecting that first day. “King Zephiel received me more coldly than I’d expected. My previous encounter with him during your father’s campaign was pleasant to say the least, albeit short and unplanned. He had always been a boy beloved by his citizenry and maintained the composure of a saint. So great was the boy’s benevolence when I’d first met him that despite my premonition, I held great doubt Zephiel would even consider starting a war. To my distress, though, the man who sat on the throne was not the Zephiel I’d encountered before. He was sullen and stiff, utterly devoid of that generous warmth he had exuded constantly in his youth—almost like his father. Nevertheless, to my astonishment, there wasn’t a single sign of Bern preparing for war. I asked Zephiel for the particulars of my employment, thinking he would speak of the war. Yet his answer was not what I had expected.

“‘You are a dragon, are you not?’ he asked me. The question left me aghast. How he’d learned of my true identity, I could not begin to fathom, and my reaction confirmed the truth for him. After that, he merely told me that he would give the dragons back their home and nothing else. And that could’ve meant any number of things.”

“So, he hired you as a tactician and a dragon?” Morgan asked.

I shook my head still in disbelief at my memory. “Neither. I was simply an honored guest of his. He gave me a room in the castle, and I was treated on the same level as a member of the royal family. It was the kind of hospitality I expected from Zephiel, but from a different countenance. He ensured I had everything I needed, and never required anything from me in return, which left me even more apprehensive of his plans.

“I spent the next month trying to find some clue to Zephiel’s intentions and his reason for bringing me to Bern. Once again, I asked him the purpose for my presence, and with that same indifferent expression he said, ‘This used to be your home. You all deserve to live in it more than I.’ I pressed for why he believed that, and that’s when he said, ‘Humans started the Scouring. And ever since, we’ve never stopped warring with each other. We are driven by evil. Why should we rule? Why should we even exist?’ Coming from a human such as him, I could not comprehend what he meant. Nergal had wanted to bring the dragons back, but he had been driven mad by ancient magic and vengeance. I didn’t sense a single dirty spot of corruption in the king.”

“Because he wasn’t corrupted,” Morgan replied. “He truly believed humans had no right to exist.”

Even with my mind restored, I found that hard to believe, and let it show plainly on my face. “How could a human such as him believe that without falling to madness?”

“Because he believed he was saving the world,” Roy said. “He believed humans ruled the world with selfish emotions, and he purged himself of them. Even in the end, he fell without any sign of anger or fear, still believing he was right. The world would never be free of evil as long as humans ruled.”

The idea was startlingly reminiscent of Jahn. He too believed emotions were weaknesses of humans. I would’ve believed him to be behind Zephiel’s corruption if it were not for the fact that he said that he sought Zephiel out when the seal on the Dark Dragon had been broken. In reality, the truth was much simpler and sadder. “Desmond broke him then.”

Roy’s head looked so heavy when he nodded. “He tried to assassinate Zephiel.”

“For a second time?”

“A second time?” Roy looked back at me in surprise. “There was another assassination attempt?”

I frowned remembering that terrible night. “Desmond hired the Black Fang to kill Zephiel one night during your father’s campaign. We arrived at his manse and repelled the assassins. But Zephiel would have died if not for his own altruism.”

“What do you mean?” Morgan asked.

“One of the assassins heard him praying that night. He prayed that his family would be able to come together and love each other as one, including his father. The assassin had a change of heart, her partner too. Zephiel was knocked unconscious and the two turned traitor on the Black Fang, allowing us time to arrive and defend the prince.” I paused to release an exhausted sigh. “If his father attempted to kill him again, after striving for years to earn his father’s acceptance, then it is no wonder Zephiel lost all faith in humanity.”

Silence fell between us for a while, and then Roy bade me to continue. “So how did you end up here in the temple?”

“Zephiel finally revealed his plans to me. He brought me here and I finally discovered his army. There was a War Dragon everywhere I looked all as emotionless as the king I followed. They had no need for emotions, only one purpose: war. He brought me to Jahn here in the temple, then to the Dark Dragon, and everything fell into place. The Dark Dragon had produced the dragons I’d seen. Zephiel had not prepared his nation for war because it would be the first to be taken over by his true army of dragons when he was ready.”

“If you discovered his true plans,” Morgan said, “why did you not leave and warn Lord Eliwood and the other nations?”

“Leaving would have been seen as a threat and accelerated his plans, and I knew the mobilization of the other nations would take too long. So, I played into Zephiel’s belief of me.” It was not hard, I remembered. I’d once despised the humans as well. “The next day, I returned to the temple with Zephiel to learn more about the Dark Dragon. When he and Jahn took me into her chamber, I used a great deal of magic to force the power in my sword to stop time, intending to kill the Dark Dragon and put an end to the production of the War dragons.” How foolish that would’ve been, I reflected. They would’ve just captured and used me instead.

“But you didn’t kill her,” Roy pointed out.

I shook my head solemnly. The look in Idunn’s mismatched eyes stood out like bright beacons in the memory of that moment. “I meant to strike her down. But as I raised my sword against her, she did not look at me; she looked through me—even though time was stopped she had never been aware of my presence or anyone else’s for that matter. She was just as emotionless as all the other dragons, more so even. The Morphs I faced before had been more alive than she was, and my heart broke. This poor girl had her life stolen from her and had been forced to be a slave—no, an instrument—for a mad king’s desires. I pitied her fate and couldn't take from her as well.” A small smile twitched on my daughter’s face. “But I still had to stop Zephiel’s plans somehow, so I did the only other thing I could think of. My father helped to create the Divine Weapons in this temple. While my sword’s power still restrained time, I took the Binding Blade from Zephiel, called upon my father’s power held within it and combined it with my own to reactivate the seals in the original purpose they were created for in conjunction with the Divine Weapons. The power of the dragons was sealed once again, and only by bringing all the Divine Weapons together could all the seals be released.”

“And you lost your memories in the process,” Morgan added pointedly.

“That I did,” I replied apologetically. “Norn is the key to my memories and in my haste to seal the dragons, I tossed it aside. It is fortunate that it ended up back in your hands, but, my dear daughter, I’m sorry to tell you that I had no plans of leaving the temple alive.” I brushed aside a few strands of her hair that had fallen over her golden eyes. “The only thought in my mind when I activated the Binding Blade was stopping that premonition from coming true—to save you—but in the end I ensured its inevitability.” My laugh was painful. “Your mother is always right. I’m such a fool.”

Morgan laughed too, but it seemed to bring her much more pleasure. “Yes, you are. A big, dumb, bullheaded fool. Neither mom nor I would expect you to be any different.” Morgan dumped her head for a moment, then said, “She knew you were alive. She couldn’t explain how she knew, but she did. That’s why I came looking for you.” She strove to hold back the tears, to be that same daughter I’d left. Oh, my poor girl. This must have been all the sorrow she’d held back ever since that awful day I left. “Thank you… dad… thank you for still being alive.”

“Hey, come now. It’s alright, Summer Breeze.” I pulled her back to me and hid those tears for her. “Daddy’s here. Daddy’s all right. You saved him. It’s over now. It’s finally over.”

“…Roy…”

A small girl, no older than five, was next to Roy clutching his cloak.

“What’s wrong, Fae?” Roy said, turning to her. “You look like you’re about to burst into tears too.”

He wasn’t wrong, but her countenance was not one of pain or sadness. Something had terrified the poor girl. “Is…is Fae also an enemy…?”

“Huh?” Roy was completely dumbfounded by what she said.

“When… When Fae gets big,” the words came racing out, “will Fae become a bad Dragon, too?”

“Wait, Fae? Tell me what you want to say, slowly. Why would you think that?”

“That man said so…” Her tiny body trembled as she spoke. “Dragons and people can’t live together…”

“But you were living in Nabata with people, weren’t you?” Roy questioned her.

“But the Dark Dragon is a Divine Dragon like Fae! And you’re going to fight the Dark Dragon, right? What about Fae? If Fae grows up and becomes like the Dark Dragon, then…”

“She heard what Jahn said Roy,” Morgan told him.

Roy nodded gently and crouched down, placing his hands on the girl’s shoulders with a calm smile lighting his face. “You don’t have to worry about that. Even if you grow up, you’ll always be Fae. You’ll always be together with humans, and with us.”

“…Really?” Fae looked partially convinced.

“Sure!” Roy said.

“You’re our friend, Fae,” Morgan said. “And we’ll always be friends.”

“You do not have to fear growing up to become a bad dragon, young one,” I added.

The girl looked at me with green eyes wide and full of hope. “I-I don’t?”

“No, Idunn did not grow up to become a bad dragon. Actual bad dragons forced her to become bad. Left alone, she would’ve grown up like you will, into a dragon that can live with humans. Even now, the Dark Dragon is not bad.”

“She’s not?” Fae asked.

“No,” Roy said. “And that’s why I actually want to help the Dark Dragon.”

“Help?” Fae looked confused.

“The Dark Dragon is not evil because she is not acting on her own will…she had her soul destroyed. I… I don’t want to kill her, if I can avoid it.”

“Fae doesn’t get it,” the little girl said.

“You’ll understand when you’re a little older,” Roy said.

Morgan stood up; her face still flushed from her tears but finally spent and went over to the little girl and took her hand. “Come on, Fae. Let’s go back to the others. You can help me give out orders.”

They headed back to the group of fighters that had been patiently waiting, and I stood up and called out to Roy. “Do you mean it?”

“Huh?”

“Idunn. You don’t want to kill her?”

Roy stared at the ground, likely thinking about how he could accomplish that. He did not have much confidence when he said so to Fae. “I… I don’t, but… I don’t want to seal her away again either.”

“You want her to be free?” I asserted.

Roy nodded, but he still lacked confidence. “Hartmut sealed her away in this temple with the Binding Blade, and so did you. Neither of you wanted to kill her, but you couldn’t free her either. So you could only seal her away in here. She might as well be dead, if I do that.”

“I didn’t seal her away.”

Roy’s head shot up. “You didn’t?”

“No, only her power. But I couldn’t free her with Zephiel and Jahn still in power to control her. And I don’t believe Hartmut sealed her in this temple either despite the history texts. I think he just didn’t know what else he could do with Idunn. When I sealed the dragons’ power, Idunn still traveled outside this temple. She was with Zephiel before you defeated him, and was brought to this temple to be safe to continue carrying out Zephiel’s orders.”

Roy’s gaze fell to the ground again. “But that’s the problem. She’s still following Zephiel’s orders. She’s still the Dark Dragon and the Binding Blade can’t change that.”

“Why not?”

Roy looked at me again with the same skepticism the little Fae had.

“The Dark Dragon had her soul destroyed. She’s like me when I was an amnesiac, but emptier. She’s known nothing except the orders of Zephiel and of the other dragons like Jahn. What more can you do when you believe such things to be your only purpose? But an empty vessel is exactly what it is, empty.”

“I’m not sure I follow you, Mark.”

“Ah! Well then, let’s talk about that name. You call me Mark. You’ve known me as your father’s friend, Mark. But that was not my original name. Markov was a very different being. Markov was like the other dragons that hated the humans. But I’m not Markov anymore, am I? No, I’m Mark. And I became Mark because I had the opportunity to become Mark.”

Roy raised a brow. “Because of your amnesia? You’re saying if we can rid Idunn’s mind of her sole purpose and order her to do something different, she can be freed?”

I threw up my hands in happy bafflement. “Why erase her mind? Erasing orders only to instill new orders? That doesn’t sound like freedom to me, and wasn’t your goal to free her? I’ve taught you better than that, Roy. Why are you and I free whereas Idunn is not?”

Roy pinched his chin. “Because…we have our souls…”

I could see Roy’s struggle. “Not quite. Do you remember that time I told you about one of your father’s men? A man named Jaffar?”

“The former Black Fang assassin? You said he served Nergal, and never felt remorse for his killing.”

“That’s right. Yet his former self and Idunn have far more in common with each other than with you or I. Why is that? Consider Jaffar. Why did he become an assassin for Nergal and the Black Fang?”

“Because Nergal took him as a child. It was all he ever knew.”

“Just so!” I clapped him on the shoulders. “And how did he leave his life as an assassin for Nergal?”

“Because he chose to disobey Nergal’s order,” the realization appeared like a lamp in the dark of night. “Our choices!”

I nodded. “Slaves want to be free but have no choice, tools are free but do not believe they have any choice. Idunn may be free to do what ever she wants, but she doesn’t believe she has that choice. Just like Jaffar, all she’s known is Zephiel and the dragons. Erasing her mind and giving new orders will not free her. You have to find a way to give her a choice.”

Defeat made a come back in Roy’s countenance. “I can’t begin to guess how to do that…”

“Nor I,” I admitted to him. “But Idunn doesn’t need someone who knows what they’re doing in order to be free. She just needs someone willing to try.”

“Can it really be so simple?” Roy said half convinced.

“With her soul destroyed, she’s an empty vessel. And empty vessels can be filled. Filling it determines what that vessel will become. Fill a bucket with water, and it’s a bucket full of water. Fill the bucket with garbage, and it will be considered only useful for waste disposal. Fill the bucket with wine, and there will be people who regard it as a chalice. So will it be for Idunn. She just needs to know that she has the opportunity to choose like I did. Pardon me though; I’m getting ahead of myself. The Dark Dragon still has Zephiel’s orders. You will have to defeat her before any effort for change can be made.”

“I understand,” Roy said. His handsome confidence had returned and he stood like the leader he had been raised to become. “Thank you for your guidance, Mark.”

Morgan returned. “The troops have been refreshed and equipped properly. We are ready to face the Dark Dragon.” She looked to me. “Will you join us, father?”

I clasped the back of her head and pulled her in to plant a soft kiss on her forehead. “I’m afraid your dear dad’s power is not fully recovered yet,” I said. “Jahn took much from me before you faced him. If I were to use Norn to stop time again, I risk further damage to my mind that could become permanent. I would be of little use to you until I’ve had more time to reestablish my link with Norn. You will have to face the Dark Dragon without me. But I’m confident you all will succeed. Where is your main company? I am feeling hungry at the moment.”

“They’re at the entrance to the temple,” she said.

“Excellent.” I kissed her head again. “I love you, Morgan. Be safe.”

A multitude of tents covered the area between the temple and the shimmering lake in the distance. The mountains past the lake stood like the walls of some grand city surrounding the immaculate valley. A soft breeze rolled across my cheek (oh, how long it had been since I felt such an invigorating sensation!), carrying with it the salty scent of a hearty breakfast being cooked. My stomach grumbled, and my mind reminisced on the days of Eliwood’s campaign and the many memories that were made during those morning meals. It was time to take a plate and listen to the stories of the company’s journey. Though, as I approached the camp with my memories restored, there were still unanswered questions. Chief among them were the ones surrounding the supposed brother of Fate.

“See?” said a familiar voice. “I told you he was still alive, Bartre.”

Two men sat on a fallen log just outside the temple entryway. I recognized them both, for I had fought alongside them many years ago. The one who had spoken was a man with a lifetime dedicated to honing his skill with the blade. The Sacae did not value warriors who could not wield bows on horseback in the days of his youth. But to forsake such talent would be a waste, so he had traveled Elibe seeking out worthy opponents. Out of all the people I expected to be waiting out here, he was among the last.

“Karel,” I replied with a smile reserved for old friends. “You’ve cut your hair.”

“It got in the way of my sword during a battle. It paid the price for its interference.”

I nodded in good humor. “And where you’ve lost hair, Bartre seems to have gained some,” I said, acknowledging the burly man leaning against a giant double axe. “Good to see you both again. The mustache suits you, Bartre.”

“And I was hoping to see a beard on you!” Bartre barked unhappily. “How long have you been in that temple? You barely have any stubble.”

“We dragons live many years,” I explained through a laugh. It was good to see them again. “All our growth takes longer than it does for you humans, including our hair even if it is grown through magic.”

“Eh?” Bartre blinked in surprise and turned to Karel. “Is that true?”

Karel shrugged with a smirk. “Who knows? But you seem distracted, Mark. Did something happen to you in that temple?”

I nodded grimly and stared out over the jagged peaks ahead of me. “It seems I have not regained all of my memories. There are still more questions to be answered. These conflicts we’ve faced happened because I found the answers too late. And if I fail to prevent another premonition from coming true… I could not bear to see my daughter embroiled in another conflict due to my negligence.”

“So you will neglect your daughter instead!?” Bartre retorted. “She’s been searching for you for a long time! What kind of father just leaves his daughter after all that?”

Karel tilted his head, chewing on his lip a bit before speaking. “Didn’t this conflict in Bern happen despite your efforts to stop it before it happened. Having a premonition didn’t seem to help in any way.”

My confident response caught in my throat. That… was true.

“Have you ever considered these premonitions you have to be inevitabilities?” Karel continued, seizing on his advantage. “Warnings of unavoidable events rather than potential futures you could change. So rather than push everyone away in a mad push to prevent what you saw from coming true, maybe it is better to inform everyone and prepare for the coming future.”

“Yeah,” Bartre said. “You’d hurt a lot less people that way. We didn’t defeat Nergal by letting you fight alone. And your daughter didn’t lead us her by herself.”

With a hand to my forehead, I breathed a sigh of resignation. I’d almost forgotten my golden rule of strategy: never enter a fight I wasn’t sure I could win. As things were, there was too much unknown about my supposed sibling, Forest, for me to investigate his situation; I didn’t even know where to begin. And Bartre was right. What kind of father would I be to leave my daughter now after all she suffered to find me.

No, I couldn’t leave now. The sound strategy was to regroup, refresh, and rethink my next moves.

“And a good tactician listens to the input from those under his command.” I glanced toward Karel and smirked. “Even though one of those men tended to play by his own rules and did things on his own.”

Karel returned the smirk. “And I think you’ll agree it was a poor decision on my part. That is why I understand you so well, Mark.”

“Come on,” Bartre said, hoisting his axe onto his shoulder. “We have a youngin’ at camp who’s a fantastic cook. I doubt you’ve had a real meal all that time you spent in the temple.”

* * * * *

The plains of Sacae. I had to stop and close my eyes. The scent of long grass carried on the wind. Rustic, bountiful, and above all, calming. Lyn and I never argued about where we would place down our roots. This was where it all began; this simple field was home for both of us. A steady wave of smoke rose between a group of Yurts in the distance. The same yurts we’d left. Though I’d told Lyn to take Morgan to Ilia for their safety, she refused to sell our home.

“We’ll be back,” she’d said that day, with a pointed glare, insinuating I was part of that statement.

By the upkeep of our Yurts, it was like I’d never left. Never chased the wild dream. Never abandoned my precious family. Never risked my life to save them from a danger I believed only I could solve. Gah! It seemed I didn’t learn anything from our first campaign. I would certainly receive a scolding from her, maybe a punch, and I would deserve it and more. But before all that, I hoped I would receive a bowl of that hearty stew I could now smell and the smile that lit up my life.

“Did you send someone ahead to tell your mother of our return,” I asked Morgan as she came up to rest her head against my chest.

“Nope,” she replied, giving me a tight hug that shuddered ever so slightly. “Are you still missing some of your memories. She always had dinner ready around this time.”

“All this time?” I placed my hand on her arm to give it a reassuring rub. “Even though we’ve been gone for so long?”

“She knew we’d come home someday. She knew you were still alive somewhere. That’s why I joined Roy’s company.”

“Your mother’s intuition is marvelous.”

Morgan looked up at me. “It wasn’t just intuition. She had people in Illa gather information about you while you were in Bern. When they reported you’d gone into a temple and hadn’t come out, she was ready to chase after you, but I convinced her to let me go instead through joining Roy while she continued to gather information on Bern and Zephiel’s army. She’s the one who led us to the temple.”

My eyebrows jumped. “And she didn’t come with you into the temple?”

Morgan breathed a quiet laugh. “She knew you were in the temple, but she didn’t know which you was in there. And if it was the one she feared, she didn’t want to face you again, and she put her trust in Roy and me to bring whichever you back.”

The hint in her words sparked the memory of my wife’s tear-stricken face at the Dragon’s Gate. “I see. Well, I guess I’m about to receive quite the admonishment. There’s a reason I always considered your mother as powerful as a whirlwind. It wasn’t just the way she wielded a sword.”

“Yep!” Morgan gave me another quick hug and then with a flourishing step, strolled back the way we’d come.

“Where are you going?” I called after her.

“I still have unfinished business in Lycia. I’ll be back in a few days.”

“Aren’t you at least going to tell your mother you’re okay?”

“You know mother has excellent hearing. I’m sure she’s hearing all of this right now.”

“But I need you there to provide some mitigation from your mother’s wrath!”

She spun around to throw her arms out as she walked backwards. “You always taught me never to engage in a battle I didn’t believe I could win.” She gave a wave of good luck.

I set unsteady hands on my hips and grumbled. “I taught you too well it seems.” I stared at the yurts out of the corner of my eye and gathered my courage in a deep breath. Time to get it over with. With slow, yet determined steps, I made my way toward the yurts. Memories flashed through my mind of that fateful first day when we faced the Brigands. Batta the Beast had been over-confident when Lyn first engaged him, but I wondered if he felt this fear after Lyn split into three separate entities and sliced him up. What kind of magic was that? I don’t remember her being proficient with magic. Could she actually have been extraordinarily fast? Either way, I was about to receive a devastating five-fanged attack.

With another deep breath to prepare myself, I stepped around the yurt like a cautious deer stepping past a predator. But this predator was already aware of my presence. Lyn’s back was to me as she stood up, but when she turned, the breath left my lungs in relief. In her hands was a bowl of stew, and her face was aglow with that smile. Age had done nothing to dampen its warmth, nor her lithe movement as she strode up to me, soothing green eyes locked on me. The smile never faded even when she stood right in front of me.

It was as if this had all been the same dream from the first evening and I’d only just woken up. The beat of my heart was the same when I had sat up soaked in sweat, not out of fear from a nightmare, but utter longing to-

I lunged forward taking Lyn’s face in my hands. The bowl of stew splashed us with thick broth and vegetable pieces as it tumbled to the ground. Lyn stumbled back with an easy laugh to catch us and grasp my hands to lock them in place. I slid my thumb over her cheek and her smile grew even brighter. By the Eight, why had I ever left this amazing sensation behind? My trembling grip held tight, fearing I would lose her once again. Lyn ran a gentle hand down my arm and up to my cheek to stroke it and we held each other in a blissful gaze.

Then she punched me in the shoulder. I staggered back and hissed. She hadn’t lost a single bit of her angry strength.

“That’s for wasting a good bowl of stew,” she said. Then she rushed back in to grab my face and pull me to her lips. The sting in my shoulder vanished in the overwhelming elation of her embrace. My strength left me, my legs buckled, and we tumbled to the ground. She giggled as she fell on top of me, and we continued drinking the joy of our reunion.

In some dark corner of my mind, the memory of my dreary looking brother flickered, and a pang of guilt poked my stomach. If what he told me was true, (and that was being generous), I would need to find some way to help him. But only if it was true. First, I needed to investigate the words he told me. We were gods? The living concepts of Fate? What an outrageous assertion! How was I to believe something so fantastical? But perhaps that’s exactly why it was true. If he intended to deceive me, he would’ve presented me with a more plausible story. Whatever his truth, it merited investigation. And I would. I already considered a few possible leads on our way home. I would seek them out one day. But not today. Today, I was home, I was back in the arms of the one I loved. Elibe was finally at peace. No more wars, no more madmen, and no more bandits. Lyn and I could finally live the lives we’d fought for. And here in the plains of our home, we watched the evening sun set behind the mountains, neither of us wanting to be the first to let the other go, for a long time.

The End

Acknowledgements and Notes from the Author

What a long, strange, but ultimately fulfilling, journey this has been.

Before I talk about the main point of this ending note, I wish to acknowledge a few important individuals who played a role in this story, not only being written, but published as well. Up first, I’d like to reacknowledge my two roommates who I dedicated this story to, Sam Hall and Hezekiah Crocker.

Sam, you were always a massive source of encouragement to me and my writing when we were roommates in LA. And one of our talks on some random night finally pushed me to write the first words of this story. Thank you.

Hezekiah, brother, I am so sorry I put headphones on that night you came back to the apartment after forgetting your keys and no one else was around. Thank you for being patient that night, and always being a steady and loyal friend to me throughout the years. I’m truly blessed to have someone like you in my life.

The other person I want to acknowledge is my friend and fellow writer, Megan, a.k.a. The Bitsy Artist, without whom I would never have found the courage to release this story to the public. Megan, you’re one of the hardest working writers I know and have pushed through so many trials to keep on writing all while taking care of a family. You are a massive inspiration in my life, and I have the utmost admiration for you. Thank you for talking sense to me and pushing me to release this story. I regret nothing.

Finally, I want to acknowledge you, the reader who came along on this journey of Mark the Tactician and saw it all the way through to the end to read this note. As a writer, nothing gives me greater joy in this life than writing incredible adventures about thrilling characters. And having anyone engage with my stories all the way through to the end because they were genuinely intrigued by something in the writing is more precious to me than any currency. Thank you from the deepest parts of my heart.

Now let’s address the dragons in the room: the Xenologue and its cliffhanger ending. Some of you might be disappointed that the continuation of the story did not commence from where the epilogue left off with Eliwood and Hector. That was intentional. Those of you familiar with the Fire Emblem series probably picked up on what Book 2 will revolve around. Not the story of Roy from Fire Emblem the Binding Blade, but instead the story of Erika and Ephraim from Fire Emblem the Sacred Stones. This was always the plan for Book 2 from the moment I began writing this story, and The Binding Blade would be a later book told from the perspective of Mark’s daughter, Morgan, as she would be participating in most of the events of the story.

So what about Book 2? When will that be coming?

I’m sorry to say not for a long time. In the course of revising and releasing Book 1 I went back and forth on whether to continue with Book 2. The positive reception I received for Book 1 would continually fill me with inspiration to write Book 2. But real life and my other creative projects would constantly prod me with the reality of my writing situation: I have the desire, but I simply do not have the time. Releasing Book 1 took much longer than I anticipated due to my attempt to juggle so many different creative projects. It wasn’t until the last few chapters that I made the decision to put all other creative projects on hold until I finished releasing this story, and those projects have benefitted and suffered.

Book 2 also isn’t anywhere close to be ready for release. Chapter 1 is only 3/4 complete. And something else I’m noticing while writing is while I’m following the same plot and characters from The Sacred Stones, I am taking creative liberties in tone, atmosphere, and character interactions. It is becoming a halfway original story while still being a fan fic, and while you could say the same for this story, I would argue Book 1 only took creative liberties in dialogue and Mark himself (who was already vague to begin with). So now I’m faced with the fact that I might be writing a fan fic that could be swimming into the troubled waters of soft plagiarism. And you can say, “well a lot of fan fic does that.” I agree, and that’s exactly why I don’t want to tread into those waters.

I don’t despise fan fiction. This story should be evident of that. I see it is as a vital aspect of the writing community. My first attempt at an original story was absolute trash that will never see the light of day. But it was through writing fan fiction that I gained the skills and the confidence to try writing original stories again. In my opinion, writing fan fiction is an incredibly important step for aspiring writers because it teaches them so many different skills outside of plot, character and theme, acting as a template for writers to work off of and gain the necessary skills to take their writing to the next level. If any beginning writer were to ask what I would recommend starting off their writing journey with, it would be to begin with fan fic. Because they’re taking a world they’re thrilled to explore, characters they’ve fallen in love with, and themes they’re passionate about and using all that to fuel their creativity. And even if they completely change the story to fulfill some kind of personal shipping fantasy, they’re still honing skills to create original work.

But fan fic should never be the end goal in my opinion. Now, that isn’t me throwing shade at fan fic writers. Any writer should write what they love. If writing fan fic of a series they’re deeply invested in and sharing that investment with others like them brings them fulfillment in life, then they should do it. As I stated above writing the stories brings me more fulfillment than money ever could. But that fulfillment is also why I, personally, am steering away from fan fiction. This story of Mark was the last fan fiction piece I wrote before I jumped back into writing original work. And seeing as Book 2 was starting to take on a more original flair than a fan fic, why not just write an original story?

It is my personal belief that a story should be defined by the author who wrote it. And writing fan fic is the reverse of that idea because the writer is defined by their story and as an extension, the fandom they’re a part of. And again, THERE’S NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT. All this is to say, why I am not focusing my creative pursuits on Book 2 any time soon. I am sorry to those who are disappointed by this. I have so many story ideas I want to put to paper, and they never will if I continue to devote time to fan fiction writing.

And that’s not to say that the story of the Wandering Tactician is over. Not at all. I outlined the next 5 books, and it would be a waste to toss all that work in the bin. Instead, I am filing them away for the day when I am a stronger and wiser writer with more time to devote to writing. But for now, this is where Mark will remain, happily reunited with his wife and daughter on their beloved plains of Sacae.

Once again, thank you for reading this far. I hope this story was worth your time as it was for me. And please support the original release of the Fire Emblem series that inspired a young man to take the first steps on his journey.

—August 20, 2025