In a haze of black hair and brown flannel, Vikram threw his arms around Simani, lifting her off the ground.

She squealed, staining his shirt with dried blood and grime as she hugged him back.

“I didn’t know what was happening. I thought…” He mumbled, his face buried in the crook of her neck. “I thought I’d lost you.” A slight tremor racked his body. He drew her tighter against himself. “All of you.”

“I told him he hadn’t, of course.” An Aeriel with large, sterling wings followed him sedately out of the tunnels. “But he didn’t seem to consider me a reliable source.”

“A bit of extra help around here wouldn’t have gone amiss,” Ashwin drawled, carding blood-crusted fingers through the tangled locks of his hair. “Not that you don’t have my eternal gratitude for flying to the rescue at such short notice.” His lips twisted into a crooked smile. “Shehzaa, darling… Heroism suits you.”

“Wish I could say the same for you. But you’re just a bit too…” She waved an eloquent hand, taking in his appearance.

“Filthy?” Vikram suggested.

“Blood-soaked?” Simani offered.

“Disturbingly homicidal,” Ruban proclaimed.

Miranki squawked her agreement.

Vikram rubbed Simani’s firebird fondly under the chin. “Never thought I’d get to see one of these in the flesh,” he murmured reverently.

“You knew about them?” Simani demanded, frowning. “We were always told firebirds were silly old fairytales. Cooked up by over-imaginative writers to further sensationalize the stories of the Rebellion.”

“Well, that’s not completely untrue.” Vikram shrugged. “Firebirds were (and are) real enough. But many historical accounts of their destructive powers are ridiculously overblown. Even during the height of the Rebellion, they were rarely used in combat. They aren’t much use in a fight, you see. They could burn you if you got close enough, in case you managed to make them very angry.”

“No easy feat, pissing them off.” Ashwin scratched Miranki fondly behind her fiery ears. “Don’t let the squawks fool you. They’re very sweet-tempered creatures, our firebirds.”

“Yes. And consequently, quite ineffectual in combat. Beyond the initial shock-and-awe reaction, if your enemy’s never seen them before. But those tactics don’t work twice.

“For the most part, firebirds were only ever consistently used for finding things. Or people.” Vikram glanced at Ashwin. “They apparently have an incredible homing instinct – for any places, people, or things that they’ve grown attached to.”

“Which is why Safaa forced me to bring Mir and the others with us tonight,” Shehzaa sighed. “Although I warned her their mere presence would wreak havoc on earth. But she’s been worried sick about you, Shwaan. You must return with us immediately. She’s been turning all of Vaan upside down since we got news of your capture.”

“If she wants to see me in Vaan ever again, she’ll have to let Kaheen in with me.” Ashwin’s voice was soft, but his jaw jutted stubbornly forward. “I’m not leaving her behind on earth again, Shehzaa. Not for Safaa or anyone else. Never again.”

“Damn it, Shwaan!” Shehzaa groaned. “You know Safaa would never allow it. We’ve been through this, haven’t we? If we let one of the Exiles in, where does it stop? What’d keep the others from demanding we make an exception for them too?”

“They’ve been demanding it for six hundred years,” Ashwin snapped. “If their demands have never made a difference before, why should they make one now?”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“Because we’ve never made an exception for anyone, until now. The law is the law, no matter who you are. Even if you are the prince’s childhood friend. Your sister can’t be seen playing favorites. You know that.”

Ashwin nodded. “You’re right. The law is the law. And the law prevents Kaheen from returning to Vaan. I understand that. But there aren’t any laws that can compel me to return without her, are there?”

“Shwaan–”

“It’s like I said, Shehzaa. I won’t leave her behind again. I can’t. Safaa can make her laws. And you can uphold them, do your duty. But, just this once, I need to follow my conscience. I can’t return to Vaan without Kaheen.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about. It’ll destroy Safaa. It’ll destroy us all.” As she spoke, Shehzaa took a step towards Ashwin, then another.

He stood his ground, his silence resonating louder than her words.

“And all this for what?” Her face inches away from his, Shehzaa scanned the devastated landscape around them. “You saw what the Exiles did here. They’re violent and destructive.” Miranki squawked unhappily, flying up to perch on Ashwin’s shoulder. “Treacherous. They knew where you were being held by the Qawirsin. They knew what Janak Nath was doing to you. And they decided to sit back and enjoy the show.”

“We knew what Reivaa was doing to Kaheen. To Maya…” Ashwin’s voice hitched on the name. “Or, at least, we could’ve found out, if we’d wanted to. But we didn’t want to, did we? That wouldn’t have fit the narrative of blameless neutrality we were cloaking ourselves in. That would’ve required us to take responsibility–”

“We couldn’t sacrifice the lives of millions for a few–”

“What gave us the right to decide who was to be sacrificed and who wasn’t?” Ashwin cried, drowning her out. “And what right have we to accuse the Exiles of treachery, when we abandoned those who trusted us with everything they had?”

Ruban stepped between them, pushing the two Aeriels apart. “That’s enough. We’re not here to fight each other. I can’t believe I’m saying this to centuries-old immortals, but can we talk about this like rational adults for half a second, please?”

“This is not your concern, human.” Shehzaa turned on him with a snarl. “Safaa has summoned her brother back home, and it’s my duty–”

“And if you think I give a rat’s ass about your duty, you can think again.” Ruban heard Simani gasp as he unsheathed the sifblade at his belt. “I watched Ashwin taken against his will once by Janak Nath, and that was one time too many. If you think I’m going to stand back and let you take him forcibly to Vaan or anywhere else–”

“How dare you!” Shehzaa spluttered, silver eyes widening with fury and indignation.

But Ruban didn’t give her a chance to continue. “Look, it’s very simple, really. You want Ashwin back in Vaan. He won’t go back without Kaheen. And you can’t take her back because she’s an Exile, and it’ll set the wrong precedent or whatever.”

“We can’t just bend the laws to suit–”

Ruban held up a hand. “Don’t care. My point is, you don’t have to take Kaheen back as a concession. Instead, you can take her back as a reward. Use her to…” He waved his hand dismissively. “I don’t know. Set a good example for all the other Exiles to follow. Or whatever your version of parole is.”

“What?” Shehzaa and Ashwin asked in unison.

“She helped Ashwin kill Janak, didn’t she? He would still be alive – and probably a free man – if it wasn’t for her timely little charade outside the castle. Not only did she help neutralize him as a threat, she tricked him into revealing the positions of his surviving allies.” Ruban took a deep breath, drew himself up to his full height. “We’ve eradicated the Qawirsin almost completely, tonight. And we owe much of that success to Kaheen. Hell, I’ll be the first to admit, we’d never even have tracked Ashwin to this place without her help. I’m sure that calls for some kind of a reward.”

Shehzaa looked from Ashwin to Ruban, then back again. “And this is what you want?”

Ashwin nodded, his expression warring between hope and wariness.

“This is not a decision I can make on my own, without Safaa’s authorization.” Shehzaa sighed. “But if taking her along will persuade you to come home, I suppose we do have legitimate grounds for making an exception in this case.”

Somewhere in the background, Vikram cheered. After a moment, Simani joined in.

Ashwin brightened, pulling Shehzaa into a grimy hug. Miranki squawked approvingly.

Ruban looked around. “Touching as this is, where the hell is she?”

“Oh, Kaheen’s inside the castle with Shehzaa’s troops,” Simani said. “She offered to help them scour the place for any remaining gangsters or Exiles. She knows the area inside out, and I suppose you can never be too careful.”

Shehzaa pinned her with an assessing gaze. “No, I suppose you can’t. Well, since Kaheen’s coming with us, a couple of extra humans probably won’t make a difference either way. Safaa asked me to invite Ruban Kinoh to join us–”

“In Vaan?” Vikram asked, wide-eyed. “Ruban is invited to Vaan? I mean, that’s wonderful, of course. Absolutely brilliant! I just never thought–”

“If you’d like to come with us,” Shehzaa interrupted his babbling, a smile tugging at her lips. “You’re welcome to do so.” She glanced over at Simani. “Both of you.”