Artamus

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“You going to look after that wound?” Reginald remarked as he passed by the former soldier.

Reclined into the back of her seat, April idly shifted the azure pearls of her gaze and looked up at him without a hint of empathy. Disparate and sloppy, she hardly resembled the disciplined woman he knew a few weeks ago. Free time had been appallingly sparse since their little adventure and it showed in her fraught expression. Even her snide assertions utterly failed to disguise the tension. Blonde strands fell in a disheveled heap across her dignified features, poorly and unevenly cut. Ditching the armor in favor of maneuverability, April now wore a sort of sewn together leather suit that accentuated her curves. Other new additions to her uniform included knee-high boots, a belt and fingerless gloves. The colors were more mundane, consisting of olive greens and brownish reds, although traces of royal blue still remained in some places. Of course the weapons and arm sling still remained. How that woman had successfully accomplished breaking them all out of jail with such a handicap was a still subject of intense mystery to Reginald. At the moment, she was performing her regular weapon maintenance and made it very clear that he was interrupting her with a withering stare.

Plunking down the duo of steaming mugs he carried on top of the table, Reginald settled into his seat with barely a sound and offered her one. The absence of noise was what caught April's attention most. It was perhaps one of the medic’s most cherished skills, his ability to completely nullify his own noise without magic. No air tricks, no magic, just good old training and capabilities. Perhaps it was simply the pacifists way of compensation. The medic sat opposite to her, displaying his own fair share of wounds. Mottled blues still bruised the skin of face, the most distinguished of them being the patch that resided around his eye socket.

“I still managed to get all of you out of there in this state. Perhaps you should take that into consideration. The rest of you need to start showing more concern for yourselves,” April replied impertinently, though she gladly accepted the mug after replacing her toolkit. Pulling on her gloves, she cupped her fingers around the heated container and blew on it.

“Indeed, though I suffered quite a bit as a result of your ‘plan’. Careful, it’s hot,” Reginald said tentatively, raising a questioning eyebrow. Since arriving at the abandoned cottage he had attempted to raise the topic of speaking with Touya at regular intervals, all to no avail. “Well. I hardly expected you to sneak up on me when you did. In fact, I didn’t expect you to be in a rational state of mind after your previous outburst.”

“I can see that perfectly well for myself thank you. And maybe it was because of the alcohol that I thought it was a good idea at the time,” April sighed, visibly contemplating the merits of their conversation. April exhaled another three puffs of air before finally sipping her beverage. The artificially heated liquid still stung the inside of her mouth, extracting a wince from her and chuckle from Reginald who observed with amusement.

“Regardless. It’s lucky you came when you did, and that you came prepared. Now the question is where do we go from here? Any opinions about Damea?” Reginald murmured, staring deep into his mug.

“The government will be upping their campaign. They’ll use the attack on D company and Glendale prison as fuel to the fire,” April said through her teeth. “They know your faces now also. Touya’s and Damea’s especially. Wanted posters and bounties will attract the sort of attention we want to avoid.”

“Heh, it’d be rather ironic don’t you think?”

April glared at him with brows knitted together, though she wore a sort of half-smirk. It was hard to completely deny Reginald’s good humor, “Whatever do you mean?”

“Using a wanted poster to illustrate the identity of a faceless,” Reginald grinned, no doubt picturing the poster mentally. “Oh, I wonder what I’ll look like!”

“Let’s not get sidetracked,” April said, culling his juvenile behavior, “That said, I was hoping to solve this issue before things escalated.”

Abruptly, a soft creak indicated that the door to the bedroom was being pushed aside. Both former soldiers responded by craning their necks over their shoulders and were granted the sight of a recently awoken therian. Placing her mug back down again, April stood up and approached their new arrival. Several days had elapsed since their escape of the perilous institution of Glendale prison and the therian was undoubtedly lost in a state of confusion. Emerging out of the doorway, Touya’s severe injuries left a lasting impression of guilt that forced her frown. Enough bandages wrapped around his lean frame that he could have been mistaken for a mummy, eliminating the need for a shirt.

“You shouldn’t be up,” she stated, physically barring the therian from further exploration with her body. Reginald’s hiss indicated that she was being unnecessarily harsh again. She sighed in response and then softened her gaze at him, “Relax, you’re safe here Touya. If you’re worried about your friend, he’s fine. Doing much better than you in fact. I can call him for you, but we need you to conserve your energy. We’re still too close to the city for my liking and may have to leave soon.”

The moment he left the room he was met by both Reginald and to his utter surprise, April. The woman got to her feet almost immediately and came quickly to stand in his way. He was too shocked to even tell her to move as he had been looking for Reginald and Damea. Her sharp gaze locked on his and didn't waver as she placed herself directly in front of him.

“You shouldn’t be up,” she began, her voice hard as usual. The same gaze that said she didn't care for him at all still lingered and he was sure that Reginald's having been beaten didn't help his position either. A sharp sound filled the air from the doctor and April sighed heavily before looking at him again. Was it him or did she actually have a different look in her eyes this time? Touya wasn't sure, all he knew was that now he was definitely confused.

“Relax, you’re safe here Touya. If you’re worried about your friend, he’s fine. Doing much better than you in fact. I can call him for you, but we need you to conserve your energy. We’re still too close to the city for my liking and may have to leave soon.”

A different place, outside the city. That's all he got from her. What city, however, still remained unknown to him. It was safe, or so April said. He still wasn't convinced and his body was on edge as he stood there against the door frame, leaning on it for support. Conserve energy? Touya was trying to follow her sudden change in voice tone and how she was looking at him. He wasn't sure if he was dreaming or not. Was it that she had some concern for him?

His eyes narrowed and the brows came down. A frown crossed his lips at the thought. No, there couldn't possibly be any way that she would have concern for a Therian. His eyes dropped down to her arm that was still in the sling. The wounds she'd received from the battle still weren't healed, of course, neither were Touya's. He reached out and hovered his hand over her injured shoulder and arm. Last time he'd been unable to heal the crossbow wounds then, but this time he could. A brilliant gold light filled his palm and forearm. Touya pushed the energy outwards and focused the power along her arm.

The Therian disregarded her earlier comment about reserving his energy and expelled it into her body to heal the wounds. It didn't take much, thankfully, for the wounds were almost healed anyway. However, he'd said that he would heal her once he was able to and he intended to keep his word. Once he was finished, he pulled away and felt a bit light headed. He rested against the frame a bit more than before but was able to stay standing. Another day and he would be able to heal himself completely, well that was if no fighting occurred at all between then and the next day. Touya would also have to sleep most of the time in order to regain more of his power.

None of this he voiced to April, nor had he answered her in regards to Damea. He didn't think she wished to talk to him all that much anyway and didn't want to linger in her presence for much longer. The last words she'd spoken to him before he'd gone to get Damea still lingered in his mind and bit at his conscious. Touya reached up and pushed himself away from the door frame, his other hand reaching to hold tightly to his side.

"There is no need to call for him," he told her his voice soft, but holding no emotion at all, "I'll need more time to regain my power again," Touya turned and started towards the door of the room once more. He wondered why she was there to begin with, also why she was sticking around. She could easily just take Reginald and Damea and leave the Therian to his own devices. The woman was a mystery to him. Touya reached the door and entered the bedroom just as he heard the voice of Damea in the room with April and Reginald.

"Alright, where is he? I swear, if that Therian isn't awake yet I'm going to go in there and force feed him myself!" The sound of the human's heavy steps filled the air, "How long has it been since he last ate? I mean, can't you tell that he hasn't eaten anything in days? I know Therian's are light in color, but isn't he a bit too pale to be healthy? What the hell. How the hell does he get off going around acting all heroic and what not and then doesn't eat? Doesn't he know that he's making us worry... okay, let me rephrase, that... Me, he's making me worry..."

The footsteps stopped and Touya turned slowly to look over his shoulder. Damea's eyes were locked on him with a shocked expression, then relief and then anger. Touya was amazed at how quickly a human's expressions changed. He lifted an eyebrow at the fire mage who held in between his hands a very large bowl of something hot. Damea came down the hall then and motioned towards the bedroom.

"Alright, inside. Who the hell said you could get up? Don't you know you have to be resting! Damn man... then you wonder why you can't regain your power or heal your wounds. Lie down and eat, and drink. You need fluids and food to heal properly."

Touya, confused and unsure of what was going on, found himself hustled into the room and back onto the bed. Damea sat next to him and rearranged the bed so that the Therian was partially propped up. The bowl was shoved at him with a spoon and Touya took both, staring at the swirling broth that steamed at him. Damea glared at him, arms crossed over his chest.

"Eat, or else I'm feeding it to you. What's wrong? Haven't you seen soup before? Well you have to at least taste it! Go on, take a bite, I'm sure you'll like it," the human grinned at him, seemingly very proud of himself. Touya dipped the spoon into the bowl and took a bite of the soup. It was indeed very good to the taste, and having not eaten in quite a long time, he finished the soup within minutes. Afterwards, with a full stomach his body was warmed and he felt very tired. Touya hardly remembered Damea taking the bowl as his eyes shut and he fell fast asleep.



Damea left the room where the Therian had fallen asleep and closed the door gently. He carried the bowl out of the room and into the larger living room of the cottage. He ran a hand through his tousled hair and plopped down in another chair across from the doctor. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, a frown on his lips.

"Well, he's eaten at least. Sleeping now," a sigh filled the air then, "I hope he heals sooner rather than later. The city is in an uproar, as you've all noticed I'm sure. Trying to get through the streets and get food was a hassle I'll tell you. But at least we have something to eat for today. Also, I found these," Damea leaned forward and dug from his pocket a wad of folded paper. He opened it and tossed it onto the table. Three pages slipped across the table and showed three depicted faces. The first was obviously Touya, the second Damea and the third Reginald, though the last one hardly resembled the doctor at all.

"The army needs new artists," Damea commented with a scoff, "Anyway. They've upped the bounty again. Aside from that, I heard some interesting news. There's been a raid on a small town just south of here. The town of Shaatra. Seem's our Therian friend who tried to kill Touya is behind it. The rebels managed to get their hands on a good amount of technology and burned the town to the ground," Damea shook his head and interlaced his fingers over his lap, leaning into it with a saddened look in his mis matched eyes, "There... were no survivors."

Damea's soft voice was heavy with depression and guilt. He was afraid of what April would think next, especially since she had her opinion's about Therian's already. What would that do for Touya? Probably not a whole lot. He knew that the Therian was trying to show her that his people were not killers or the evil men that the humans and elves painted them as. Of course, the rebel leader wasn't doing anything to help that fact.

He cleared his throat and chanced a glance to April, "With that, town security has been doubled. I doubt that we'll ever be able to enter another city or town without immediately being recognized. Besides, Touya stands out too much. His arms and skin color are too much of a distinction between human and Therian. You're probably not going to like this, but... There is one place we can go to. I spent a long time with them before, it's how I know a lot about Therian's. It's a small clan that travels around constantly, living off the land. We can stay with them, I think that it will help Touya as well. He needs medical attention on those bracers of his, that's something only another Therian can provide for him."

Damea leaned back, "The only problem is finding them. They never stay in one place for too long. The only other thing I can say is that they stay far from villages and towns. That means if we were to go find them, we're going to have to go way out into the wilderness. Not that that's a bad thing, but I don't know how long we'll have to be out there before we even get a trail leading to the clan. Anyway," Damea threw his hands up in the air, his eyes down cast, "It's a thought. Just thought I would put it out there as an option. Maybe our only option..." he added the last part under his breath and looked to April.

---

---

Touya was displeased to receive her company, and it was understandable given all that had been said between them. With lips creased into a frown, his blue eyes switched from her face to her arm sling. He reached out slowly but April withdrew a little, wariness tightening her shoulders. Pale fingers paused just out of reach, and from it she felt his magic building.

“What are yo-?”

Her question was answered as the gold light engulfed the sling on her arm. Immediately the aching numbness faded, strength seeping in to replace it. April did not move from her place; she stared at the magic and opened her mouth in astonishment. Was this his form of an apology? Touya propped himself up against the door frame, looking even paler from the exertion.

"There is no need to call for him. I'll need more time to regain my power again," he murmured, cautious of her presence.

“Thank you,” April said at last, undoing the ties of her sling. She tested her right arm sheepishly, extending it out before her and twisting it to assess its recovery. “Though, you need to stop performing these reckless deeds on your own. That’s precisely what got you into your current state.”

Damea burst into the room then, his vocal tone catching everyone’s attention. The noise was deafening as he marched in, bellowing. A steaming bowl accompanied his entrance, which he immediately offered to Touya upon spotting him. April allowed him to pass and usher the therian back into the bedroom.

---

Damea rejoined them after some time, flaunting his exhaustion as he puckered down in the chair besides her. This was the fire mage that saved them apparently, though April was still skeptical. Dumping the now empty bowl onto the table, his fingers combed through the plume of his hair.

"Well, he's eaten at least. Sleeping now. I hope he heals sooner rather than later. The city is in an uproar, as you've all noticed I'm sure. Trying to get through the streets and get food was a hassle I'll tell you. But at least we have something to eat for today. Also, I found these,” Damea reached into the murky folds of his trousers and produced a trio of papers. They unfurled neatly across the table as he tossed them, revealing sketched depictions of their entourage. Reginald emitted a huff of disapproval while April’s azure eyes narrowed deliberately.

“And this is precisely why I requested you not to go gallivanting around Glendale prison,” she muttered brazenly, ignoring Damea’s presence. April resisted the urge to flip her hands up, though their continued stupidity grated on her temper. “We need to avoid major population centers. If we need any supplies from now on, I’ll be procuring them as they haven’t seen my face yet.”

“Why do I look a ruffian?” Reginald complained.

“The army needs new artists,” Damean stated. Reginald smirked at the comment, that was something they could all agree on. “Anyway. They've upped the bounty again. Aside from that, I heard some interesting news. There's been a raid on a small town just south of here. The town of Shaatra. Seem's our Therian friend who tried to kill Touya is behind it. The rebels managed to get their hands on a good amount of technology and burned the town to the ground. There... were no survivors."

Grieving, Damea’s chin drooped at the tragic news. Reginald’s face was also laden with mourning, though it was far less obvious in the medic’s terms. April suspected she wore a similar expression, one which was neither particularly saddened nor troubled, just a mask of solemnity. It was the same mask she wore at the funerals of her men. War probably had something to do with it. It jaded her to circumstances outside of her own, more so than in Reginald’s case because officers could not afford to show weakness. Doing so risked demoralizing the people under her command.

“All the more reason we should get moving soon,” April responded at last, folding her arms over. “Every moment we spend waiting increases the likelihood of this conflict escalating. If we severe the jugular of this rebellion it will be the lesser of two evils and facilitate an end to the conflict.”

Damea hawked the phlegm in his throat and redirected his mismatched gaze towards her, "With that, town security has been doubled. I doubt that we'll ever be able to enter another city or town without immediately being recognized. Besides, Touya stands out too much. His arms and skin color are too much of a distinction between human and Therian. You're probably not going to like this, but... There is one place we can go to. I spent a long time with them before, it's how I know a lot about Therian's. It's a small clan that travels around constantly, living off the land. We can stay with them, I think that it will help Touya as well. He needs medical attention on those bracers of his, that's something only another Therian can provide for him. The only problem is finding them. They never stay in one place for too long. The only other thing I can say is that they stay far from villages and towns. That means if we were to go find them, we're going to have to go way out into the wilderness. Not that that's a bad thing, but I don't know how long we'll have to be out there before we even get a trail leading to the clan. Anyway, it's a thought. Just thought I would put it out there as an option. Maybe our only option..."

“Hmph. I can see why Touya was desperate to save you now. The answer is no, that’s a bad idea,” April said, processing the information Damea had provided her. The statement was voiced with objective concern rather than any real resentment, but the simple fact was she just did not trust Damea. The sell sword’s lingering presence over the past few days had been a constant source of discomfort for her. “Plus, finding a coat to disguise his bracers is simple. It appalls me the therian himself hasn’t thought of that beforehand. All action, no thought.”

“I understand, you think the faceless will defect to his people given the chance,” Reginald nodded in apparent agreement, though he was merely exploring both points of view. He purposefully avoided notions of treachery with Damea and Touya so close by. “Not entirely implausible, and without a guide, our mission would likely end in failure. But there are still merits. I’ve done what I can for Touya, there’s nothing I can do for his bracers though.”

“I don’t like it. There’s too many variables and you don’t even have an effective method of tracking them. We could be wandering aimlessly in the wilderness indefinitely. I don’t need Touya capable of fighting, I just need him to safely guide us. If he can do that properly, we can finish this sooner and avoid any major scuffles,” April remarked, reclaiming her mug and drinking the last of its contents.

“Hmph. I can see why Touya was desperate to save you now. The answer is no, that’s a bad idea. Plus, finding a coat to disguise his bracers is simple. It appalls me the therian himself hasn’t thought of that beforehand. All action, no thought.”

Damea sighed inwardly, he figured that April would immediately reject the idea, "I really don't think Touya's all that keen on hiding the fact that he's Therian. He seems too proud to do something like that. In fact, all Therian's are like that. They're prideful, April. You can't just ask them to hide who they are. Besides, it would still be hard to keep the fact that he's Therian hidden, what do you wanna do to his skin tone? Paint him?" Damea rolled his eyes, "As for his being so keen on freeing me, yeah it has nothing to do with the fact that I sympathize with the Therian's. If you must know he simply wanted an answer to a stupid question. I mean really... who the hell breaks into a prison to ask a guy a question?"

“I understand, you think the faceless will defect to his people given the chance. Not entirely implausible, and without a guide, our mission would likely end in failure. But there are still merits. I’ve done what I can for Touya, there’s nothing I can do for his bracers though.”

"He's not going to defect," Damea muttered in irritation. Though, at the moment, defecting with the clan he had in mind was starting to look all the more appealing. April was difficult to deal with most times, she didn't trust him at all and he didn't even know what to do to earn her trust. With a sigh he shook his head, defecting would make things worse. If he wanted her to trust him he had to stick around. There had to be some way of getting her to like him.

I don’t like it. There’s too many variables and you don’t even have an effective method of tracking them. We could be wandering aimlessly in the wilderness indefinitely. I don’t need Touya capable of fighting, I just need him to safely guide us. If he can do that properly, we can finish this sooner and avoid any major scuffles,” she continued and reached out to grab her mug of hot liquid.

"Touya can find the clan. All we need to do is get out there and get close enough. He can do the rest. Don't you remember what I told you about Therian's? They can feel each others presence when they are near by," Damea tried again to reason with her, "Why do you not want him able to fight? Are you afraid that he'll turn on you? There's nothing to fear, he's not going to try and kill you the moment he's got all of his power back. Do you really think that just the three of us can take on the rebel leader?

"That guy almost killed Touya and I don't know about you, but, if we fought Touya when he was at full strength I don't think any of us would survive. He's a lot more powerful than all three of us combined. The only reason he's not so right now is because he got his ass beat when he went to face off with the leader. And... then... did it a second time... and well, we all know how that went.

Damea shook his head, bringing his focus back around as he'd lost himself in remembrance on how Touya had almost lost to the Therian leader twice and then nearly got himself killed at the prison, "Look, the point is, if you want a chance at taking out the rebel leader, you're going to need Touya at full strength. That includes having his bracers fixed. Unless you know any human tech smiths that know how to handle Therian technology and are willing, than we've got no other choice."

Damea was leaned forward the entire time he spoke, passionate on trying to get April to change her mind. He also hoped that when Touya woke again and was better that he would have enough sense to listen to the fire mage as well. Damea knew about Touya's promise to April, that once he was well enough he would bring her to the rebel leader. The damn Therian was stubborn to the letter and would follow his promise word for word. He hoped that when Touya woke again, he would be able to persuade the Therian to listen to reason and not go gallivanting around trying to find the man who almost killed him twice.

---

April Rosevolt

---

“I really don't think Touya's all that keen on hiding the fact that he's Therian. He seems too proud to do something like that. In fact, all Therian's are like that. They're prideful, April. You can't just ask them to hide who they are. Besides, it would still be hard to keep the fact that he's Therian hidden, what do you wanna do to his skin tone? Paint him?" Damea rolled his eyes sarcastically, but it was his condescending tone that appalled her. "As for his being so keen on freeing me, yeah it has nothing to do with the fact that I sympathize with the Therian's. If you must know he simply wanted an answer to a stupid question. I mean really... who the hell breaks into a prison to ask a guy a question?"

“I can vouch for that last part also,” Reginald chuckled ruefully, clearly amused by the memory.

“That’s Miss Rosevolt to you! Honestly, do you really want to argue semantics and pride while lives are at stake?” April snapped directly at Damea, her fingers pulling into a tight fist, “Stop kidding yourself Mr Reese. Between staying alive by simply hiding or suffering at the hands of the government, which do you think is more sensible? If that therian is really foolish enough to allow something as petty like pride cloud his judgment then I’ll staple a jacket on myself.”

Narrowing her eyes at the vibrantly dressed mercenary, April inhaled a breath to compose her fitful anger. The irritation was particularly apparent then given her frazzled appearance, or perhaps it just enhanced it. “Look I understand there’s bound to be differences between our cultures, but at the moment they just don’t take precedence. Furthermore, I feel I should warn you. Stay out of my way. As long as you and your ‘sympathizing’ doesn’t unnecessarily intrude, things should work out fine between us.”

"He's not going to defect," Damea murmured with some frustration. On that sentiment April could agree with him. So often had their ideals directly clashed againt one another that often it felt like she was talking to a brick wall. April got the same feeling from her conversations with Touya. Earlier, she was drawn in by the fact that she needed the additional aid in order to defeat the therian rebels. Now after she had the chance to speak to Damea, she would be willing to trade a single man from D Company for a dozen of Damea’s.

After a length of time, Damea seemed to reach a solution to her conundrum. "Touya can find the clan. All we need to do is get out there and get close enough. He can do the rest. Don't you remember what I told you about Therian's? They can feel each others presence when they are near by,” he said, insistent on finding the therian’s clan.

“Rash. Far too rash. You just said you don’t even know where they are. Without a heading and direction, how are we supposed to get ‘close enough’?” April chastised the fault in his logic.

[b]“Why do you not want him able to fight? Are you afraid that he'll turn on you? There's nothing to fear, he's not going to try and kill you the moment he's got all of his power back. Do you really think that just the three of us can take on the rebel leader?"

April shifted uncomfortably beneath her clothes, unwilling to admit how close Damea had come to hitting the mark. Yes she was afraid. There was still so little she knew about Touya and the therians that it was difficult not to feel anxious around them. The truth of the matter was she saw the reflections of those therian rebels in Touya. Dangerous, cunning and more powerful then she could handle alone. April asked herself, wondering if behind the sweet and innocent façade, Touya was the same.

"That guy almost killed Touya and I don't know about you, but, if we fought Touya when he was at full strength I don't think any of us would survive. He's a lot more powerful than all three of us combined. The only reason he's not so right now is because he got his ass beat when he went to face off with the leader. And... then... did it a second time... and well, we all know how that went.”

“So are the beastmen,” April scoffed, “But there are plenty of ways one can eliminate a person without physical conflict.”

"Look, the point is, if you want a chance at taking out the rebel leader, you're going to need Touya at full strength. That includes having his bracers fixed. Unless you know any human tech smiths that know how to handle Therian technology and are willing, than we've got no other choice," Damea added imploringly. It was an effort to appease her better sense of judgment and he looked her earnestly, or at least as earnestly as those mismatched eyes of his allowed.

“Fine, but you have to prove to me first that you at least have coordinates of some kind before I accept an adventure of any sort,” she grimaced, clearly wondering if she was making the correct decision. Wiping the weariness away from her face, April recollected her gear and gloves before standing. “We move first thing in the morning. Get your gear packed in preparation.”

---

Glendale Prison

---

“Is this report correct? You’re certain of what you saw?”

Stephan Crow, the warden of Glendale prison nodded in an affirming fashion, “I confirm that sir. The white haired scoundrel was definitely one of those faceless. Blades literally came out of his wrist, though he didn’t use any of the other powers you described.”

The figures presented offered each other ambiguous looks. One was undoubtedly aristocratic by the aloof fashion with which he carried himself. A blond comb over was accompanied by deft chiseled features, good looks that could have disarmed any admirer with simple stares. If not for his reputation, Stephan may have underestimated the beast slayer himself. Miles Riverbend of the house of Cardinal. The famous soldier who slayed the beast king in the last Great War. Perfectly constructed, his stature matched even Stephan’s own in height, though the warden had the upper hand in bulk. Accompanying him was another man, though Stephan was hesitant to call him such for he was evidently far more than that. Each breath came as a filtered wheeze through the grills in his gasmask. Unnerved by the constant hissing, Stephan leaned forwards into his desk, eager to get them out of his office.

“Not that I wish to be rude boys, but I do have a lot of paper work to complete after the fiasco from a few days ago. Are we done here? You’re welcome to keep the report,” Stephan said.

“We just trying to clarify a few last things. The other two that accompanied him, they were…?” Miles asked. The beast slayer had done the bulk of the negotiating, in fact Stephan could not remembered a time when he heard the other man speak once.

“Uncertain. Most likely human,” Stephan shrugged, “There was a fourth one also, but they wore a disguise.”

“Hmm, shame. Well, never fear warden, I’m sure your record will recover, in time,” Miles smirked contemptuously. He clearly knew of the old warden’s sadistic conduct and enjoyed seeing the other man beaten at his own game. “That should be all for now, thank you for your cooperation.”

Stephan grimaced in a parody of a smile. Cocky on top of famous, perfect, he thought. Too annoyed to show them the courtesy escort through the doorway, Stephan remained glued to his seat. Abruptly, the other man paused by the doorway, his breathing labored regardless of whatever activity he was performing.

“Oh, we’ve heard you’re having something of a capacity issue these days warden. Perhaps we could help you with that problem.”

His body felt rested, far more than it had ever felt in many days. The food had obviously done wonders for him and Touya wondered idly what it was that Damea had put in it to make him feel like he did. It wasn't the kind of food that Therian's ate, so he figured that it was some kind of magic or trick that the human's used to make their food edible and attain such strength. Touya sat up from the bed and turned to put his feet on the floor.

The boots hit the wood softly and a moment after he was standing upright. From what he could tell it was morning again, meaning that he'd slept most of the day before and all that night. He glanced down at his bandaged body and reached up to undo the wrappings. He could feel his power rushing through his limbs, all of the sleep (and the food) had helped to bring back a good portion of his magic. Slowly, the white linen unraveled from around his frame and revealed his pale skin tone underneath, bruised and battered.

Touya frowned at the damage done to his body and reached up with his right left hand. Gold light washed out from his fingers and sunk deep into his own skin. The warmth filled his body and every bone, bruise and cut was healed. It took quite some time as the damage was a lot, but when he finished there was nothing left to say that he'd been wounded to begin with. Touya released a heavy breath, feeling a little less more powerful than before, but not quite as weak as before. It was a nice feeling to have strength residing in his limbs once again.

The Therian straightened, pulling himself up to his full height of almost six feet tall. He hadn't noticed that he'd been slouching for the most part because it had been too painful to stand straight. Touya stretched his arms up over his head, feeling the pull of his muscles, stretching them out from having been restricted for so long. He took a deep breath and then relaxed his body. Turning around, he looked around for his shirt, but could not see it with in the sparse room. Perhaps Reginald had taken it? It had been battered and torn anyways, not to mention blood stained. It wouldn't be surprising to him if the doctor had taken the clothing and attempted to fix or wash it.

He opened the door to the room and stepped out into the living room. His gaze immediately settled on Damea who was standing in the room. The fire mage was adjusting his belt with his double blades on one hip. His brilliantly colored clothing was easily recognizable as was the mop of messy hair on his head. The man turned to the wound of Touya moving into the room and smiled.

"Good news my friend, April has agreed to let us go to a Therian clan. We can get your hands fixed up there," Damea announced, nodding his head in the direction of Touya's ruined hands. The Therian glanced down and flexed his fingers, attempting to close them into a fist but failing yet again. Without repairs, he would never be able to activate the weapon, nor close his hands into a fist. He was lucky to be able to wield his swords to begin with.

"I can't do that," Touya answered his eyes down cast as he gazed at the backs of his hands, the metal there still jagged and torn open. The dark hole was nothing but metal, the other side of his hand was flesh and had healed a long time ago.

"Wait... what?" Damea demanded from across the room. The human looked utterly flustered as he stared at Touya who had looked up to meet the man's gaze, "What do you mean you can't do that?"

"I promised April I would bring her to Val as soon as I could."

"You... But... your hands... you... God damn Therian's and your stubbornness!" Damea stammered in frustration, "Look, do you realize how much trouble I went through to get her to even agree? Do I have to remind you that last time you picked a fight with this Val guy he nearly killed you? Twice!"

Touya didn't bat an eyelash as the man ranted on. Of course he remembered what Val had done, how could he forget? He also had a promise to keep and that wasn't going to be broken. He was well, healed and had enough strength and energy to bring April to the man that had killed her company. Damea watched the Therian and shook his head after a moment.

"You're not going to budge are you? Touya, the cities are on high alert because Val took a group of rebels and attacked a town recently. He killed everyone there and stole a lot of technology. There's no way that we can all just go gallivanting around trying to find this guy. Besides, do you really think that Val is just going to let you lead April to him and then leave? You're going to have to fight and you can't do that without getting repairs to your technology. The only people that can do that are the Therian's. Damn it why am I having to do this again... I swear, you and April are just about the same in almost every way, I hope you realize this."

"We are not the same," Touya responded quickly, his tone darker. He held an open mind to the humans and elves. She did not for the Therian's. The woman had her own opinions about his race and was sure that if she had her way, Touya would have been disposed of long ago.

"Oh, yeah, you are," Damea answered back without skipping a beat. Touya raised an eyebrow as the fire mage adjusted his clothing and sighed heavily. He was obviously irritated about something that the Therian couldn't quite grasp.

"I'm not going back against my word."

"You're not going to break your promise, Touya. We're just taking a side trip because you're not ready to take her to Val yet. She's already agreed, so suck it up and deal with it. We're leaving soon so go get ready, my friend," Damea finished, his voice softening as he gave Touya a smile.

Touya sighed seeing that he probably had no choice and Damea wasn't going to be swayed either. Maybe if he spoke with April that would change, "Where's Reginald? I cannot find my armor."

"Your armor? Oh, uh... I think he's in the other room, or outside..." Damea answered twisting around as he tried to figure out which way to go to get the doctor. Touya watched him, half amused and half confused at the strange behavior. Humans were very intriguing creatures.



The elf that they captured struggled in his bonds. Val stood before him a cruel look in his eyes even as he smiled at the man, hiding his anger beneath the upward twist of his lips. The fires burned in the camp that they had set up after raiding the small town of Shaatra. Their bounty was littered around the area and the only sole survivor of the raid was now tied up against a tree. Val reached down towards the fire where a blade had been pushed into the coals. He withdrew the weapon and eyed the glowing top portion of the sword.

"You're going to tell me about those rumors I've been hearing lately. All this talk about new technology. I searched and searched your town from top to bottom and found nothing of what those villagers were talking about a few days ago. I want to know what it is exactly that you and the humans are putting together."

"Nothing... we're not doing anything, faceless..." the elf spat back, glaring defiantly back up at Val.

The other Therian's growled at the name tossed at Val, but Val only grinned wider and knelt down next to the man, waving the glowing hot sword in front of the elf's face, "Faceless... such a derogatory name. Though, if you think about it, we are kind of like someone without a face. We can take the shape of anything or anyone we want. Who are you to know that this is what I truly look like. I could look like someone else," Val shifted his features, using his power to take on the form of an elven woman he'd seen in the village when they raided. The elf's eyes widened and he reeled backwards as far as he could away from Val. The Therian shifted again and took the form of one of his men standing nearby, and then one last time twisting his features into that of the elf before him before finally reverting back to his original state.

"We could be anyone, your lover, your friend or a family member. And none of you would be any wiser to know the difference. Now, back to what I asked you. The technology your people are so desperate to hide. Tell me about it," Val growled as he leaned forward and pressed the tip of the blade against the elf's arm, drawing blood that sizzled across the tip of the red hot weapon. The elf screamed in pain and when Val withdrew the weapon, he was breathing heavily.

"There is nothing... nothing of importance to you," the man tried again, gritting his teeth as he peered out at Val between half closed eyes.

Val growled at him and drew the blade across his shoulder and collar bone then. Again the elf cried out and twisted in his bonds.

"There is talk!" The elf screamed and Val pulled away, "Talk... of a new... technology. They say that... it will destroy faceless... break you down... and help us to learn how to... use your technology... that way we can fight you."

Val stared at the man for a long while before he stood up and shot a quick glance along the camp. Every Therian there had heard the words and each man's face was drawn in anger and shock. The human's planned to dissect them like animals and then use their findings to create people that would match them in strength and power. It boiled Val's blood to hear such words and he turned to the elf in rage. His eyes narrowed and he shoved the red hot sword through the man's chest. The elf sputtered, blood bubbling up into his mouth before spilling out over his chin and down his front. When Val withdrew the blade, the elf fell forward, still.

"We cannot allow them to continue in this kind of technology. They plan to use us as lab rats! We find where they are hiding this technology and we destroy it. This has gone too far," Val announced to his men, earning a roar of agreement from them. He turned his back to face the wilderness of the open plains. His dark eyes were narrowed, his lips twisted into a snarl of rage. Val's hand tightened around his sword, shaking with his pent up anger. He was going to destroy every last human and elf that dared think they could get away with such an atrocity.

---

April Rosevolt

---

“Here,” April said, appearing in the room almost on cue. Dumping a set of dark rags and armoured plating on the table, she wiped away the beads of sweat that had collected against her forehead. Exertion colored her features, flustering her slightly tanned complexion. Included within the pile were Touya’s twin blades, folded over into intricately compartmentalized gears. April regarded them sourly, sceptical as to how one could ever maintain such elaborate mechanisms.

“Your weapons and armour. I kept them hidden in case you felt the urge to ‘liberate’ any other friends while I wasn’t looking,” she continued, half-frowning at Touya’s shirtless attire. Taking in his pale ivory skin and defined contours of lean muscle, her curiosity piqued. Where all therians so alike, so similar to humans? The uncanny nature of their biology was both chilling and strangely associable. She knew the elves were of a similar nature, or was it the other way around? Perhaps humans were the ones similar to therians. After some moments she tossed a shirt across the room at him nonchalantly, indifferent to his thoughts of her staring. “We got you a new shirt in town. The last one was torn to shreds and unsalvageable. I hope this one fits because it’s all you’re getting. I don’t have enough money to buy multiples.”

Still dressed in her leather suit, April’s size seemed to pale in comparison to Touya’s and Damea’s without the added bulk of her armor. “Reginald will be joining us later at a rendezvous point. I sent the man ahead on an important errand,” April explained, walking into another room that housed their necessary supplies. The cottage had been woefully short on space, but April considered it lucky to have any roof over their heads at all by this stage. Anxious to leave behind the basic comforts society offered, she resigned herself to lodgings in the wilderness for the sake of her mission. Now that their expedition was on the verge of commencing, even she was reluctant to leave the battered confines of the shabby cabin.

“Shall we go?”

---

---

Reginald walked briskly down the grassy avenue, a letter held between his hands. Rudely awoken earlier by April’s pestering, he had been sent on a personal errand of some sort. The whole affair was rather awkward. April more apprehensive that usual at the time that she came to him, but Reginald assumed it was simply because of the nature of the letter. Whatever it was that was written in it.

“Who exactly lives out in these parts anyway?” Reginald said to himself. He flipped the letter in his hand over and scanned the address once more. According to April’s instructions, the establishment should just be beyond this ridge.

But Reginald saw nothing. Knitting his brows together in confusion, Reginald placed his hands on his hips and gazed at his surroundings. Mentally retracing his steps, he wondered if he had gone the wrong way. Impossible, he had an excellent sense of direction, as did most men from D Company. Perhaps there was an error in coordinates…

“April…” Reginald sighed, unravelling the mystery.

Fitting his finger under the letter’s flap, he pulled across and tore open the letter to reveal its contents. A note lay within, clearly addressed to him. Mortified, he slipped out the paper and unfolded it.

“‘Look after your house’, huh?” he smirked, realising he had been played. “Who will look after you now though?”

She was being selfish again. Or so, that’s what he thought. If that was the case, why could he sense someone behind him then?

“Excuse me sir,” said the stranger.

---

---

Their journey to the ‘rendezvous point’ took an arbitrary forty five minutes to reach. April wanted to ensure that there was adequate distance between them and the cabin in case Reginald caught wind of her ruse earlier than anticipated. In the same vein, travelling to far would have raised Touya and Damea’s suspicions. To further stack the odds in her favour, she deceived Reginald into travelling in opposite direction of their heading. Not that it matter, she would be informing her intrepid ‘companions’ shortly anyway.

Upon reaching the designated meeting point, April paused momentarily as she leaned against a small outcrop of boulders. Appearing to be resting, she offered a prayer to Reginald’s safety before voicing her betrayal.

“We should keep moving,” she said to the others abruptly, “I regret to inform you that Reginald won’t be joining us… I won’t risk the lives of any more of my men.”

“Here,” April's voice filled the room as the woman entered and dropped an arm load of armor and weapons onto the couch that was in the center of the room. Her eyes glanced over to Touya who had turned to address her once she'd walked in.

“Your weapons and armour. I kept them hidden in case you felt the urge to ‘liberate’ any other friends while I wasn’t looking,” She stated, her gaze lingering on his frame longer than expected. He frowned at her at her suggestion of his going to free other friends. As far as he was concerned the only one in that room he considered partially a friend was Damea. April tossed a white shirt at him then and he caught it deftly.

“We got you a new shirt in town. The last one was torn to shreds and unsalvageable. I hope this one fits because it’s all you’re getting. I don’t have enough money to buy multiples.”

Touya's eyes examined the cloth in his hands and deemed it large enough to be suitable. Pulling it on over his head, he found that it did indeed fit, albeit a bit tight across his chest and shoulders. Humans tended to be a bit smaller in build than a Therian. Even so, the cloth was long enough to cover his skin from the chaffing of his silver armor. He looked down at the pile of armor that she'd brought it, no doubt all of it having been fairly heavy for her to carry. The silver plates had taken a lot of damage and were in dire need of repair by a Therian. The metal was thin, but heavy duty to withstand a beating. However, the beating that Touya had taken did a lot of denting and tearing across the metal. Therian weapons were meant to cut through their own armor, hence the reason his armor was so severely torn.

Picking up the chest piece he examined it with a deep set frown. The armor would still be useful to him should they get into any fights, but it would only serve him for a little while longer before it went far beyond repairable. Touya pulled the armor on with a dissatisfied sigh. Perhaps Damea was right in going to see the clan. At least then he could have all of his equipment looked at and repaired. He was sure most of it needed something done to it.

“Reginald will be joining us later at a rendezvous point. I sent the man ahead on an important errand,” April continued, disregarding Touya completely.

"Well damn. You should have told me, I could have done it myself. I would have been back by now," Damea replied with a shortness to his tone. Touya glanced up to the fire mage but didn't comment.

“Shall we go?”

"Lead the way," Touya said, his words directed at Damea who was insistent on finding the clan of Therian's.

---

They had reached the point where they were meant to meet up with Reginald, but when they got there no one was there waiting for them. Touya had already had a bad feeling the moment that April had said that the doctor had gone ahead of them on an errand. Her apprehension was clear to him during that time and the entire time they'd been walking. So, when the woman turned to them some time later after waiting, he wasn't surprised at what she said.

“We should keep moving. I regret to inform you that Reginald won’t be joining us… I won’t risk the lives of any more of my men.”

Touya's lips turned downwards and his eyes narrowed at her. Damea on the other hand voiced his complaints immediately, "What? Why isn't the doctor coming with us? I thought you said he went on an errand. No one just goes on an errand and then suddenly decides they aren't coming. Wait... you knew all along he wasn't coming. Was it something I said? I mean, I know I can ask a lot of questions, but damn he should have just told me to shut up or something. This is a little over board you know-"

Touya raised his hand at Damea, silencing the fire mage as he rambled on, "I figured you were hiding something," Touya leaned forward getting close to April, "It's nice to have my suspicions concluded. Makes it easy when one knows they can't trust someone, ever," he growled.

Pulling away, he started walking down the road. With a heavy sigh he uncrossed his arms and looked back at her, "Instead of tricking him, don't you think it would have been better to tell him that you cared enough about his safety to have him stay behind?" Touya bit his tongue from saying more. He understood why she'd made Reginald leave. She'd lost too much to put another one of her own in danger. It was the lie that bit at him, tore him apart. It was what helped to start solidifying his judgment towards humans. He couldn't trust any of them, nothing that they said was true or caring.

"Damea, lead us to where you were last with that clan. I can do the rest from there, I'm sure they're not far from their last site."

---

Damea had brought them to where he'd last been with the clan which had been some months ago. As predicted, the group of Therian's had long since left their last spot. According to Damea, the group usually traveled east, keeping far from the cities. It had taken them two days to get to where Damea had last seen them, and another two due east before Touya felt anything that pulled him to the group of Therian's. During those four days of travel, Touya avoided April at all costs and did not speak to her at all. Damea on the other hand couldn't keep his mouth shut and constantly talked asking both of them questions about everything he could think of.

Touya was annoyed with him, but figured that the man didn't do well with silence and so had to fill it somehow. He also thought that maybe the fire mage was trying his best to mend things between April and the Therian, all to no avail of course. So, on the fourth day, Touya led them to the clan and they soon walked into the camp of about fourty Therian's. Children ran about, screaming and laughing, women and men mingled doing their daily duties to feed and cloth their people. Not but a few seconds into their arrival, Damea was swarmed by Therian children.

"Damea!" They screamed and ran right up to him. Damea dropped down and hugged them all, a large smile upon his lips. Touya stood stone still, shocked at what he was witnessing. A human hugging a Therian. It was unheard of. He didn't know what to do. A warm hand took hold of his wrist and lifted his arm, taking his attention. An older Therian woman with her white hair pulled back and braided in may places was examining his hand. Touya's own long hair was braided as well, kept out of his face.

"You're lucky, Havatha."

"Invathi," Touya replied in the same language, his voice softer than usual. He made to bow to her, but the Therian woman slapped his arm lightly, giving him a sour look as if chiding him.

Touya's lips turned upwards in the smallest smile to ever paint his face, "Thank you."

"Do not thank me yet, Havatha. We've no drugs to put you to sleep for this," she warned him, her silver eyes gazing up at him to make certain he understood the implications. At this time, behind the elder woman a small group of Therian's had gathered, some of them reaching out for Damea as they obviously recognized him and welcomed him. The fire mage stood with three children in his arms and two clinging to his legs. He offered Touya a crooked grin and a wink as he moved to mingle with the people.

"I told you this was a good idea," Damea shot back before he was lost to the Therian's who crowded him asking him thousands of questions, and the children who yelled at him to play. Touya shook his head and sighed.

"The woman, who is she?"

Touya glanced over his shoulder at April before he answered the elder in his own tongue, "Not really a friend, but not an enemy either, Invathi."

"I see. She may stay, but be mindful of your actions human. We enjoy your kinds company, but we also know of your hatred," the woman said in the common tongue, turning to address April. After doing so she tugged on Touya's arm and led him through the thinning crowd, "Sheree will help you. She is rare among our people and the only one in this clan to know the ways of our technology. We've gathered enough metal and supplies to help do repairs when such a thing happens, but as I told you, we do not have the drugs to help you with the pain."

"I'll be fine, Invathi."

The woman turned and gave him a credulous look, "So he says now," she scoffed earning yet another smile from Touya and a partial laugh. Another woman met him, this one younger and fairer than the elder. She smiled up at Touya who nodded at her, "Havathii," he said to her.

"What is it you need?" Her eyes alighted upon the hand that the elder lifted and her lips opened into an 'o', "I see. I'm sorry, but I have no place for you to sit as all of our tents and such are used only for sleeping."

"I can stand."

Sheree frowned at him, "Sit upon the ground, Havatha, you won't be able to stand once I get started."

Touya did as he was told and seated himself on the earth while the woman went and got her supplies. What looked normal to him, must have looked strange to Damea and April. The tools that Sheree brought out resemble simple little pieces of metal, some long and curved at the end, others looking to be hollow. They were what the Therian's used to create their weapons and mechanics.

Touya held out his hand to Sheree and she took hold of it carefully. In her other hand she held a thin, long, curved metal tool. It was sharp at the end, so sharp it would cut through the metal on his hand easily. Touya took a deep breath and prepared himself for her work. The metal cutter dragged across the jagged pieces of his wrist and top of his hand, cutting off the ends that were lifted up from having a sword shoved through his hands. Touya's breath sucked in sharply, his other hand slowly curled in the dirt, pulling the earth tightly between his fingers. The metal where Sheree was cutting shimmered, shining a bright silver and looking almost like liquid, as if it were bleeding from being cut.

Once she was finished with that she put the tool down and grabbed another. Her eyes flicked up to him with a slight frown as she prepared to continue with the repair. She needed to work from the inside out, fixing the mechanism that drew the metal across his hands. She pushed the tip of the tool inside the wound and began working it to put the pieces back together. Sometimes she would withdraw and add smaller parts to the inside of his hand. All the while, Touya was fighting to stay upright, his teeth ground together and his eyes shut tight. After some time, Sheree adjusted her grip on his hand and he felt a cold metal plate pressed on top of the open wound.

The sound of something clicking on filled the air and right after a sharp hissing sound. Touya glanced at what she had done and found that she was getting ready to meld the metal to his hand, completing the repair. As soon as the heat touched his hand he lost control and toppled over. Sheree still held his hand tightly to keep him from moving it as he cried out and curled into a kind of ball on the ground. Every so often he would uncurl, his body reacting to the burning across his hand, nearly writhing on the dirt. He grew dizzy and couldn't remember when she finished for it was only blinding pain that filled his thoughts. Even so, it was only one hand done and the other to go.

---

April Rosevolt

---

Touya leaned down, his tone condescending, "It's nice to have my suspicions concluded. Makes it easy when one knows they can't trust someone, ever."

Spoken with vindication, the words coiled inside of her chest and squeezed the air from her lungs. Shocked, April looked up and met his lingering gaze with a staunch expression. She stifled her instinctive response to rebuke his naivety, clenching her hands together. Touya’s cooperation was still vital if she wanted her revenge.

Disgust or regret caused him to falter slightly and turn away from her. April figured something like this would happen, but she did not anticipate such an overwhelmingly negative reaction from Touya. What did he know of duty? Of responsibility? What was she meant to do? Deprive another man of his life? Reginald would have never accepted the offer to step down. In all honestly, she would have fought alone if she could, but the folly of such bravado was clear. "Instead of tricking him, don't you think it would have been better to tell him that you cared enough about his safety to have him stay behind?"

Her mouth opened to reveal a scowl as the last of her patience exhausted. “Don’t you dare presume to patronize me! The world isn’t as black and white as you think it is Touya, the truth doesn’t solve everything,” April snapped in return, “If life so was convenient society wouldn’t be so screwed up.”

Her voice seemed lost to him as he trudged along the dirt path, not that she cared. Petulantly, April kicked the dirt in a fit of anger, hating life at that moment. "Damea, lead us to where you were last with that clan. I can do the rest from there, I'm sure they're not far from their last site."

“Let’s get this over and done with,” she hissed.

---

Four days travel equated to four days torture for April. Whenever the mercenary was not around to pester her, Touya’s presence would plague her instead. It acted as a painful reminder of everything she had lost. She had purposefully avoided him during the journey, just as he did to her. Nothing particularly obvious, but one could detect the awkward tension surrounding the two. The utter lack in exchange of words except for necessities was the most glaring indicator.

They arrived on the fourth day, successfully locating their quarry after the fruits of so many labors. Even with correct pacing and a liberal sprinkling of rest periods, April’s feet were sore from the tedious hike. It was her first time journeying so far outside the boundaries of human territory. Exasperate by the time of their arrival, April floundered as a flock of therian children was the first thing to greet them.

Within seconds a horde of miniature therians had amassed around Damea. “They seem to love you,” she remarked, watching their carefree expressions with envy before shifting her gaze to the rest of the camp.

Counting the sheets of pastel materials draped over intricate frames, April estimated there were twenty or so tents in total. Less than fifty therians within this community. Admittedly, she was surprised by their primitive establishments. Given the nature of their mechanical body parts, at some point she naturally assumed their civilization would be more advanced.

Trailing behind the rest, April’s focus turned to an elderly woman as she approached to greet Touya. The first thing she did was tug at the therian’s arm roughly, inspecting the damaged bracers. After a moment they shared warm greetings, and for the first time April was certain she caught a genuine smile from Touya.

"I see. She may stay, but be mindful of your actions human. We enjoy your kinds company, but we also know of your hatred," the elder woman spoke, abruptly switching to the human language so that she understood.

“You mistake caution for hatred. I only despise the culprits who destroyed my company,” April replied calmly, “And I’m sure they’re causing their share of problems for you also.”

More was said, but April remained ignorant to it, unable to comprehend their native tongue. She followed wordlessly as Touya was led through the crowds, observing the proceedings with interest. More rather, she was astonished hostile receptions had yet to hail her. Touya in turn was introduced to another woman. Ushered into a nearby shelter, the canvas walls masked their activity from prying eyes. Away the baking sun, April also relished the drop in temperatures. Unfeasible tools lined the walls and racks, tools she assumed would assist in the repairs. There were no beds, nor any sign of sterility. Forced to sit on the ground, Touya’s pained expression was the first indication that something was wrong.

April’s blue eyes narrowed at the scene as her previously crossed arms unfolded and reached for her crossbow. “For someone supposedly receiving aid, he’s in an awful lot of pain,” she growled, alarm inching into her tone. Touya was her only link to the rebels, she would not allow him to die here, “Stop what you’re doing!”

-Lemme retry that LOL sorry....-

“For someone supposedly receiving aid, he’s in an awful lot of pain. Stop what you’re doing!”

Sheree looked up at April, startled at her out burst. She'd finished melding the metal to his hand, covering the hole that had kept him from pulling out his claws. Her fingers loosened on his and Touya flipped over to face April. All in one motion he snatched her hand and brought her down to the ground next to him. He used her as his pillar to pull his body upwards, uncaring if he hurt her or not at that point, though he tried not to. His hand snaked up around her back and locked on the back of her neck, dragging her further down to him. She was crushed against him and his lips growled in her ear.

"Don't you dare draw your weapon," the threat was meant to scare her, but his voice wasn't half as imposing as he'd hoped because he was wincing from the pain in his hand that was locked on her neck. His fingers shook slightly as he'd tried to close them but couldn't do so. He turned back to Sheree and offered her the other hand, with a nod to her he told her, "Continue."

Sheree took his hand and did as he said, starting again with cutting the jagged metal away to make it flat and even again. He shuddered against April, fighting off the feeling. Though his hand held no strength, his arm still curled against her, holding her tightly. His breath was short and quick against her shoulder and as Sheree started to work on the inside of his hand, his face fell slowly down into April's shoulder. He didn't hear Damea come to them right then either as he was too far gone with the pain. However, he did make out what the fire mage said well enough.

"Touya... Don't get mad at the woman, April. She's helping him, don't worry. Think of it like this, if you or I were to be injured in such a way we would need to have a doctor perform some surgery on us right? Say that doctor didn't have any medication for us to stem the pain or anything like that. We would be in a hell of a lot of pain. Well, that's what he's going through, he's feeling everything that she's doing to repair his hand. You have to remember, the metal on their bodies is their body. They have to take care of it just like we take care of our own bodies. I'm amazed he's still conscious."

"Of course... I'm still... conscious... idiot," Touya snapped back, though the threat lost all of its meaning when he was hunched over, clinging to April and his voice cut out with each sharp breath. Sheree was pulling all of the mechanics together again in his hand, replacing some parts and literally piecing him back together. Touya's arm pulsed around April's surprisingly small frame, his muscles contracting in response to each tiny motion that Sheree made in his hand.

"Yeah yeah, that's because you're damned stubborn," Damea responded, his voicing saying that he was grinning at the Therian. A moment later and a metal plate was pushed down into the hole, fashioned to fit perfectly there. Touya winced and bit at his lip as he leaned against the human woman. He hardly registered that he'd been holding her the entire time since pulling her down to keep her from drawing her weapon. That whole reasoning had left him and never returned to his thoughts as the Therian woman clicked on the melding tool once more. The moment the heat touched his hand he jerked forward, his arm squeezing April tightly.

When Sheree finished, Touya's voice was hoarse and he was utterly tired once again. His forehead was resting in the pocket between April's shoulder and collarbone having sunk that far during the melding treatment. Touya's arm slipped from her back and it took a bit of effort to push himself off of her. He was half embarrassed that he'd held onto her in such a fashion and mostly wanted distance between them then. He fell backwards and Sheree caught him instead, his chest heaving from loss of breath. With his eyes closed he listened to Sheree in their own tongue.

"You should rest here for a while. I need to keep an eye on the treatment and make sure that I didn't miss anything. Also, you shouldn't engage your claws, it'll only cause you pain to do so if you manage to get them to work. If you try and they don't work you could possibly damage all of the work I've done for you. Give it a day or two to settle and for the gears to get working again."

"I can't stay here, Havanthii."

"Why is that? You just got here?!"

"I have to take April to see Val."

Sheree froze as she stared at him, her arms wrapped around his upper frame as she held him, "Val... why do you want to go see him?"

"To try to stop him."

"Is that how this happened?" She asked him, nodding to his hands.

He didn't answer her, only looked away. Sheree sighed heavily and took hold of one of his hands. He winced slightly as they still burned, but the pain wasn't as much as it had been moments ago. She examined her handy work and gave a short nod. Taking a deep breath she adjusted her hold on him and looked to April, "Do not allow him to engage his claws. If he does it he can undo all the work I've done for him, not to mention it won't be very pleasant. He should stay here for at least the rest of today so that I can keep an eye on the repairs. If I missed anything we'll know by tonight."



"I think we can spare a day," Damea answered flashing a smile at Sheree. Touya turned his pale blue gaze up to the fire mage and glared at him, "What!? You really should listen to the doctor of your people, Touya. It's common sense to take some downtime right after getting a surgery done."

"Surgery?"

"Yeah. You need some time to rest."

"I cannot. I must take April to see Val now. We've delayed long enough."

"Val isn't going anywhere, he can wait for the rest of today. If we go after him right now and your hands are like that, there's no chance in hell that we can win against him. Here, I'll prove my point," Damea retorted and drew his sword, "Draw yours."

Touya glared at him and got to his feet slowly. Reaching back he took hold of the handle of his sword and snapped it out in frustration. The blade opened up nicely though his hold on it was tenuous. Damea swung at him, lightly and Touya raised the sword on instinct to block. The moment the steel of each weapon collided, Touya dropped his and was down on his knees clutching his hand. Damea slid his sword back into it's sheathe.

"There, point proven. What about your armor hu? It's ruined from what I can tell."

"My hands will heal on the way and my armor can withstand more than this," Touya fought back.

"Stay here, Havantha. Let us repair you armor and weapons," Sheree interjected, her words back to their language. Touya frowned at Sheree and then glared up at Damea who stood with his hands crossed over his chest. He heaved a sigh and stood again. He didn't say anything but left the three of them there. Sheree stood and yelled out to him, "You may rest in my tent. It is the third one there," her finger pointed outwards and Touya went to it.

"Well, I guess that's finally settled," Damea remarked with an exasperated loosening of breath from his chest. He looked down to April and smiled at her. Reaching his hand out, he offered to help her up, "Hey, I'm sure you're hungry. Let me show you around this little village. Come meet the children, they want to know all about you."

---

---

Faster than sound, Touya’s hand tore upwards and snatched her balance from her. How the therian had reached up in such a position was beyond her comprehension. Growling in shock, April grimaced at the vice like grip yanking down on her wrist. The sudden force extended its way up along her arm, loosening her hold on the crossbow. She adjusted frantically, switching arms to accommodate the weapon, but to no avail. Confusion and astonishment riddled her features, but fear was the most prominent as Touya’s hot breath swelled against the side of her face. Working his way up, the therian now had her firmly within his hold. What would he do to her? Nagging her mind with dread, April trembled involuntarily.

His voice, a harsh whisper of barely contained outrage, halted her struggles, "Don't you dare draw your weapon."

Unquestionably he was reprimanding her, though the reason escaped him as the pain intensified and disfigured his composure. April watched as the therian woman proceeded to work with precision, heedless of their commotion. The constant click of surgical exchange acted as the source of their constant background noise. Combined with Touya’s labored pants, they drowned out any external turmoil. Combating the pain, the therian went rigid against her, nestling his face in the joint between her neck and shoulder. Compassionately, she exhaled to sooth the tension straining her own body and remained still for him. April figured he needed something to help ease the pain. Without another effective medium to assist him in doing so, it seemed she would have to suffice his needs for the moment.

"Touya... Don't get mad at the woman, April. She's helping him, don't worry. Think of it like this, if you or I were to be injured in such a way we would need to have a doctor perform some surgery on us right? Say that doctor didn't have any medication for us to stem the pain or anything like that. We would be in a hell of a lot of pain. Well, that's what he's going through, he's feeling everything that she's doing to repair his hand. You have to remember, the metal on their bodies is their body. They have to take care of it just like we take care of our own bodies. I'm amazed he's still conscious," Damea explained in a convoluted fashion. April frowned up at him.

“Do I look like an idiot to you?”

After an agonizingly slow passage of time which could not have lasted for more than several minutes, the operator released her clutch. Liberating Touya’s sparkling shiny and new form, April inspected the results with interest. Their proximity served as an effective wake-up call and Touya’s head lifted from her shoulder with near instant revulsion. Did he despise her that much? Catching her dismay, April lingered for a moment longer before slowly retaking her poise.

April spared Damea a cursory glance as she re-buckled her crossbow. “Explaining that to me before hand would’ve avoided this confusion,” she stated to him, stroking her bruised shoulders in the absence of Touya’s iron grip. In April’s eyes her actions were perfectly justified.

Touya regarded her carefully before turning his head to acknowledge the therian woman. He uttered a simple sentence, which April assumed to be a form of thanks, before she spoke in return. Probably to offer technical advice by inference of her response. Abruptly she looked towards April, switching languages to ensure that the human understood her.

"Do not allow him to engage his claws. If he does it he can undo all the work I've done for him, not to mention it won't be very pleasant. He should stay here for at least the rest of today so that I can keep an eye on the repairs. If I missed anything we'll know by tonight."

Whatever was said before that, Damea’s reaction was one of noticeable frustration. The mercenary stepped forwards to challenge Touya, and for a brief instance April’s breath hitched as swords were drawn.

"Val isn't going anywhere, he can wait for the rest of today. If we go after him right now and your hands are like that, there's no chance in hell that we can win against him. Here, I'll prove my point. Draw yours."

Touya’s defeat was instant. No match for the healthy sell sword, the therian toppled in an ungainly fashion after his sword flew from his fingers. Braided hair pooled across the ground as Touya clasped onto his bracers, paralyzed by pain and validating Damea’s concerns.

“Thank you. I’ll make sure of it, and I apologize for my behavior,” April bowed respectfully to Sheree, partly to admit to her error also. She smiled at the other woman after Touya stormed off and then pushed herself up, ignoring Damea’s hand.

“We can afford to rest for a day. We’ll stay here until Touya’s recovered, provided they permit it. I'd love to meet the children also,” April said, sighing at their recklessness.

---

“Eat up,” April offered as she brought Touya a bowl of food. Cooked fish from a nearby river. April had fumbled incompetently for a whole thirty minutes until a few local children deigned to help her.

“Such a close knit community would have been impossible in the city, I admit I’m jealous. In the same vein though, I miss my creature comforts,” she murmured, scratching the side of her cheek sheepishly. Of course, April was referring to alcohol at that point. Not that Touya needed to know.

Grunting as she bent down to take a seat across from him, April bathed in the crackling warmth of their camp fire. Situated along the outskirts of the Therian community, April had setup their own tent in anticipation of the encroaching darkness. Fortunately, the therians seemed tolerant enough to warrant the presence of April and Damea, though in the mercenary’s case his vibrant personality simply caused a reduction in productivity. Along with the sunset came everything associated with night life. A star dotted canvas replaced cloudy blue skies as homogenous chirpings echoed over the grassy patches that the plains largely comprised of. Carried by a cool breeze that pricked at the exposed portions of her face, April felt a sudden urge to huddle closer to the fire.

“How are the arms?” she inquired, rubbing her hands together vivaciously. Instinctive courtesy compelled her questions, but April pondered if reconciliation was possible between them at this stage. Clamping her fingers together, her blue gaze shifted to Touya.

That night was cool and he'd found himself out in the middle of the clan's village. He was stretched out across his side, leaning against one arm with one leg up and the other curled underneath it. The fire crackled before him, the heat of it washing across his face and body. He'd forgotten the feel of being amongst his own people in the past few weeks, having been in the presence of April for so long. April approached him then and sat down across from him on the other side of the fire after handing him a bowl of food.

“Eat up. Such a close knit community would have been impossible in the city, I admit I’m jealous. In the same vein though, I miss my creature comforts,” her voice found him.

Touya took the bowl and looked down into it. A cooked fish met his gaze and he took hold of the spoon that accompanied the bowl. He didn't answer her at first, only waited to take a bit before he regarded her. The food was good, warm in his mouth and stomach and he found himself enjoying it even more so than he used to.

"That is the way of our people," he answered her in regards to how the Therian's were so close to each other. He reached down and took another spoon full of the fish. He ate in silence, his eyes never raising to look at her. Behind them the children still ran in play, their parents rushing after them to eat and then the other Therian's finishing their preparations for the night. April voiced a question to him just as some of the community dropped in next to the fire as well. Touya's eyes lifted then to regard her and the others that surrounded them. Damea soon joined them, sitting next to Touya's head with a bowl of food as well.

“How are the arms?”

"Better," he replied and lifted one hand to look at it. Turning it around he let her see the work of Sheree. The metal was smooth once more and reflected the fire light before them. He pulled his hand down and took another bite of the food.

"Glad it's doing better my friend. We'll need you at full strength."

Touya gave a sharp sound at that and rolled his eyes. He didn't answer Damea and continued eating who grinned at him from the side. Suddenly, several of the children leapt into the ring. Two of them attacked Damea with silly war cries that Damea answered back in return and was up on his feet swinging them around as they clung to him. Touya looked up and shook his head slightly, though there was a faint smile on his lips. The other children latched onto April whether she wanted them too or not. Another child, a little girl with her blonde hair braided and pulled up into a tall pony tail fell down against Touya and leaned onto him. Her eyes were wild with laughter as she leaned towards him, cupped her hand in his direction and spoke to him in the common tongue.

"You're friend is very funny!" She announced.

Touya, willing to play the game with the child looked at her with a slight grin and replied, "How so?"

"She did not know how to handle the fish, or cook them properly. We had to show her! She dropped two of them too!" The girl's voice was high pitched as she reeled backwards and rolled against Talon's stomach and side. Her laughter was joined in by the other children who clung to April and Damea. Touya, unable to resist, laughed as well.

"That was partially your fault Ninia," Sheree chided as she came to sit down with them. The little girl giggled again and pushed off of Touya to go and sit by April.

"It was not!"

"I'm sure," Sheree answered the child. Touya shook his head, a smile on his lips as he took another bite of the food.

"Dance!" Ninia yelled then, the overly energetic girl got back on her feet and whirled around. Her feet moved at what would seem random to April but to Touya and the other Therian's was considered an old ritualistic dance. It was one of the few things they remembered, beautiful if done properly. Sheree laughed and patted the girls head.

"After we eat," she answered.

"Invashi," one of the men announced and stood. Several other Therian's stood as well as the elder woman approached their little circle, Touya moved to get up as well, but as the elder woman entered the circle she waved her hand at them all.

"Sit, eat. There is no need to do such things here," Invashi told them and took a seat as well. Touya resumed his position and finished his fish soon enough. He lay stretched out then, staring into the fire and occasionally throwing sticks into it, creating popping sounds.

"How old are you?" Ninia asked April, her eyes wide as she gazed up at the woman from her spot on the ground directly in front of the former soldier.

"Why is your hair braided like this?" Another asked and stood up behind April to play with her hair.

"You have pretty eyes," another continued and leaned against her leg. The children agreed with each other on this fact in their language, their voices humming together as she crowded around April. Touya looked up from the fire and watched, interested to see the woman's reaction. His lips were still in the faint smile that he'd had earlier.

"You are the center of their attention. Something new and shiny. Children..." Damea said with a laugh as he still held two of the children, one of which was asleep against him already.

"Come now, you're bothering our guest," Sheree said and Invashi laughed heartily as she leaned forward. Her wrinkled face caught the fire light and reflected in her eyes as she watched in amusement.

"No, let them. I wish to see what this woman will do," Invashi said in their own tongue. Touya glanced up to the elder and then back to April. He was interested as well. Maybe the children would do her some good, at least he hoped it would.

---

April Rosevolt

---

Upon taking her seat, April found herself instantly assailed by an army of miniature therians. A scrum of warm bodies pushed and tugged at her, grappling for attention. The relentless shoving disabled her utterly as April struggled not to spill her food. In an effort to surpass them, April used the one thing she had over them, height, and lifted the bowl far above her own head. Unfortunately, some seemed to take the sign as a challenge and the soldier was rapidly overwhelmed. Squirming to maintain herself upright, she offered an incredulous look up towards Damea, questioning how he dealt with such rabble. The mercenary had provided ample evidence all throughout the day with his competence in dealing with the therians, a secret he refused to share with her.

Splayed out across the fireplace, she noticed Touya observing her warily. With all the tension going on between them one could have mistaken brooding as a part of his nature. A giggling child stumbled upon him and April welcomed the lesser addition to her congregation. "You're friend is very funny!" she exclaimed in a fit of laughter to Touya. Their ability to speak dual languages stunned April the most, though their voices possessed a slight accent.

This finally seemed to lighten his mood and he responded by grinning at her mischievous dobbing. "How so?" he inquired, not knowing the details but obviously anticipating the nature of the little girl’s speech.

"She did not know how to handle the fish, or cook them properly. We had to show her! She dropped two of them too!"

Overhearing this, the children around April laughed in unison, their voices joined together in melodic chorus. April frowned, exploiting the momentary lull to safely relocate her bowl of food. “If there was an award for cooked rations, I assure you I would have it,” she muttered in petulance, her brows knitting together as they chuckled at her expanse.

Sheree, as the therian who repaired Touya's bracers had introduced herself to April, reprimanded the child for her jokes. Giggling in turn, the little girl hurried over to sit beside April. Her tiny legs kicked the dirt as she agitatedly sat on the log, bristling with excitement. The children around April continued to play and dance in the encroaching darkness, their joyous cackling filling the night air.

"Invashi."

April shifted her gaze around as a few figures parted to make way for an elderly woman. Just like in human society, elders here were often regarded as figureheads of wisdom and guidance. Throughout Damea’s tour, April had learnt that Invashi acted as some kind of chieftain. Her role was spiritual and concerned with the well being of her people, quite unlike the political or war leaders April more typically associated the title with. Smiling affectionately, Invashi lowered herself and joined them by the camp fire.

"Sit, eat. There is no need to do such things here."

Abruptly, tiny hands tugged at the corner of her sleeves once more, drawing her attention. The children coddled around her feet, some barely reaching her knees in height, and fondled April like she where some kind off a rare jewel. Caught between them, April gave up contending with the sheer volume of bodies and instead tried to hold still as best she could.

"How old are you?"

"Why is your hair braided like this?"

"You have pretty eyes."

"You are the center of their attention. Something new and shiny. Children..." Damea chuckled more, enjoying her awkward plight. April gave him a withering look in return, one which said ‘You’re no help at all’.

Their list of questions bombarded her in a stream of giggles, but April grinned amicably in return, already captured by their endearing personalities. Though their intense attraction to her was unfathomable. “Older that I’d like to admit,” she started, patting Ninia on the head. “And why is my hair like this? Well I keep it this way because my mother had the same hairstyle.”

The second answer was partly a lie, but April figured the real answer would be too boring for them. Prior to being a Lieutenant and receiving certain privileges, April had to handle the standard infantry uniform. A rather universal design to say the least. Stylizing her hair was her only expression of feminism. Over time, the braids developed into a part of her identity. “These eyes are also hers,” she smiled slightly, “Enough about boring old me though, tell me about you instead.”

“Older that I’d like to admit. And why is my hair like this? Well I keep it this way because my mother had the same hairstyle.”

Touya watched April from his spot across the fire as she answered the bombardment of questions. The children quieted down as she spoke to them and patted Ninia on the top of her head. His eyes lifted to look at her braided hair before falling back to her face as she continued.

“These eyes are also hers. Enough about boring old me though, tell me about you instead.”

The Therian had to admit that her eyes were quite attractive, a beautiful sharp blue that seemed to penetrate to one's deepest thoughts and core. Ninia giggled as she reached up and took hold of April's hand that patted her head. Touya looked down at the fire again and threw more of the sticks and little pieces of tinder into it that were nearby him. He only returned his gaze towards the group of children when they started talking again.

"I'm Ninia and I'm 9 years old. I'm learning how to cook from Sheree and help build fires and things like that!" She announced proudly.

"I'm Filiea, I'm 10 and I already know how to cook. I go fishing with my father sometimes, but I mostly have to help look after the other kids," another spoke up, this one was the one who had asked April about her hair.

"Zear, I'm 8 and I want to go hunting with Vorl and grow up big and strong like him too!" The third, a boy and also the one who had said that her eyes were pretty.

"And it is also time for all of you to sleep," Sheree called as she stood with her empty bowl. The children protested loudly like all little ones do.

Ninia rushed up to Sheree and looked up to her with begging eyes, "I want to sleep with Touya!"

Sheree sighed heavily and glanced over to Touya who smiled and nodded at her that it was alright with him, "Fine then. You can sleep with Touya."

Zear looked to Sheree and clung to April his eyes wide just like Ninia's, "I want to sleep with April!"

"Oh goodness... Zear," Sheree exhaled as she leveled her gaze at the young boy. Touya laughed softly and rested his head against his hand as Ninia came and plopped down right next to him.

"If April doesn't wish to have him, he can sleep with me as well," Touya offered. Sheree shook her head, though her lips were upturned in amusement.

"I should have known they would have wanted to. Alright fine, you two can stay but the rest of you off to bed," Sheree said and began ushering the children away from the large campfire in the center of the village. Ninia stretched out across the ground with Touya and settled against his chest. He reached down with his other hand and brushed her hair aside, then ran his fingers across her face to put her to sleep. It didn't take long until the little Therian girl was asleep. Zear had fallen against April's side and was also asleep the moment his head hit her arm.

"These children," Invashi started in the common tongue so that April could understand as well, this caught Touya's attention, "They've no parents." It was quiet at the campfire, only Damea, Touya, April, Invashi and the children remained with them.

"What happened?" Touya asked, his voice tight as he spoke. His fingers had stopped caressing the girls face and his other hand had tightened in his hair as he went rigid. Next to him, Damea adjusted his body, both children fast asleep in each arm as he leaned against the logs that had served as their seats.

"They were killed a few months ago. Ninia lost her mother and father when they ventured into a town to try to trade. We don't know the details, but we never found their bodies. I suspect they were ambushed by the residents of the town and killed there. Zear lost his mother before we had left our own world, but his father was killed by soldiers simply because he'd passed through town. The two that Damea holds are brother and sister and their parents died as well. Who killed them remains a mystery, though we have our suspicions. Since then, myself along with Vorl and Sheree have worked hard to be the parent figures to them. They know that their parents are gone, though, and will never come back to them."

Touya's heart was tight in his chest as he listened to the Invashi tell the story of the children's terrible loss. He shook slightly and it took all of his control to stay still so that he wouldn't wake Ninia. His pale blue eyes were like ice as they stared at the fire, glaring at it with such intensity one would have thought the fire could have died out from it. After a moment he closed his eyes and took a deep breath to steady himself. There was a burn at the edge of his eyes and he fought it back as he lay there with the child against him.

"I tell this story because it is something that one needs to know," Invashi continued after a moment of silence, "It is needing to be told to many others. I tell it also because there is a need to stop this from continuing, and there are a few ways to do this," the elder woman shifted as she leaned forward to gain more warmth from the fire. Touya opened his eyes and looked over to her.

"Val is our biggest problem. He threatens the entire Therian race because of his rash actions. We need to talk sense into him."

"I've tried. He will not listen to reason," Touya said coldly.

"Then you must try harder, Havantha. If you wish to gain more relationships like the ones you hold here, then you must try harder."

Touya was silent for a moment before he nodded his head, "Yes, Invashi."

"The other way to keep these losses from happening is for more humans and elves to have a change of heart. It starts small. Damea found us and has worked his way through cities and towns trying to spread the word of our people, to change peoples minds. He has had some success, and we've had some visitors who have ventured from their towns to see what it was he spoke about. But you can do more, all three of you together," Invashi took a small breath then and stood giving a slight groan as she moved her aged and weathered body, "That is all I can impart to you three. Your ties to each other will be what changes things. Don't lose it to petty squabbles and other unimportant things. Now, go sleep. I am to presume you're leaving in the morning?"

Touya dipped his head forward as he sighed, "I didn't think you would know. Yes, we'll leave in the morning."

"I figured. You are young and reckless, Touya," Invashi turned and looked at April, "You would do him some good. A pretty woman such as yourself. Don't let him do anything stupid," the elder Therian commented and then disappeared into the darkness. Touya couldn't lift his gaze to meet April's after what was said and stared at the fire in embarrassment. Damea on the other hand laughed, earning a sharp glare from Touya. The Therian stood then and gathered Ninia into his arms. The girl never stirred as she was moved.

"Goodnight," he muttered and also disappeared into the darkness to find his way to the tent that April had put up. He figured sleeping there would be easier since they were going to leave early and he did not wish to wake anyone else. Sheree was sure to be angry with him, but he didn't mind. He stretched out across the ground and tucked Ninia next to him. There was no fear of his hurting her for he didn't move in his sleep. After a moment of staring up into the darkness, he closed his eyes and rested.

---

April Rosevolt

---

Taking their names to heart, April grinned stupidly. Releasing a slight squeak of delight, the former soldier could barely resist the urge to cuddle them together. Something about their childish proportions both amused and excited her, a notion she knew that Damea would never let go.

“Ninia, Filiea and Zear. I’ll remember that!” April replied, beaming.

"And it is also time for all of you to sleep," Sheree commanded, extracting mutual groans of disapproval from all the children.

Despite Sheree’s authoritarian order, two of the children successfully outwitted the older woman. By clinging tightly against Touya and April, Ninia and Zear were able to catch a few moments more freedom, escaping the watchful gaze of the adults. April thought that allowing Ninia to stay behind in the first place set an awful precedence, one which was inevitably followed by Zear. Fortunately the matter was trivial, so she said nothing further on the matter. The children each went to their corresponding partners and were dozing off within seconds. Their heads nodded up and down, caught in the state of semi-consciousness where sleep becomes unwelcome to a lucid mind. So light was Zear that April could hardly feel his weight up against her arm.

Musical chirpings quickly replaced the childish laughter, along with the crack-pop of kindling as wood vaporized to heat. The moon’s gradual rise towards the west indicated that night had matured, progressing into stages no man had the right to be awake in. When only their entourage and Invashi remained, the elder woman spoke up for the first time in a while. Clearing her parched throat, they all looked to her as she started.

"These children. They've no parents."

A moment passed as Invashi allowed the shock to sink in. The elder woman had switched to the common language again, likely for April's sake. She glanced down at Zear, pondering his circumstances. Their loneliness was oddly relatable in certain respects. Similar tragedies occurred to April at a similar age, the most striking of which was the death of her mother.

"What happened?" ask Touya, his voice hardening.

April experienced a sick feeling of anticipation, a hunch that she knew what Invashi’s answer would be. Frowning, the elder woman spoke at length, "They were killed a few months ago. Ninia lost her mother and father when they ventured into a town to try to trade. We don't know the details, but we never found their bodies. I suspect they were ambushed by the residents of the town and killed there. Zear lost his mother before we had left our own world, but his father was killed by soldiers simply because he'd passed through town. The two that Damea holds are brother and sister and their parents died as well. Who killed them remains a mystery, though we have our suspicions. Since then, myself along with Vorl and Sheree have worked hard to be the parent figures to them. They know that their parents are gone, though, and will never come back to them."

The keen sense of loss was hard to ignore. Senseless violence was tragedy no matter how you span it. War was like that, visceral, brutal and often irrational. She had seen hundreds of good people die before her, hundreds of fair honest folk, her own company included. April also knew that peace was a pipe dream however. Elves, humans, therians, everyone was subject to ambition, greed and prejudice. So why did she fight then? Because deep down April wanted to believe that the majority of people were decent.

Returning her focus to the conversation, April realized she missed a portion of it during her musings when Touya spoke up again. Deducing where the discussion had segwayed, April was far from agreeable.

"That is all I can impart to you three. Your ties to each other will be what changes things. Don't lose it to petty squabbles and other unimportant things. Now, go sleep. I am to presume you're leaving in the morning?"

“You’re mistaken mam if you think I’ve come this far just to talk,” April interjected politely but firmly, “You don’t just slaughter close to fifty soldiers and find redemption. This Val isn’t going to change his wa-”

"I didn't think you would know. Yes, we'll leave in the morning," Touya responded, cutting her off with a sigh.

"I figured. You are young and reckless, Touya. You would do him some good. A pretty woman such as yourself. Don't let him do anything stupid,"

April almost fell over Zear at the suggested implications of Invashi’s statement. Growing flustered as she entertained the thought, her gaze flitted in the space between Touya and her.

“A therian and human? How woul…does that even work?” she stammered. Invashi faded into darkness before April had the chance to cause further humiliation. Not that sentiment seemed likely; April doubted Touya was capable of harboring any romantic feelings towards her.

Whatever his thoughts on the subject, Touya stood up and brushed himself off. Retreating to the familiar premises of their tent, he took Ninia with him, cradling her affectionately. “I suppose that’s a sign for us to head off also,” April murmured, peeking at Zear.

"Are we going back to Creeid?"

"Yes, it is close by and we need to restock our supplies and give them what we've acquired. The more technology they have the better. Gretta can see to it that the technology is advanced further. That will help us in the long run. Once we've done this we will leave and head to the nearest city. We must find out more about this new technology that these humans are creating."

"Would you like some of us to scout the cities while you and the rest take the technology back to Creeid?" Another asked. Val stood then after gathering up his equipment. Sheathing his sword he looked out among the group of Therian's that he'd called together.

"It would help to make things go faster. But only four of you should go. Do not get separated from each other. Two to each city and be quick, do not linger any longer than you need to. Do not start any fighting also, that will come later. You're strictly to listen and observe, find out as much as you can and report back to us in Creeid. We'll move again once we have more information."

There was a chorus of agreement amongst the men and the camp of about thirty or so Therian's was in motion within the hour. They would reach the forest of Creeid later that day. Val on the other hand, had his thoughts deep on what kind of technology that these human's could have gotten their hands on that would have helped them to create such machines as to experiment on Therian's and tear them apart so that they could build being just like them. It sickened him to think that the human's would bend to such degrees because of their hatred and fear of his kind.

Thus it only helped to strengthen his hatred for them. He despised their ways, their thoughts and how they did things. They had no honor, no power and no strength within themselves. They were nothing compared to the Therian's. Val glowered at the horizon where they were headed, the hills blocking his view of the forests where he called home. He couldn't wait to see the destruction of the human world to build a home for his own people without fear of prejudice and death.



"Your armor," Sheree announced as she walked up to Touya who was finishing getting ready for their journey. His hair was re-braided his swords sheathed against his lower back and all that was missing was his armor. She handed him the mass of metal that would cover his shoulders and upper chest.

"Thank you, Havanthii," he said to her and took it from her. He began putting it on, being as quiet as he could in the middle of the camp that was near silent as most everyone were still sleeping. It was still several hours walk to the forest of Creeid where he would be leading April. Sheree watched him as he dressed, a strange look in her eyes. Touya flicked his gaze over to her and frowned which prompted her to speak.

"You're going to Val again, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"There are children there."

"I know," Touya sighed.

"Please, don't let any harm come to them."

"I won't, even if it costs me my life. I'm only after Val, no one else."

"And your friend?" She inquired, speaking about April.

"The same," he told her, confident on that issue. Having seen April with the Therian children the night before his earlier worries had been answered. Even so, he wished that Reginald were with them to help keep the woman in check. It seemed she listened to him more than anyone else.

Sheree sighed in relief, "I wish you well. Please, do your best to stop him. Invashi may wish for you to speak to him, but I..." Sheree's eyes shifted to look around before she continued, "I wish for you to kill him."

Touya's eyebrow lifted as he regarded her, having finished putting his armor on, he crossed his arms over his chest and faced her directly, "Why?"

"He killed my husband."

Touya's heart skipped a beat and his eyes widened in shock, "Val... killed another Therian?" He let out a breath of irritation and his eyes narrowed. Of course it wasn't too shocking, really, Val had tried to kill him twice already. If anyone stood in that man's way of getting what he wanted they were killed. It didn't matter if they were human or not.

"Please... bring my husband justice, only then will he rest in peace in Thriy."

"I will. Your husband will walk the halls of Thriy without worry when I find Val again," Touya said to her. He leaned forward and put his hands on either side of her head. He touched her forehead with his own and held them there for a while before releasing her.

"Thank you."

Touya nodded and turned away. Damea waited patiently for him, "Ready to go?"

"Yes, is April?"

"She's always ready," Damea grinned, "You know, about what Invashi said last night..." Damea looked to continue but upon seeing the look on Touya's face he quickly stopped right there. The Therian was not amused by the thought in the least and his narrowed eyes told the fire mage so, "Alright, sorry. I won't speak of it again."

"Thank you, now lets go."

---

The trip to Creeid was uneventful for the most part. They only stopped once to eat, Touya quiet as always and Damea seemingly to ramble on about nothing. Although, the Therian had to admit, Damea knew quite a bit about his kin's culture and beliefs. Damea was mostly talking to April about the Therian's, telling her about their culture and religion. When he got on the subject of Thriy, Touya's thoughts went back to Sheree and her dead husband. Damea explained to April that Thriy was a place of resting for those that had died. There were many rooms and halls in the palace and there was always room for everyone that joined their God's. Touya had added that it also included humans and elves if they so wished to believe. Even so, he was certain that April didn't believe, nor would she ever.

He was drawn out of his thoughts as they got closer to the forest, a sharp feeling protruding through his thoughts. He had felt it before when they were searching for the clan they just left that morning, albeit the feeling was a bit different, altered if you would. He stopped in his steps and looked about the open field quickly. Next to him, Damea stopped as well and peered out into the wild growing green grass.

"What is it?" The fire mage asked, "Is it... him?"

"Yes," Touya growled in response and started forward again. If he felt Val's presence, he was sure the other Therian knew he was there as well. It didn't take him long to find the man and his group of Therian's. He was leading a fairly large company and they were heading towards Touya and his two companions.

"Che, I figured this would happen."

"There're too many, Touya... this isn't going to be easy."

Better than being in the forest... Touya thought, thinking of the children there that were innocent throughout the entire ordeal. He didn't budge as he knew that Val had spotted them almost the same time that Touya had spotted him. Touya reached back behind his back and gripped both swords. Drawing them he snapped them open and along with those blades, he activated the ones along his arms. He still couldn't draw his claws, but what he had would be enough.

"You're not going to try talking first?" Damea asked, a bit surprised at the show of hostility so soon.

"There is no need. You must have heard Sheree."

"I did."

"Then you know why, Damea."

"How low of you to bring two humans with you, Touya. I thought you learned your lesson about their ways when I sent you off to the city wounded as you were," Val called to him as him and his company of Therian's stopped a couple hundred feet from Touya.

"You are the one that needs to have your eyes opened," Touya growled back.

"Then why don't you try opening them," Val's voice growled as he drew his weapon and his body glowed with his energy and power. Touya followed suit, gathering all of his own power that he'd regained in the past several days. His body glowed brightly, a brilliant silver that made him look unearthly. His hair rose slightly from his back and flipped about wildly by the pure energy that engulfed him.

"Both of you stay here," Touya ordered and then leaned forward. His body seemed to fly across the distance because of his magic as he shoved off the ground and rushed Val. The other Therian did the same and when they collided the air between them exploded outwards and the dirt kicked up around them, expelled outwards with the rush of wind. Steel struck against each other in successive blows that rang out continuously across the plains.

Touya had been holding his own fairly well, his body moving fluidly around with Val as they fought. If he could avoid using his blades in anyway that required him to push aside Val's weapons, he exploited it and backed off before coming back in to swipe at Val. He'd managed to get a few hits on the Therian and would have done more had the man not turned suddenly and extended his sword towards someone else that Touya had not seen or noticed.

He looked in the direction of where Val was aiming and his heart jumped to his throat. The Therian's target was April. Touya moved then just as Val let loose his energy in one powerful strike. The amount of power that Val unleashed would kill a human the moment it touched them, so without thinking, Touya threw himself in the direction of the attack. The air crackled with the pure energy that rushed across the plains. Unable to block it any other way, he took the hit directly rather than let it hit April. Every muscle locked from the attack, his body bending backwards before he collapsed onto the ground.

"Now why did you do that, Touya?" Val asked, his voice obviously angered. The Therian came to stand over Touya's prone body that crackled from the lingering power. Val lifted his sword over Touya and brought it down to run him through with it, but Touya managed to move his arm finally and knock the blade away from him.

He rolled to his side and got to his feet to face Val once more. Damea appeared next to him and Touya felt anger rising in the back of his throat because the fire mage had not listened to his request earlier, "Are you alright?"

"Fine, don't touch me," Touya snapped as Damea reached for him. Then he softened his voice as Damea recoiled from him, "His power will hurt you still as it lingers on me."

Damea nodded slowly and turned to look to Val. The Therian flipped his blade and glowered at them. Touya's breathing was labored at the magic continued to assault him, making it hard to stay standing. The sharpness of his power would crackle along his lithe frame every so often making him wince and shudder each time. It wouldn't last long, but it would be long enough to give Val the advantage then. Touya growled to himself in anger.

"Why don't you entertain me for a while?" Val offered, a cruel smile on his lips as he looked between the three of them. Several of his own men stepped forward but Val put his hands out and glowered at them, "Don't interfere," he ordered them. Touya adjusted his own swords and tried to straighten again. He knew that if any magic were to be tossed at either April or Damea he would do what he could to deflect it, or take it himself. He could handle the attacks far better then either of his human companions. With that in mind, he lunged at Val again, this time leading with a flash of power and his swords following after.

---

April Rosevolt

---

The rising sun embraced their intrepid activity, filtering out the dark shadows with warm luminance that lighted the way. Sheree had been the only therian awake to see them off prior to their journey. Her well wishes was likely the last opportunity to engage in civilized discussion before descending into whatever awaited them in Creeid. Reflecting on her experiences with the nomadic tribe, April was satisfied in the end. Meeting them personally allowed her to clarify the lingering doubts that had plagued her the entire trip.

They trudged onwards, up to their waists in grass. To this extent, April was glad for the loss of her armor. Travelling in such conditions whilst hefting its considerable bulk would have been debilitating. Even now her brow was caked with a sheen of sweat, resulting in a messy array of blonde hair that clung to face. Logically, Touya led the way. His existing knowledge of the landscape and the enhanced senses provided to by his therian heredity maximized their chances of locating the rebel therians. If possible, April was hoping to spend a few days monitoring their activity. That way she could plan out an appropriate offensive.

Damea chatted relentlessly throughout the entire hike. The mercenary’s nonchalance was quickly beginning to grate against her levels of tolerance. He continued at length, extrapolating on about the therian’s religious culture and beliefs. Most notable was their spiritual graveyard for the dead, the Thriy, which Damea described with needless enthusiasm. Inevitably, April started to draw comparisons between their cultures. Religion was also rife among humans. People liked to believe a higher power watched over them, benevolent and kind. Cults and numerous sects of all kinds existed, each one dedicated to a different deity or teaching. Even among their own beliefs, her people were divided. Wondering if the therians were the same, she frowned as they continued to wade through the wild grass.

Eventually, the feral tufts of green grass began to decline in density. It made progression noticeably easier and April guessed that they were on the precipice off reaching another clearing. At the head of their entourage, Touya paused with sudden apprehension. Silence replaced their footsteps as the whole party ground to a strained halt.

April looked around in kind, mimicking the actions of her partners. Scanning the horizon with her cutting blue gaze, she lowered her body ever so slightly, attempting to blend in with her surroundings.

"What is it? Is it... him?" Touya asked, voicing the question on all of their minds.

Touya responded with a low growl, indicating that their quarry was indeed close. Or perhaps the rebels were hunting for them instead. April’s senses shot up in a heightened state of alarm. This was too early, far too early to be caught in such an engagement. That was without even mentioning their horribly exposed positions and underwhelming numbers. Growing exasperate, April’s hands instinctively sunk to her weapons, unbuckling the crossbow that stuck to her waist.

“This is too soon!” she hissed, desperate to get both their attentions. “We need to retreat and adjust our approach! We can’t risk a head on conflict!”

Horror spread over her features as Damea and Touya seemed to ignore her. Was she the only one frightened here? The fear spread to her fingers and she found it difficult to locate her cross bolt in front of its string. Fumbling with a curse, she finally positioned the bolt in time for the fateful meeting.

"You're not going to try talking first?" Damea asked stupidly, as if the possibility ever existed. Even if it did, the therian rebel would never agree to it now given the racial background of Touya’s companions.

"There is no need. You must have heard Sheree." Touya replied. On that part April could easily agree.

Val and his rebels stopped just over a hundred feet from their position. Without even needing to look, the rebel leader smirked and called them out. The charade was over. "How low of you to bring two humans with you, Touya. I thought you learned your lesson about their ways when I sent you off to the city wounded as you were," he hollered.

“Oh no,” April grimaced, counting the numbers against them. Over three to one. Her shoulders sank in a gesture of defeat, a hollow feeling of acceptance growing inside of her mind. With no place to run or hide, April was certain that their fates were sealed.

Likewise realizing the game was up, Touya prepared his weapons and stepped forwards. They snapped outwards in their signature fashion, but something else was amiss. A silver glow, faint at first but quickly growing to encompass his entire body, engulfed Touya. April stared at him with a measure of stunned amazement.

"Both of you stay here,"

“Touya! Wait dammit! Don’t just rush in!” April said.

Her words lost on him, Touya lunged towards his counterpart. Their dual was a staggering sight to behold. In seconds they cleared the distance between them, clashing midway in an explosion of displacing air. Dirt, grass and rocks spiraled over the ground, peppering the surface with uprooted material. Blades glittered as both warriors plied their deadly trade, each one seeking to undo the other. A calculated stab here, a thrust overhead, each move was aimed at finding that vital chink in their opponent’s defenses. Touya laid in on the rebel, landing a series of shallow blows. His accomplishments rekindled her hopes but the tables were turned abruptly.

Noticing a sword had been pointed at her, the rebel’s intentions were resoundingly clear. The congregation of crackling energy prompted her to duck and find cover. April dove to the side, hoping to avoid the discharge of whatever had been shot at her. Shockingly, it never came. Peering out, April spotted Touya prone, incapacitated by dancing particles of electricity. Had he shielded her?

"Now why did you do that, Touya?" Val said, admonishing the therian’s actions.

April rolled over and climbed up, gritting her teeth. This is exactly why she wanted to retreat.

"Why don't you entertain me for a while?" beckoned the rebel leader. He motioned to the three of them daringly, hedging his bets. Without thought, Touya charged in again. Unable to effectively aim her crossbow with his presence so close to Val's, April reach into her backpack. Producing a cylindrical device in her hands, she cranked the top and rushed forwards.

“Clear out! Fire in the hole!”

What she pretended was a highly explosive was in actual fact an identical dud of the bomb used on their carriage. April just wanted to throw the therians off guard. She tossed the object, landing it deftly between them, and followed up by aiming her crossbow at Val’s chest. Imbued with her air magic, the bolt whipped out, faster than the eye could see. Without even waiting to see her results, April dropped her crossbow before leaping in with a flurry of sword strikes.

---

Miles Riverbend

---

"Eugh, okay. Hold up one second mate," Miles complained, plopping down to lean against a boulder. He removed his right boot and shook the pebble out, "Little blighter has been a sore spot the entire trip."

"There is no time to delay Mr Riverbend," wheezed his companion. Miles could scarcely contain his eye roll. One would have thought that five nights and days was enough to familiarize yourself with the scientist's chronic breathing disorder, but alas it is not. "My lab awaits my experiments. Without me there to manage the staff, productivity has dropped by fifteen point two percent, an unacceptable decline"

Pulling his shoe over his foot, Miles cursed the name of Victor Hawthorn for setting him up. Guard duty was below him, and yet, such menial tasks were a daily occurrence in his occupation. Ever since his promotion after the last Great War, Miles' duties consisted off nothing but tedious ceremonies and guard positions. Not that he disliked the luxury, quite the opposite actually, but more often than not Miles found himself twiddling with his hands in his pockets, bored. This recent assignment in particular was pushing the limits of his patience. Tasked with fulfilling a role Miles thought better suited to the detectives and city watch, he had spent the last few days shofering around an old goat who by no rights should still be alive. It was time he would have preferred enjoying himself.

Not that Miles particularly delighted in fighting either. He was quite the opposite from that sadistic warden. Miles had already seen his fair share of war, and everything it had to offer. Born to the famous house of Riverbend, Miles' life was determined the moment his mother spat him out from her womb. Promised a military career and the harshest education the city had to offer, his entire life was dictated like that.

"Forgive me, but a man needs a rest and every now and again," Miles remarked, slapping his knee before standing up, "You know, you still haven't told me anything about this investigation of yours. After all this snooping around for faceless, one can't help but to be a little suspicious."

"It's all classified," wheezed the scientist, his expression behind the mask unreadable. "Rest assured Mr Riverbend, Victor Hawthorn has personally approved of our plan. We work in the name of humanity."

“Clear out! Fire in the hole!”

Touya was startled at the cry behind him. What the hell was she talking about? He turned for just a moment to see April throw something between him and Val. The Therian quickly stepped backwards, unsure of what it was that she'd done. He batted aside Val's swinging blades as he went and winced yet again as the pure energy assaulted his frame. A split second after he moved a sharp sound filled the air and Touya was surprised to see Val stumbled backwards. Protruding from his shoulder was a crossbow bolt and a bit of crimson began to trickle down his chest and side.

Val reached up and snapped the bolt off, the tip still embedded in his shoulder. His glare was now directed back at April and Touya once again felt the chill of dread clutching his heart. He took a few steps forward to try to stop her and engage Val once more, but the magic that Val had thrown took him down once again. The dancing light of electricity brought him to the ground and he couldn't get back up again for a few moments.

"April!" Damea's shout lifted Touya's head to see what had happened.

Val had met her head on as she'd run in with her sword swinging. Touya admitted that she was fast and well versed in her swordplay, but she was no match for a Therian such as Val. Her blade was knocked upwards as it came back for a third strike and Val thrust outwards to try to kill her. Touya found his strength then and lunged forward. Steel scrapped once more and he was right between April and Val. Damea jumped into the fray as well and swung both of his own weapons, his body maneuvering them in such a way that Touya thought it looked slightly familiar. He wondered briefly if some of the Therian warriors had given him some training in regards to how to wield a sword.

Not that it mattered right then. Val twisted away from both Damea and Touya, quickly back pedaling to miss their attacks. The rebel Therian grinned at them as both men had jumped in to protect the woman. He wiped at his face with the back of his hand as his eyes shifted from one to the other, "You're interesting, Touya. I wonder why you're so insistent to help those humans. She looks familiar. Wasn't she the one who was taking you to her leaders a while ago? Wasn't she taking you to your death? Why do you protect someone who wishes for you to die?"

"It doesn't matter. I only wish to stop you."

"Useless. I doubt she really cares all that much for you. Maybe she just wants to keep you alive long enough so that she can enact revenge on me for destroying her unit of soldiers. She'll dispose of you right after, I'll have you know."

"The only one whose going to be disposed of is you," Damea shot back. Touya hissed at him, glaring at the fire mage. Damea ignored it and stared right at the Therian without fail. Touya groaned softly then, doubling over slightly. Val's magic was still there, but it was beginning to fade finally. It wasn't nearly as potent as it had been before.

"Seem's you're recovering. Come, Touya. Show me how much your resolve means to you, or risk losing both of those that stand next to you. I assure you that once I've killed you they will run without care for you and as they run, I'll hunt them down."

Touya's eyes narrowed his magic curled around him in response to Val's threat. The energy lashed out at Val and Touya followed it again. He leapt forward his blades swinging as Damea followed. The fire mage added his own speed and agility to the fight and thus put Val into the defensive. Val turned on Damea quickly, dislodging from Touya just enough to send a blast of magic at the fire mage. Damea was thrown backwards off his feet and rolled in the grass some distance away. Touya lunged forward, rage pouring from him as his friend was knocked away. He feared that Damea wouldn't ever get back up again from that hit.

Val turned, striking at Touya hard and fast. His blade cut across Touya's upper arm and the other was just barely directed away from his body. Touya allowed Val to get in close to him before slashing outwards with both his sword and the blades along his forearms. Val hissed in pain as Touya cut into him finally and the Therian backed off just slightly. Val lunged passed Touya and aimed for April again. Touya knew that the Therian was going for the two human's purposely. If he were able to harm them or kill them, Touya would lose his rational thinking and go into a frenzy which would assure Val's win.

Touya followed him quickly, going after him just as he chased after April. He slashed his swords at Val's back just as the man struck out at the woman. Touya couldn't see if he hit her or not, and could only hope that she'd managed to block the blow as best she could. Touya pressed his blades up against Val's throat and chest, one arm over Val's shoulder the other under his arm as he finally closed the distance between them. Val dropped his sword and in one motion to counter Touya's attack, thrust his arm backwards. The blades that had extended from Val's forearm cut deep into Touya's side, making large holes along his body and drenching his clothes in blood. Touya's voice cried out the moment he felt the three blades sink deep into his flesh.

Val ripped his arm out of Touya and whirled around. A sharp kick sent the Therian to the ground as he gasped for air. As Val started to come down for a final blow, the grass around his feet ignited. Touya, blinded by pain, barely registered that Damea was the one who must have created it. How, though, was beyond him at the moment. Perhaps the fire mage had started a spark in the grass and worked from that. Touya's hand clutched the wounds that threatened to leave him on the ground and bleeding out. Val took several steps backwards as the fire grew larger and began to encircle him.

Damea worked his magic from a distance, forcing Val to go back to his people and then raised a wall of fire between the two parties. The fire mage rushed over to Touya and dropped next to him. He pressed his hands against the bleeding and helped Touya to sit up, "I'm sorry I took so long, I couldn't get a spark to take to the grass."

"It's fine," Touya managed to croak out, "I'm more worried about you two."

"Fine, just fine. He hardly grazed me," Damea said quickly, though his body said differently. The fire mage was obviously hurt, there were blood stains along the front of his shirt telling of cuts that had been given to him when Val had struck him with the magic. Damea leaned down further and wrapped his arms around Touya's body. He lifted him up and onto his feet as quickly as he could. Touya groaned as he got up and glanced behind him. The wall of flames was doing its job at keeping Val from them.

"Come on, this was a bad idea... Lets get as far from here as we can, my fire won't keep them away forever," Damea said softly, a faint blush on his face as he was obviously embarrassed about something. Touya felt guilt in his stomach as April's earlier words came to mind. He hadn't listened to her at all and almost got all three of them killed. He certainly was a fool.

---

---

She drove in ferociously, thrusting her sword out of pure survival instincts. Fight or die. That’s what her mother had told her. Planning to end the therian’s life while he reeled back from her cross bolt, April’s intentions were utterly squashed. Regarding the bolt in his shoulder, Val snapped of stem, discarding the end like some minor inconvenience before lunging at her.

Impossible. Most men would be screaming in agony, forget about swinging a sword. Yet Val defended her strikes impeccably, meeting her head on without pause. Her soul trembled as it dawned on her just how outmatched she was in terms of skill. April had always trained of course. Pride in one’s own abilities was vital to success, but that was only a portion of her fighting skill. The error was glaringly obvious, she had underestimated Val, and now she was about to pay for it. On the third swing her blade was deflected. The recoil of their weapons sent her arm flying, leaving her core dreadfully exposed to his sweeping strike.

“You monster,” she snarled.

For the second time that day Touya intervened, saving her life. April reared back in astonishment and self-loathing. How pathetic of her. Fortunately both Damea and Touya picked up on her slack and brought their assault to bear. Sensing their numbers would work against him, Val span away on deft feet, dodging the incoming blades with precise maneuvers. Shielded behind both men now, April released a deep sigh, welcoming the chance to compose her nerves. Expecting another attack, she withdrew her mace, dual wielding. Val apparently had other ideas. Securing his distance between them, his gaze swept over their team.

"You're interesting, Touya. I wonder why you're so insistent to help those humans. She looks familiar. Wasn't she the one who was taking you to her leaders a while ago? Wasn't she taking you to your death? Why do you protect someone who wishes for you to die?" Val said, somehow possessing the audacity to chat mid-battle. April only knew of a few select individuals in all of the empire who could afford such nonchalant attitudes, and even they rarely did so in battle.

"It doesn't matter. I only wish to stop you."

"Useless. I doubt she really cares all that much for you. Maybe she just wants to keep you alive long enough so that she can enact revenge on me for destroying her unit of soldiers. She'll dispose of you right after, I'll have you know."

Grounding her teeth over, April bristled with barely contained fury. Did he simply not consider them a viable threat? The insult to April and her company left a sore spot in her heart. Worst of all was the realization that she was in no state to stand up to Val. Glancing over at her crossbow in the dirt, she counted the distance between them. Ten? Maybe fifteen feet? In that time Val could order his men to turn her into a pin cushion. The only thing which had kept them alive so far was Val’s over confidence, did she dare threaten it?

"The only one whose going to be disposed of is you," Damea returned rather petulantly. For such a colorful mercenary, his vocabulary was woefully deplorable. It did the job though and Touya and Damea both leapt charged with renewed vigor.

Their combined strengths, though admirable, were not enough to break the rebel’s defenses. Damea was the first to go as the air was pumped full of magic. The blast dislodged the mercenary completely before propelling the man several feet over the barren earth. Seeing this inspired Touya to fight evermore fervently. Closing in, his claws shot out, extracting tendrils of red liquid from Val. Stumbling back from the blow, the rebel snarled and then circled around, heading in her direction.

“Just like a predator,” April sneered, sniffing as her legs spread out to adopt a defensive posture.

Val assailed her with a horizontal cleave aimed at her midriff. The blow would have disemboweled her entirely but April had the advantage of preparation. She swung out, countering the stroke with all of her might. Reverberations ran along the entire length of her arm, jarring her bones as she strained to hold Val’s twin swords in place. It felt like an immense pressure had been applied to her hands, one that could crush her in an instants notice.

Touya materialized behind Val, attempting to deliver a fatal blow. April gasped as the weight was lifted from her. The therians grappled for dominance until one yelped out in defeat. Crumbling to floor, Touya‘s body flattened the grass beneath him as blood gushed out from his side. April paused mid-swing as the grass caught on fire, the heat reaching her first before the smell did. It grew into a raging inferno instantly, feeding on the dried pasture beneath it.

“Oh balls,” she cussed, fretting over their latest predicament, “We need to leave! Now!”

April hesitated when hurrying over to where Damea supported Touya, her legs freezing mid-way. They needed to retreat and recuperate someplace where they could hide from the rebels, the problem was, where? Nothing was preventing Val from sending another hunting party, and if tracking for them was as easy as it was for Touya tracking the therian tribe, what then would they do? As long as Touya was around, they would be able to sense him.

The flames roared closer, encroaching on dangerous territory now. She felt her reservations growing, fueled by the boiling temperature. Abandon the others to pursue her revenge? Or stay and help?

April did something then she never expected herself to do. Starting with a backpedal, her reroute quickly evolved into a run. April ran with her back turned, not daring to look at their expressions of betrayal.

She ran, directionless, until her feet gave away and collapsed from under her. Panting, she stared down at the earth whilst her heart pounded against the extremities of her rib-cage. Touya was right, she was untrustworthy. No, she was worse than that. Who repays someone that saved their lives with a back-stab? In a moment of panic she had abandoned them both to Val, all for petty revenge.

April rolled on to her back, raising a hand to shield her tears from the sun. What had she done?

"Miss Rosevolt. Fancy finding you out here."

---

---

In the ensuing panic there was little time to consider the implications of everything. Before Damea and Touya were two options, yet fate chose to intervene then. Emerging out of nowhere, a business man with red hair and formal attire waltzed by. Nonsensically, he held an umbrella, despite the fires and complete lack of rain. Pausing upon seeing Damea and Touya, his eyes widened ever so slightly, as if he had just bumped into a friend on a street.

"Oh my, good day chaps!" he exclaimed, though the voice was muffled by the green gas mask securing his mouth, "Where you about to head in that direction perhaps?"

With his free hand he pointed in the direction April was last seen fleeing towards. "Well, if you were, I regret to inform you that a terrible storm is heading here from that direction," the man said before jerking his thumb in the opposite way to Creeid forest. His gestures compelled them to look at the vicinity he designated. "I'd avoid the forest especially, forest storms are particularly volatile this time of the year. My humble advice is, run while you can."

By the time they looked back, the man had disappeared without leaving a trace. On the other hand they could now hear the faint marching of hundreds of footsteps approaching the plains. They came to a resounding halt and were swiftly followed by the roar of gunpowder discharge.

The human army had commenced their bombardment of Creeid forest.

---

William Benedict

---

The former lieutenant had barely spoken a word since they found her. William resided over her in his command tent, alone. Out of courtesy he offered her a hot mug of black weed, the chosen poison among the men of the 42nd Legion. Hot, bitter and rotten in taste, it served as a surprisingly invigorating energy drink, particularly on cold days.

“So?” she muttered at last, drawing circles around the rim of her mug. Watching her fidget, William frowned at her lack of composure. The last time they met was several weeks ago, during the terrorist incident as his men carried the Lieutenant to a hospital ward.

“So what?” he said, leaning against work desk. Upon it was topographical map arrayed with numerous tiny blue and red flags. The flags highlighted likely enemy positions, as well the movement of the human troops.

“I expected questions,” April responded, blunt as ever.

“Why yes. I suppose something of an interrogation is in order. We did wonder where you went after you fell off the grid,” William mused, stroking his imaginary beard, “But I imagine I can already guess the reason why you’re here.”

April looked up from her mug, appearing thinner than normal. Admittedly, it was his first time seeing the Lieutenant outside of her armored uniform. Dressed in a near skin-tight leather suit, he wondered what happened to induce such drastic changes in her. Her lips pursed, mocking a frown of her own as she refused to answer.

“You’re here for the same reason we are, yes? Vengeance?” William announced, “HQ has mobilized over ten of our Legions to bring justice to the rebels. Currently we’re laying siege to their forest. Level the terrain and then charge in, you know how it rolls.”

It was a standard approach to high density forests, one which they had even used in prior engagements against beastmen, so William saw no reason to hide it from April. Any former officer would have been smart enough to figure out what was occurring themselves. More honestly, he was beginning to grow concerned about her mental health. The medics informed him that she was free of serious injuries, aside from a few cuts and bruises. Despite her good health, she wore defeat like a retired wrestler. But the most telling fact was her drinking of the black weed without even a flinch.

"That bush fire have something to do with you?" he mentioned at last.

“How did you know to come here?” April murmured, shaking her head despondently, “As far as I was last aware, HQ had no idea where the therian rebels were.”

“Heh, you’re asking the wrong person on that account mam,” William grinned, “You know how things go, the higher ups find the information, we follow their orders.”

April's voice telling them to leave echoed what Damea had said. However, Touya couldn't move all that much from the pain in his side and he was still loosing a lot of blood, making him dizzy as he stood there leaning on Damea. Reaching out with a shaking hand, gold light filled his palm and extended to his deep wounds. He had to heal them, and quickly if he wanted to get away from Val still breathing. The light sunk deep into his body and began rebuilding his organs, muscles and tissue. It took a little while longer than he wished, but it did the job.

However, what he hadn't expected was what happened while he was healing himself. April had turned and run. She'd left him and Damea, taking the chance as soon as it was offered to her. Damea, not quite understanding what was going on stretched his hand out towards her, "April! Wait!"

"Don't."

Damea looked up to Touya in shock as he continued to give the Therian support. Touya's pale blue eyes were icy with rage, but mostly with hurt. I doubt she really cares all that much for you. Maybe she just wants to keep you alive long enough so that she can enact revenge on me for destroying her unit of soldiers. She'll dispose of you right after, I'll have you know. Val's words came back to haunt him, though Touya didn't think that they would so soon. He had been right in the first place to doubt human's and their words. Even for Damea, he doubted the man. Every second they spent together he figured that the words slipping passed the overly talkative fire mage's lips were nothing but lies.

"I won't abandon you, my friend," Damea said softly, his eyes down cast as he glared at the ground. Touya shifted his gaze to the man but didn't say anything. He wondered what it was the human was thinking, but then shrugged it aside. He didn't care at that moment. Touya slowly lifted himself off of Damea's shoulder and started forward with Damea right next to him. They didn't get far though, as a peculiar looking man appeared before them. Damea reached down for his blades while Touya stood still, unsure of what this human wanted.

"Oh my, good day chaps! Where you about to head in that direction perhaps?" The man asked, pointing in the direction that April had gone. The woman was long gone, having gotten a head start while Touya had been busy healing his life-threatening wound.

"Well, if you were, I regret to inform you that a terrible storm is heading here from that direction. I'd avoid the forest especially, forest storms are particularly volatile this time of the year. My humble advice is, run while you can."

Touya's gaze shifted towards the forest behind them and the raging fire that Damea had started. By the time he looked back to regard the man, he was startled to see nothing there. Unsure of things he glanced to Damea who shared the same look he did.

"Did you see him too?" Damea asked. Touya frowned and continued scanning the plains for the man whom they'd just spoken to. However, he was cut off in his search by the sounds of gunfire and boots in the distance. His gaze shot up to see a black mass of soldiers coming towards the fire and the forest. He cursed under his breath and gripped Damea's arm tightly. He pulled the fire mage behind him as he started running out of the way of the human's army and also away from Val and his own group. His heart clenched as he began thinking about why April had left him and Damea. It was too convenient for her to run in that direction and then have an army come from there.

She must have planned it from the start. Perhaps that was why Reginald had left them that morning when they first started out to find the clan. She had sent him to warn the army that they were leaving and going in search of the Therian's. April had betrayed them from the start. Why he even thought that she had been truthful to him in the beginning was beyond him. He had lead her right to the Therian's... the Therian's camp... Touya's heart nearly stopped. Far from the ensuing battle now, he slowed in his head long rush with Damea panting behind him.

His eyes were wide as he turned to look back in the direction of the clan's camp and where the army had come from. It was too convenient. It was too... too much. He couldn't bear to think of it any longer, but he had to know. His hands flexed into fists as he stood there staring into the distance. His teeth ground together and next to him Damea looked out that way as well, curious as to what the Therian was doing.

"What is it?"

"The clan."

"What about them... You don't... No, no, no. They wouldn't, they couldn't have..." Damea's voice shook with realization at what Touya was implying.

"I will find out."

"I'll come with you," Damea insisted.

"No!" Touya shouted his anger at its peak. He whirled on Damea who shrunk back slightly from the sight, "I've had enough with you humans!"

"Touya, think rationally now, there must have been a reason for her to lea-" Damea was stopped in mid sentence as Touya reached out and back handed the fire mage, sending him to the ground. The human looked up at him in shock, but then his face smoothed as he sat there. Blood trickled down the corner of his lips from where Touya had struck him, but the fire mage made no move to retaliate. It took the Therian a moment to calm down and realize what he'd done. His hands clenched again and it took him some time to retract the blades in his arms.

"I..."

"It's alright. I understand your anger," Damea cut in, saving the Therian from speaking further. Slowly the fire mage stood again and brushed himself off, "I would like to come with you. I want to see if they are alright too. I care about them just like you do."

Touya didn't say anything, but started in the direction where they had come from originally. He moved quickly, figuring that the swift human would be able to keep up with him. It was obvious that Damea had lived with Therian's for quite some time as he knew so much about them and fought like they did as well. Touya moved across the plains as fast as he could, his heart heavy with betrayal, fear, and anger. Was this how Val felt?



The fire that broke out before him startled him and he was brought back to the day that he had ambushed the humans. Almost all of his company was lost then and the sight of it right then drove a stake of fear through his chest. He slowly backed away, his eyes on the flames only. The fire moved, directing him back to his own people where once there, a huge wall of flames erupted out before them. Val stretched his hands out to keep his people from approaching the flames or trying to go around them. The fire lasted for some time before it began to die out.

When it did, it was too late for Val to comprehend what had happened. Shots rang out and several of his men fell from them in the first wave. Val's gaze shot around quickly to try to figure out where the attack was coming from. He couldn't see Touya or the two humans that had been with him. What Val saw only was a black mass of human soldiers coming after them in a rush across the open plains. Their destination was both towards Val and his company and also to the forest. The Therian felt rage and fear wash through him.

The forest was filled with children as well as their old and women. He gripped his weapons tightly, ignoring the burn across his stomach from where Touya had injured him. He would heal the wounds later. A sharp motion from his sword alerted his company what he wanted, "Protect the village at all costs! You five, get the village into the caves beyond the forest!" He yelled out, pointing at a group of Therian's who nodded and sprinted towards the trees. The rest of his company prepared themselves and rushed the oncoming army. Val lead the charge, his weapon twisting around in his hand. He'd lost the second sword upon having Touya attack him earlier. Not that it mattered, he was more than enough to take on the humans.

In a matter of seconds the two opposing groups collided and Val charged in with a blood curdling war cry. His arm swung out, slicing through several men, sending them flying backwards from the shear strength he possessed. His magic followed after and exploded in the midst of the humans. Several other explosions followed as his men enacted their own magic. Even with his group of powerful Therian's, some of his men died and many of the human's slipped passed to get into the forest. Val growled in rage and pushed forward, his eyes flashing wildly with rage. Every intent was to wipe out all the human's before him, even if it cost him his own life.



Now far behind the army that had thundered across the plains, there in the distance was smoke rising. Damea felt his chest clench tightly as he witnessed it. Touya was ahead of him, leading the way back to the clan that had been not but a few hours from the forests of Creeid. It took them only twenty minutes to reach the clan's village, but it seemed like hours to Damea. The tents that had been pitched and perfect the night before were burned and smoldering on the ground. Fires still raged and the villagers were destroyed.

Touya slowed down and stood on the edge of the destruction, his eyes wide and his body rigid. Damea stood next to him in just as much shock as the tall Therian was. How could this be? The village had been bustling with activity not but a day ago... he couldn't believe his eyes at the sight. Once he took in the destruction as a whole, Damea began looking more closely. His heart was breaking as he witnessed the horrifying devastation. Something moved underneath one of the fallen tents and Damea rushed over there, hopeful that someone was alive.

He pushed the tent's burning pieces aside and uncovered a woman who was bleeding and burned. He rolled her over and the familiar face of Sheree looked up at him. Her bright eyes were dimming as she lay there in his arms. Damea twisted around and shouted for Touya to come to him. The Therian was next to him in a moment, kneeling down beside Sheree who coughed and reached up to try to touch Damea's face in her burned hands. Blood and soot covered Damea's cheek as her fingers brushed him.

"Ninia..." Sheree croaked and turned her head sideways, tears streaking her face. Damea looked to where she was though he didn't want to afraid of what he would see. Damea quickly turned away the moment his eyes caught sight of what Sheree was looking at. The little girl was face down in the dirt with an arrow to keep her down. Next to him, Touya was beside himself with rage. Damea could tell as he could feel the pure energy rising in dangerous levels around the Therian.

"They... came... thought we... rebels... scouts for... rebels," Sheree tried to speak, but Damea rocked her gently next to him and shook his head, tears streaming down his face.

"Don't talk, Sheree..."

"I tried... to stop them... we all did," Sheree's voice cracked as she cried, "Took many... of us... Don't know where," her eyes were staring off into the distance, possibly the direction in which the army had taken the captives. Damea doubted that any of the children were alive, and if they were they were now captives to the humans and subject to whatever they saw fit. The head quarters of the human army were not know for their mercy.

"Can you heal her?" Damea asked, his voice shaking. Touya glanced to him, his icy orbs cold and deadly. The Therian slowly shook his head. Sheree was far too gone for him to heal. There was nothing he could do. Even as he'd asked, the Therian woman grew still in his grip, her eyes still staring off into the direction of the human cities, tears falling from her eyes. Damea fell over her, sobs taking over his frame. Next to him Touya stood and moved across the burning village. Damea looked up just long enough to see through his blurry vision where the Therian had gone.

Touya turned Ninia over and stared at her for a long time. Damea felt hot tears explode forward anew as he watched. Touya's frame was highlighted by the fires around him and from the flickering light, Damea noted that the Therian was also crying. Turning to the fire mage, Touya stood with Ninia in his arms.

"We bury them, so they may reach Thriy."

---

April Rosevolt

---

“Like them?” William gestured to the new form of weaponry that April held in her hands, heavy but meant to be gripped in two.

“How does it work?” April asked, inspecting the formwork with curiosity. Her blue eyes took in the detail of the alien mechanisms, though she lacked the confidence to fiddle with them.

“Here, allow me,” William gestured with a flick of his fingers. Passing the musket back to him, William shifted his pose and held the rifle firmly between two arms. Then he began reloading.

April watched the meticulous steps intently, seeing an assortment of materials gathered. Collecting his primer, black powder, ball, patch, patch lube, flint and ramrod, William proceeded to load the flint, tamp the ball and powder before finishing with a primed flash pan. The whole method was completed with staggering efficiency, but April was certain that the results would be quite the opposite if she were to try.

Noticing her shock, William smirked in a mildly condescending manner. “A little confusing at first right? But rest assured, this is revolutionary,” he stated.

“In what way?” April asked, blatantly confused.

“Because, with two weeks training, any man could be fully competent in its use. It doesn’t require years of refinement like a bow, and it has greater range and stopping power than your crossbow,” William explained, pretending to aim down the sights of his rifle. “Well maybe not your crossbow specifically.”

The last sentence was reference to April’s use of enchanted or trapped cross bolts. Using her air magic, she could blow back opponents or cut through the thickest armor. Not many soldiers possessed that luxury. “So you’re saying that the human army has effectively doubled in size?” April balked at the concept, appalled by the prospect of an entire race geared for war.

“Effectively, ye-”

“Captain! The faceless have assault our front lines!” a soldier burst in, screaming.

William whipped around at the sudden intrusion and briskly took up his arms. “We expected as such. Don’t worry! We outnumber them vastly! Pull those engaged in combat as far back as possible. Layer on covering fire from supporting units. Do not engage in close combat. We can’t compete with them there!”

Their chat forgotten, William headed to the exit flaps of his command tent. “Why don’t you accompany me Miss Rosevolt? I’d appreciate your experience in combating the terrorists,” he suggested.

Without seeing any alternatives, April nodded meekly.

They jogged through the temporary encampment, William leading the way. Hundreds of pitched tents now littered the plains, filled with all manner of activity. Logistics, army personnel, doctors, almost every facet of their army had joined in a combined effort to fight the therian rebels. April shuddered inwardly as she reflected on Touya and Damea, dismissing the any notions of returning to them now. She knew exactly how this looked, unintentional or not. Her one consolation was that perhaps now, Val and his rebels would be stopped at the very least.

Passing some cages on their way to the front lines, April almost froze in utter dismay at what she saw within them.

“We suspect they’re scouts for the terrorists,” William remarked in response to her wavering gaze, “So we apprehended them before they had the chance to flee.”

No, no, no, no, no. That’s not right at all.

“Is…that all of them?” April stammered, almost choking over words. Spotting Filiea among them, April’s heart sank at the revelation. Though there was no sign of Ninia or Zear. How could all of this happen in one day?

“We killed a few that resisted. The other half of this lot where shipped on a convoy back to HQ,” William responded.

“I see. Good work containing them, I suppose,” said April.

“You suppose?” William grinned slightly from over his shoulder.

“If it were me, I wouldn’t have let any survive.”

“Hah, same old ice queen. You keep that attitude Miss Rosevolt, I’ll be needing it in a few seconds!”

---

The frontlines were a mangled contusion of bodies. No longer were the grassy bushes green. After the fire had been doused and battle started in earnest, they now soaked on red pools of blood. April winced each time a musket fired off besides her, the noise deafening to her eardrums. Arrayed beyond her vision were hundreds of finely ranked troops, each one wearing the royal blue of the empire. William was now taking command of his Legion, the 42nd.

A few of the therians had successfully managed to reach their lines; the remnants of what April assumed were Val’s company. Their slaughter could be spotted for miles as they left trails of dismembered bodies in the path of their wake. Her blood boiled as retreating soldiers were scythed apart, cut down and annihilated ruthlessly. Powerful as the therians were individually however, their formation lacked order and numbers. Unbeknownst to them, a cordon was rapidly forming around them, headed by the 42nd, the 33rd and 35th Legions respectively. They were quite figuratively closing the noose around the terrorist’s neck.

Dozens of men aimed their newly christened muskets, sighting down the therians still remaining. As the last of their retreating numbers made it back to their lines, William raised his hand.

“Fire on my mark!” he screamed to be heard over the cacophony.

“Mark!”

A deadly fusillade of iron tipped death exploded from all around the terrorists. Exposed, and without cover, their numbers dwindled in the blink of an eye. April spotted Val still somehow alive and gritted her teeth. Faced with such overwhelming numbers, some of the therians had started to route back into the forests.

“Captain, your rifle?”

William glanced at her, showing slight surprise at her request. Nodding, he handed April his musket, still loaded from his earlier example. All April needed to do was to pull the trigger. Aligning herself so her right eye looked down the sights of the rifle, she took aim at Val. Tracking him as he traversed the bloody field, her aim adjusted to accommodate movement and travel distance.

She pulled the trigger and fired, feeling the buck of gunpowder kick painfully against her shoulders. The shot flew out, scratching the man’s cheek. It was mere centimeters short of being fatal.

“Nice try Rosevolt, but you forgot to exhale when you pulled the trigger,” William chided, “Fortunately for you, the 42nd Legion has you covered. Common men! Advance rank and file! Drive those faceless back into the forests!”

By the time they had finished digging up graves for the fallen Therian's, the sun was sinking in the west. Touya straightened himself and wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand. They had buried more than half of the villagers that had been there the day before. Those included were Sheree, Ninia, Zear and Invashi. Filiea was no where to be seen as were a lot of the Therian children and some of their parents. Touya didn't know what to think of that, but refused to think that they were dead.

"Touya," Damea's voice was soft, hoarse almost from his continuous crying, "What do we do now?"

"I want an answer."

The fire mage turned his head sideways, eyes red and puffy, but at least his tears had stopped, "What do you mean?"

"I want to know why," the Therian's voice cracked slightly, "Why she did this..."

Damea only nodded in agreement, his gaze shifting to look at the ground, "Touya, I agree, but I think we should wait. It's too dangerous to go waltzing into an encampment of human soldiers. They'll catch you and if they do... they'll kill you."

"Let them."

"Touya!" Damea exclaimed, astonished that the Therian had so little care for his own life. Maybe it was because of the betrayal, too many betrayals that were weighing heavily on his shoulders. Val betrayed him and his kin, and now April betrayed him as well, leading to the deaths of good Therian's. He couldn't believe it really, only that night before had she been sitting with the children, a smile on her lips as she spoke with them all. Touya's fingers curled into fists once more as his thoughts turned to that night. How pleasing she'd looked across the fire from him, her obvious enjoyment with the children as they coddled her and she them.

Looking down he raised his other hand and gazed at the contents lying in his palm. He'd cut a small lock of hair from both Ninia and Zear, the darker color belonging to the boy while the lighter one was still braided. Slowly, Touya tightened his hand over the hairs and put them under the breast plate of his armor. Turning to Damea, his gaze was sharp and cold. The fire mage watched him carefully before finally nodding because he knew exactly what it was that the Therian was up to.

Touya eyed the freshly turned ground before them, the mounds of dirt that marked the place of burial of all the Therian's who had died. His voice was deep and rich as he spoke in his own language, the words were simple but they held power all the same. He prayed to them that they live well in Thriy and that they never look back. With that done, he turned away from the small village and started on a course back the way they'd come earlier that day. It wouldn't be hard for them to find the camp where the human's had begun siege, it only made sense to do so.

"What do you plan to do when we get there?"

"Find her. Then ask her if this was what she really wanted."



His men were falling faster than he'd anticipated. The human's had crafted a new weapon to oppose them. Even so, they still lacked devastatingly when it came to close combat. Had the human's not had their long ranged weaponry, even Val and his small numbers could have easily wiped out the army that rushed them. Even so, they were still fighting hard against the Therian's, which gave him a sense of pride and hope that the village behind him would be saved.

As they fought, Val continued to order his men, sending some retreating into the trees while others stayed with him. His magic was growing low, but his energy was still enough to keep swinging his swords. The Therian fought furiously as the human's began to encircle them. For a moment he wondered how he was going to get his men out of the predicament that was slowly encasing them, but he knew what he was going to do all the same. It was a matter of timing, really. Slowly, he worked his way back, letting the human's push forward to seem like they'd gained the advantage on him and his group. Even so, it was a dangerous ploy to work because the forest was to his back and on either side were the enemy.

As he fought, his swords swinging relentlessly and fluidly with a deadly grace, he could hear the sounds of gun shots and then a rain of metal struck his company. Several of his companions fell and it enraged him even more to see it happen. He was loosing good men, how was he supposed to explain that to the families left behind in the forest? His eyes narrowed and he twisted around one of the soldiers trying to reload his crossbow. His blades cut into the human easily, tearing him apart. As he pulled free from that attack and whirled around for another, a sharp burn pulsed along his cheek. His head twisted sideways from the impact and he stumbled slightly.

Composing himself, his gaze narrowed further and he looked swiftly through the group of humans to see who it was that had shot him. In a matter of seconds he spotted the bright blue eyes and blonde hair not too far off. She was aiming a gun at him and had just fired the thing. He glowered at her in rage. Hadn't she been with Touya? Why was she now with a group of humans? Certainly she hadn't turned on him so soon... Val wiped at the blood along his face and slowly backed away with his companions. Of course she'd turned on him. It was what human's did. They were never trust worthy, never loyal but to themselves only, and the lot of them were liars.

Val extended his arms outwards to either side where the humans were closing in on them. He expelled his magic into them groups of on rushing humans in one final stretch to gain his people freedom from their clutches. The magic exploded across the earth tossing both people and clumps of rocks and debris. With the distraction, he turned and entered the forest with his men right behind him. As they rushed through the trees, they made their way to the camp. Val wanted to see if the children and women had made it out of there before moving on to the caves beyond.

It took them several minutes to enter the small village that they'd built, and when they did, no one was there. Satisfied with that, Val glanced behind them and noted the sounds of pursuit through the trees. His distraction had done its job and given them some time. Turning to his companions, he began barking orders, "Pull those lines there. Get ready to activate that trip wire. On my mark..." he waited until the sounds were a bit closer before unleashing the trap that they'd built a long time ago for a time such as this.

"Now!" He cried and the men that had readied themselves did as they were told. Two large ropes were pulled down, raising a shield like wall between Val and the oncoming rush of humans. Those that had readied the tripwires, pulled them up and waited. It only took a few seconds before the first of several human soldiers rushed into the forest and broke the wires. Another second lasted and then the explosion came. The spell trap was triggered and a wash of flames and pure energy engulfed the area, Val and his company protected by their screen.

"Tie it there. Follow me!" He ordered and turned to race back to the caves at the far end of the forest. Running, it took them only half of an hour to get there and by that time, they'd caught up to the rest of the villagers who were just barely entering the mouth of the cave. Once they were all inside, Val stood at the entrance, looked out to make sure there were no Therian's left behind and disappeared into the darkness. Several seconds later and another explosion rocked the earth, this one triggered inside the mouth of the cave. Rocks fell, tumbling into place to cover the hole, an effective stopping point to the human army.



By the time they'd reached the army encampment, the moon was beginning to take it's zenith in the sky. The night was cooler than the day and the sounds of crickets were a constant. A chill spread across Damea's arms as he followed after Touya silently. The Therian had been alarmingly silent the entire time they'd made their way back to the camp. Damea hadn't even engaged in conversation like he usually did. No, he was still to grief ridden to even think about talking all that much. He just wanted it all to end, all of it.

Touya stopped dead then, and Damea fell in beside him silently. They both dropped down as firelight from several camp fires threatened to reveal their presence. Touya turned slowly to Damea and took a breath to speak to him. The Therian had switched to his own language knowing full well that Damea would understand.

"If anything goes wrong, find Reginald."

"Why?" Damea asked in the same language.

"I thought about it a lot. I believe that he might be able to help us, even if April was never on our side to begin with."

Damea raised an eyebrow, "You're certainly an interesting Therian."

"As you are an interesting human..." Touya shot back.

"Well... I'll give you that," Damea sighed then looked back into the camp. The fires reflected his mismatched gaze and he shifted his body, "Don't suppose you know where I can find him?"

"My best guess would be back to the city where April used to live."

"Right.. of course. Do me a favor," Damea said, taking Touya's arm as he had started forward. The Therian glanced to him, a frown on his lips, "Try not to get caught. It'll make things easier on me..."

---

Damea had been sitting on the outskirts of the camp for quite some time, fidgeting because he could never sit still to begin with. He hated the fact that Touya had left him behind and he doubly hated that he didn't know what was going on. It was as he was worrying and fussing that he heard a loud sound within the camp. He groaned softly as he figured that something terrible had happened.

"Sir!" A shout went up in the night. Damea peered into the camp, but couldn't see much as he was in a terrible spot, "We found a Therian sneaking around the camp!"

"Damn it, Touya... I said don't get caught!" Damea hissed in protest. He slowly started backing away from the camp knowing full well that the human's were not stupid and would send out a small search party to see if anyone else was lingering by. Damea didn't want to leave the Therian, but knew that if he stayed there would be no helping either of them. So he slipped into the darkness and quickly made his way back to the main road. If he was lucky he would make it to the city within a few days. If luck were really with him, he would find Reginald on the road. Damea growled in frustration, since when was luck ever with him?

---

William Benedict

---

“Forty-second! Take the enemy!”

They had them by the ropes now. William led his soldiers from the front, as was his preferred style. Lead by example. Cob was besides him, rifle in hand as they advanced on the dwindling therians who had their backs up against the forest. The pursuit was imminent, and William had half a mind to burn the entire forest down if not for that fact that valuable evidence still likely remained at the terrorist’s hideout.

Abruptly, an explosion tore through their ranks. William span away on instinct, shielding himself from the falling debris. Clods of dirt impacted the ground as a mottled dust cloud stalked the plains in front of him. It took several seconds before his hearing returned, replacing the dull ringing that affected his ears.

“Empire’s teeth! Medics! Front and center!” William roared, spotting the men who had been tossed aside like ragdolls. Cob was on all fours, a nasty gash leaking blood down his face. Shooting would be impossible for the boy with his sight impaired. What on earth just happened?

His vision swam up, identifying the fading silhouettes of retreating therians through the receding dust. A diversion tactic? William snarled and brought his own rifle to bear. He snapped of a shot ahead of him, releasing his anger.

“Advance by fire! Don’t let the enemy escape!” William bellowed, encouraging his men forwards with a flourish of his rifle.

“That’s not a good idea,” April murmured beside him. The former Lieutenant was crouched over a wounded soldier. Drenched in blood not of her own, she was applying pressure in a frugal attempt to stem the bleeding. “They looked awfully eager to retreat. There may be a trap ahead.”

“Are you kidding me Rosevolt?”

Glancing up from her grisly work, she gave him a stern glare. “Did you not just see what I saw? They were slaughtering us despite our numbers but a few moments ago. Something tells me they want you to go in that forest.”

William’s lips pulled into a tight frown, “Cob! You’re not fit to fight at the moment. Go warn the other officers!”

Just then, something horrendous roared in the far off distance. A billowing fire rose over the canopy, reaching its peak in the sky before combusting over itself. The resultant blast doused the immediate vicinity with burning flames.

“Mother mercy…pull back! Pull back! Get those men out of the forest!”

---

Jerry & Cantus

---

“My eyes must be deceiving me, Cantus.”

“Is that who I think it is, sir?”

Jerry and Cantus were performing their routine night patrol when they happened upon a most peculiar sight. It was peculiar because either of duo could scarcely believe what it was they were witnessing. Calmly approaching them out of the darkness was a faceless, but not any old faceless. Both Jerry and Cantus were certain that this faceless was in actual fact the exact same faceless they had discovered several weeks ago in the alleyway. The faceless walked on the war camp as if visiting a human garrison in the middle of a war zone was the most normal thing in the world.

Remembering who and where they were, both men took the only course of action they knew how to take against a faceless.

“Stop immediately you faceless scum! Do not advance any further or we will be forced to fire!”

---

They shoved Touya through the encampment, leading him directly to the command tent. Iron cuffs were tightly wound over the faceless’ bracers and wrists, ensuring that the concealed blades would never be drawn.

“Walk faster filth!” Jerry scolded.

“Sergeant!”

The shout brought their relentless hustling to a pause just outside of the tent. Turning around, Jerry had to squint to identify the approaching figure of Captain Benedict. Despite the poor field of vision incurred by the encroaching darkness, the Captain was an easy man to recognise. Tall and gaunt in a way which reflected a knife, he was clearly a product of countless wars.

“Excellent job on…capturing him,” Benedict said as he rounded on the trio, not sounding like he entirely believed it. Switching gazes, he offered a cautionary glance towards Touya, “What’s the story with this one Sergeant?”

“We found this one ere’ loitering around the we-” Cantus winced as he received a sharp slap from Jerry.

“We found this one spying around the west quadrant, sir!” Jerry reported.

“The west quadrant?” Benedict murmured, his brows knitting together in deep thought, “That’s in the direction of the tribe we passed. Has he said anything so far?”

“No, sir!” Jerry replied.

“Okay, throw him in cages along with the others,” Benedict directed.

---

---

“Dispatch from 9, 5th Cross, Hampton Street! This is an emergency. Please send an ambulance immediately. My Grandfather has had a fall!”

“Dispatch from 22nd Boulevard! Please help! My mother is suffering from a fever!”

Resting his drink on a desk table, Reginald mused as he read transcript before him. Surrounding him was a backdrop of frenzied turmoil as messenger pigeons zoomed in and out through the windows. Chasing them was a small army of dispatch workers, men and women who were tasked with the handling of vital information.

Some lives depended on their direct response. For Reginald, this was his part-time job, or at least until the army decided to reassign him. Returning to the city over a week ago, Reginald had promptly decided to find work in order to sustain himself.

No word had arrived from either April or the others since their departure. Still rather smitten at being deceived however, he thought no better of it. It was an outcome he had little effect over, unfortunately. As his thumb flicked through the pages, it took no time at all for the former medic to get the gist of the report.

“That truly is a shame,” Reginald said, frowning at the contents of the record.

Touya Khan and April Rosevolt

He'd already decided his course of action even before he had left Damea. Touya hadn't planned to sneak around to try to find April, knowing full well that she was probably within the heart of the camp and more difficult to get to if he stalked about in the shadows. No, Touya figured his best course of action was to walk straight into the camp and let them take him hostage. Besides, he figured it was the easiest way to find the rest of the Therian's from the camp.

So, the Therian waltzed right into the fire light and was spotted by two guards soon after. Both men looked at each other in astonishment before they reacted to his presence. Touya did nothing to provoke them, nor did he say a single word as they shouted at him and took him roughly into the center of camp. With irons clamped over his wrists he allowed them to push him around towards the carriages where he spotted the village Therian's.

Anger pulsed through him, but he didn't make a move to do anything. Someone called to the two guards that had apprehended him and Touya drowned out the exchange between them, hardly interested to hear their petty words. Soon after he was shoved into a carriage where he spotted Filiea and several other children along with some of their mothers. Touya stumbled into the carriage prison, dropping to his knees the moment he was inside.

Braided hair flipped about and fell over his shoulder, the tips of his hair pooled at the bottom of the carriage. Filiea rushed to him, tears streaming down her face, her arms stretched out for him. Touya raised his own arms and pulled her into his chest, covering her with his arms as his hands were still cuffed. She cried hard against him, sobbing in fear and shock. Touya held her, unmoving as she clung to him.

After a moment she lifted her head, her tear stained eyes gazing up at him, "I saw her," she hiccuped, "She... she said... she said that she would... have killed us all," Filiea cried out. The crushed look in her eyes stung Touya deeply and he knew right away who it was that the girl was speaking of. He shook uncontrollably as he knelt there with her. Turning slightly he caught sight of a guard passing by the carriage.

"Guard," he called, his voice barely masking his rage. The human glanced up at him uncaringly, "Find April. I wish to speak with her."

"Why should I?" The man responded angrily.

Touya's body glowed brightly then, his eyes flashing as he turned with Filiea and leaned towards the bars, startling the guard, "Find her, or I'll destroy everything and everyone in this camp."

The man gulped and slowly backed away. Once he was gone in search of the woman, Touya let the energy fade away and his body was returned to normal. Leaning back against the side of the carriage he held Filiea against him. She was soon asleep, having cried so much and Touya was left to his own, deep, angry thoughts.

"Chaplain, if you will," Lieutenant Rhode nodded.

As if on cue, the bugler started to play his trumpet as the funeral procession commenced. Chaplain Morose was solemn as he addressed congregation of soldiers who had gathered to bid their farewells. Dozens were dead, some even to torn up to be identified. The nature of their deaths was no mystery. Attacked by savage, ruthless opponents, the results were horrific. Many had not seen worse since the beastmen wars.

“We gather here today to pay our respects to those who gave their lives in defense of our country,” Morose began, chanting over the rhythmic buzz of the brass instrument.

April observed the blazing funeral pyres from afar. That man she had tried to save was among the dead there, somewhere. She uttered a silent prayer of her own, commending their bravery before standing up to leave.

“Leaving so soon?” William whispered, appearing in the direction she was about to be heading with his arms crossed.

“Aye, not much for me to do here,” April responded.

“I won’t stop you. Damn shame you were summarily discharged though. In my opinion, the army still needs you,” William pondered, “Thanks for the warning earlier today also. I would’ve lost a lot of good men if you hadn’t.”

“Dozens still died in the forest,” April shrugged

Accepting the morbid truth, William exhaled a breath and started to walk past her. The Captain only paused upon catching wind of the conversation behind him. Red face, one of the guardsmen had come running towards them. His flustered attention centralized on April as he spoke, “Err…Are you April? Mam?”

“April Rosevolt,” April nodded, evidently curious of the man’s intentions.

“One of the faceless requested your presence,” huffed the man.

April frowned at the absurd request, “Tell them I’m not interested.”

“The silver haired one seemed quite intent on speaking with you, mam,” the guardsmen insisted.

Her eyes narrowed a fraction, causing the guardsman to wither beneath her gaze. “And why are you taking orders from a prisoner? Tell him I’m not interested.”

A whole two days passed before April put her plan into action. In the dead of night a cloaked figure navigated the camps with purpose. April slipped into the dark blue shadows, skirting along the flanks. Her destination, the cages, where guarded around the clock to ensure the therians did nothing. In order to avoid suspicions she needed to be in and out before detection occurred. In some places she had to stoop or even crawl to remain unseen by the patrols. The frequency in which she had to hide increased after the number of guards had been doubled in response to an intrusion from a few nights ago.

Evading the guards was a relatively simple ordeal for someone with access to inside information. Security routes were generally predetermined to maximize on efficiency and cover more ground. In turn this meant that routes rarely crossed over each other, creating a gap which offered a brief window of opportunity for April to investigate her summons.

Following her eyes, she rounded the corner of a pavilion and stumbled into a sight she wished not to see.

“Touya,” April stammered, “No.”

April stepped out of the shadows she had been hiding in, her footsteps masked by her air magic. She had the chance to walk right up to the cage before speaking, “You fool. You where the intrusion. Why did you get caught?”

She had made him wait for two days. During both days he had grown more and more enraged. The woman had truly abandoned them, her ploy was obvious to him then. He'd been deceived, tricked, lied to. He could hardly contain his rage as he sat in the carriage unmoving. He spoke to no one, the only time having been to the guardsman whom he'd sent to summon April.

Filiea had spent all of her time nestled against him. Touya learned later on that her parents had been killed in the fight when the soldiers arrived. She was now an orphan much like Ninia and Zear had been. So, the Therian found himself yet another cold night in the carriage and his anger still boiling beneath his skin. The only thing that kept him from ripping apart every human that passed and bringing their measly camp to ruins was the fact that he'd yet to get an answer from April. Or maybe it was simply because he knew she was still there and he had a sliver of hope that her intentions hadn't been what he'd thought them to be.

Eitherway, he'd been in the same position since the night he was thrown in there. Leaning against the wall with one leg stretched out before him, the other lifted to help hold Filiea. His head had dropped forward, silver hair framing his face as he was partially sleeping. A soft noise pulled him from his slumber and he raised his head slowly to regard the woman who had addressed him. Touya's pale blue eyes reflected the fire light, making them seem like they were glowing in the darkness.

Framed by pitch black, he was sure he looked every bit a demon at that moment. His temper wasn't going to help either as he regarded April silently, coldly. It took him sometime to answer her in kind, even then his voice shook and his eyes burned as tears threatened him once more.

"I needed to know," he started softly. His voice pitched and grew colder as he continued, "Was this what you wanted? They are dead. Ninia, Zear, all of them," he paused to let it sink in before he continued, his heart beat rapidly and he leaned forward with Filiea against him still, "You deceived me. Lied to me. Lied to them," he put emphasis on every word, his voice growling to her now, "She told me what you said two days ago. Had it been you, you wouldn't have let any of them live," again he let it linger before continuing, "You planned this from the start, didn't you. Planned to bring this army of yours from the city to destroy everything in their path. I may be at odds with Val, but there were children in that forest as well. I... I even protected you from being killed! And this... this is how I'm repayed," Touya stopped himself from going any further, warm liquid already spilling down his face as he stared at her. He didn't know if he really wanted to hear her answer to him, didn't know if he was going to be able to bear it. All the same, he wanted to hear it, needed to hear it.

April recoiled on the spot as every fiber of her muscles tensed at his presence. Caught in a rapture of guilt, his accusations threatened to tear down her soldier’s facade. “I’m… sorry to hear that,” she informed him, reciprocating his cold, hard gaze. Unconsciously she reached for her weapons, every bit aware he was dissecting her mentally. Days without a proper medium for directing his anger left him feral. This was not the Touya she was used to seeing.

“But your questions will have to wait. This is hardly the time or place for idle chit-chat,” she stated. Not waiting for his response, she shifted herself to the lock.

“Did you hear that?” One of the guardsmen murmured, shining his torch over the cages. April darted around, muffling her sound again with air magic.

“Empire’s bowels…I, I need to go to the toilet…” his partner said abruptly. The man’s stomach grumbled and he doubled over, “I think I ate something bad…”

“Now that you mention it…I don’t feel all too great either,” the first guardsman concurred.

Both of them hurried off, desperate to reach the latrines. Leaving April to her devices, she produced a lock pick and unlocked the cage. Isolating the air around the lock mechanism with magic, she once again hid the metal click of the door opening. “Get out. Quick,” she ushered.

He was already enraged about the entire situation that when April regarded him coldly in response to everything he'd said he nearly flew over the edge. His power was writhing just beneath his skin, hardly controlled as his temper flared upon hearing her dead-pan words. Did she not care at all? Had he been wrong about her this entire time? Her next sentence hit him even harder than the first, 'idle chit-chat'? Who called what he just exposed to her 'idle chit-chat'? His body began to glow with the pure energy he was gathering.

However, he was stopped midway when he heard the sounds of the guards. His movement must have attracted them. The glow dissipated and for some strange reason he felt a kind of fear for April getting discovered. Grinding his teeth he leaned back against the wall of the carriage and pretended he was asleep again. When they left, he was oddly curious as to why they were suddenly sick. In the meantime, April had disappeared from her spot next to the cage and Touya glowered at where she had stood moments ago.

There was movement to his left and he looked to where the door now opened silently. His eyes narrowed as Aprils head popped up from the other side and she beckoned to them. Touya watched her carefully for some time before he reached out with his bound hands and woke a few of the Therian's next to him. Soon, all of the ten that were cramped in the carriage were awakened and out the back of the carriage. Touya came last with Filiea clinging to him. It took him some time to convince the little girl to release him and go with another Therian.

Once she was gone with the group into the darkness behind the carriage, Touya directed his power to the clamps around his arms. A soft sound was the only thing heard and the irons split in half from the pressure of his energy pushing against them. Freed from his bonds he whirled on April. The claws that hadn't been used in days extended forward to cover his fingers, the three blades also came out for good measure as he was not in the greatest mood. His hand took her throat and he shoved her against the back of the carriage. The tips of his claws dug deep into the wood as he glowered at her, towering over her smaller frame.

Leaning down, his body glowed dimly in the darkness, "The only reason I did not tear this camp down was because of you. Understand that. If you value your life and those of the people here, prove to me that my next decision will not be the wrong one," he threatened having more than enough to do with humans at that point, "You've a long way to go to win my trust again. You better get started." With that said he released her and retracted all of his weaponry. Stepping backwards into the darkness, his pale blue eyes watched her steadily waiting to see what the next step to her 'plan' was.