Arthur dreamed of vast chasms and mountains that touched the stars. He could feel his pathetic smallness at the vast scenes of the world around him. Empires rose and with them, monuments of kings dressed as gods were erected in their honour. Soon enough the mountains closed in on them as well, crushing the immaculate marble, staining the golden towers a dull brown. Fell powers were common there in his dreams, lighting was flung from crones out-stretched hands and bald men with bodies covered in tattoos conjured fearsome beast from nothing. Arthur was flying then, above it all, the scenes of unimaginable destruction filled him with visceral terror, he placed a hand on his chest and felt the fear become a real pain. He looked down at his naked torso and saw a flaming brand on his chest. A mountain and thorns.

"This is our past," came a voice from thin air. "Not your future. And you will help me keep it that way."

Arthur stopped flying and dropped like a stone. He looked at the rapidly approaching arcane battlefield and screamed.

The screaming continued as he awoke. Arthur's hand grabbed his bandaged chest as he gasped for breath. He turned his head to look around, it was early morning and a faint fog was in the air.

"He's awake," someone said in the gloom.

Arthur sat up and looked around. He was sat in a wooden cart. The same cart Pyp and I rode in. A number of faces peered down at him.

"Make way, make way, he's my man, move!" Came a younger voice.

Pyp Arthur thought.

"You're awake at last Arthur I thought you were going to sleep all the way back to Heartford," said Pyp.

"Where are we," Arthur asked and he moved to get off the cart.

"Careful Arthur, you were badly hurt I don't think it is wise for you to be getting up so quickly," said Mira, the platinum-haired healer pushed her way to the front of the small crowd.

"I'm fine," said Arthur pushing himself to his feet. As he landed on the soft ground three sets of hands reached out to steady him, he brushed them all off.

"How can you stand so surely, you were as weak as a kitten the entire ride from Finepoint," said Mira with a concerned look on her face.

"I feel fine Mira, I swear," said Arthur, he looked around the small campsite that had been built around his cart. It was haphazardly put together Arthur observed, the tents were too close together and the fires had been built out in the open. He spotted a familiar face slowly walking over a dewy field.

"Joth is that you."

"Aye it is," he said as he picked his way through the camp.

They shook hands.

"I see you managed to keep your end of the bargain," said Arthur nodding to the cart.

"And I see that you didn't manage to keep yours," nodding toward Pyp who was glaring at the two of them.

"The Baron was dead," said Arthur but Joth was already nodding.

"The young Prince said as much as well as a few colourful things about a witch," said Joth.

"Yes," said Arthur.

"You should have told me who the boy really was Arthur I could of helped you instead of sending you off with that craven Arett," said Joth.

"I am no boy," said Pyp from the other side of the cart.

"Of course not sire," said Joth and Arthur simultaneously.

"Let us stop all this chatter we have to make plans, Arthur I've been waiting for you to wake I need you to read the map and guide us back home," said Pyp coming around to stand between him and Joth.

"At once sire," said Arthur with a slight bow, he winced as pain flared across his chest.

"And when the Lady Weimaer returns from her scouting we will make all hast."

Arthur shuffled back to the cart and searched for his armour, he found most of it in a small pile.

"What happened to the rest of my armour," asked Arthur.

"When the witch attacked you she burned through you chest plate, that's all we could salvage" said Grace, she was leaning on the cart sorting through a pile of clothing.

"So I have to walk around unarmoured from the waist up," said Arthur.

"Well your welcome to sift through this with me and look for some pieces," said Grace grinning at him.

"I think I'll pass," said Arthur looking down at the dirty scraps she was searching through.

He shrugged the gambeson on over his bandaged chest and bent down to tie the armour around his legs.

"Here let me help you with that," said Mira.

"Mira I'll be fin-"

She pushed his backside onto the cart and knelt down to his legs. "I can see you wincing every time you move, stop being so stubborn."

Arthur sat back and watched her deftly tie the armour, "This isn't the first time you've done this is it."

"No," said Mira.

"I take it you weren't always a healer for the Peace."

"No."

"I see this is something you don't want to talk about."

Mira pulled a strap on his calf tight, "No it is not."

They sat there in silence for a while as she worked.

"I'm sorry for being so curt Arthur," said Mira as she finished.

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"And I'm sorry for prodding, it isn't any of my business."

"Thank you, for everything I mean, if it weren't for you I wouldn't be standing here," she said.

"You managed plenty of that without me, I was too wrapped up in my own business to help," said Arthur.

"You were rescuing a Prince, I can't imagine anything more important than that," she said standing to face him.

"Pyp saved himself, all I managed was to throw myself helplessly at a witch."

"And save the Prince from a horrific wound, just as a guard should do," said Mira as she placed her hand on his chest.

Arthur looked down as she started to press it down around his wound.

"The swelling seems to have gone down, does it hurt?". Arthur groaned and she pressed down directly onto the wound. "I'll take that as a yes."

She reached behind him and pulled something from the cart, it was Arthur's longsword.

"I thought you might want this at your hip," she said handing it to him.

Hello old friend, he pulled the blade from its sheath. He ran his thumb down the blade, Still sharp.

"Arthur where are you!" shouted Pyp from across the camp.

Arthur rolled onto his feet and thanked Mira for the help before going to read Pyp's map.

Lady Els Weimaer came galloping back into camp just as it turned midday. She rode on the pack horse which pulled the cart but from the look on her face it was as if she were riding a noble destrier.

"Ho my Prince, I have returned from scouting," she announced as she pulled in front of Pyp's table.

"Excellent, now we can be off and if Arthur is correct we have only another two days or so before we reach the gates of Heartford," said Pyp.

Els looked down at the table, "Arthur, I see your back on your feet."

"Yes my lady," he said in a flat voice. Of course she would volunteer for the scouting thought Arthur.

She was wearing pieces of his armour on her arms. Arthur was about to scold her for thieving his belongings but he remembered where he was.

Els must have seen him staring, "I hope you don't mind Arthur I needed the protection out there," said Els.

"Of course my lady," he said turning back to his maps.

"What's the situation out there" asked Pyp.

"Somethings happening out there," said Els as she lay her hands out on the table. "I passed a number of farmhouses they all hid from me, not a single one came out to greet me."

"That might be because you're armed and armoured and on a horse lady," said Arthur, "Most folk don't take kindly to soldiers."

"I'm hardly a soldier," said Els.

"Peasants can't tell the difference ma'am," said Joth.

"What about the roads Weimaer, were they clear," said Pyp.

"Yes my lord I'm sorry, the central road was clear no sign of riders or carriages," said Els.

"Good, very good," said Pyp. He pointed down at the map, "We travel along this road and it takes us straight to Heartford."

"It would be better if we avoid the main roads altogether," said Arthur.

"That would take triple the amount of time to get back home Arthur and so it is unacceptable," said Pyp.

"Roads are dangerous, and we can't have a forward scout because we've only one horse," said Arthur.

"We've already heard from Weimaer that the roads are clear," said Pyp.

"For now they are but that could change quickly," said Arthur.

"And if they did, I am the Prince, they will have to obey," said Pyp standing up straight and puffing out his chest.

"No all those on the road respect the nobility, my lord, they might use your blood against you," said Joth.

"Yes sire there is always risk," said Arthur through gritted teeth, He's changed, he won't follow anything I have to say simply because I said it.

"Well then that is a risk we must take," said Pyp, he placed a hand firmly on the hilt of his sabre. He must have gotten that when I was asleep. He'll need more lessons in swordplay otherwise his newfound confidence will get him killed.

Arthur organised the marching formation for their small train of people. Armed women marched ahead of them, spread out for maximum sight coverage. the same was done with the rear and the cart sat in between with Els and Pyp. Mira tried in vain to convince Arthur to sit on the cart, he instead walked alongside the horse keeping his eyes on the flanks. It wasn't long before they were on the wide-open highway that was the arteries of the High Kingdom. Rolling hills stretched far off into the distance, golden fields of wheat as far as the eye could see. Small holdouts of the forest stood defiantly among the tame landscape of the Southlands. Those groves worried Arthur, they were commonly used for highwaymen and bandits.

How many of them will we pass Arthur tried to recall the dark spots on the map. Beads of sweat dripped down Arthur's back as the sun beat down on them. Arthur drank deeply from his thinning waterskin.

We will need to find a well soon enough. He slowed down and fell to the back of the cart where Grace was keeping watch over their supplies.

"How much water do we have left," asked Arthur.

"However much everyone's carrying," said Grace patting the waterskin at her waist.

Arthur looked at the row of clay pots at the front of the cart. "What about them," asked Arthur.

"Empty," said Grace.

"Does the Prince no about this?" asked Arthur.

"I told him, but he said we cannot stop moving," she said.

Arthur nodded and pushed forward toward the front of the cart. "Sire a word," asked Arthur.

"Yes Arthur," said Pyp not taking his eyes of the road ahead of them.

"We need to stop for water," said Arthur.

Pyp's hand reached down to check his own waterskin, he frowned when reached it. "Where is the nearest well," he asked.

"There's no wells marked on the map sire," said Arthur, "We should check the local farmhouses."

"And where would that be Arthur," said Pyp, his voice got a bit harder as he looked down at Arthur.

Arthur glared back at him, "It's a ways off the main road. Sire."

Pyp called them train to a stop and Arthur pulled the map out.

"Arthur we don't need the map," said Els point off into the distance, "Look."

Arthur squinted into the distance and saw a thin trail of smoke rising through the air. There was no clear path which led through to the smoke.

"The cart won't be able to go through we will need to carry the pots," said Arthur, the group collectively groaned at the prospect of carrying delicate pottery so far.

"Then we carry the pots," said Pyp jumping off the cart, he pointed at a number of the gathered women and told them to each grab a pot.

"Wait," said Arthur as he reached into the back of the cart and pulled out some stout sticks. He ran them through the handles of each pot. "That will make them easier to carry," said Arthur, the women Pyp had chosen to carry the pots nodded in gratitude as their load became easier to bear.

Pyp had already set off toward the farmhouse with Els leaving Arthur with the cart. He left Grace in charge of the cart and gathered some guards and took off after Pyp. The ground was soft and the grass wet as Arthur marched toward the farmhouse, Pyp told him he had brought too many people and a group of farmers would never try anything against them.

"Even so sire it is better to be prepared," said Arthur.

From a distance the farmhouse looked well built with a thick thatch roof and stone walls. But when they got closer he saw a number of walls were partially collapsed and the thatch roof was black with burn. As they approached Arthur saw a man trying to repair the burned roof. He shouted when he spotted them and the people scattered about the yard dashed inside the damaged house.

"We've nothing left ya pillaging dogs, begone 'fore I curse ya to the Fey," the man yelled down at them.

It was Els who responded first, "Do we look like looters goodman, we are a troop of women led by a young man we have no eye for your possessions."

The man looked them over and was still unconvinced, "Then why are ya here, if not to steal food".

"Water goodman, we need to fill our pots," said Els pointing at the large clay pots.

The man sat down on the roof, his legs swinging over the edge. He stroked his chin as he looked them each over. "Aye you don't have the look of the bandits and they wouldn't bother with all this talk" he pushed himself off the roof and landed softly on the ground. He turned and talked to a haggard looking woman through a gap in the wall before turning back to the group. "Well alright we've plenty of water to spare for generous travellers," he said with a crooked grin.

He expects payment thought Arthur, hardly a surprise considering his circumstances.

"You expect payment," said Pyp his voice high with indignation.

"Aye lad, that's how the world works" said the farmer.

"I am Prince Pyppin Mawson, son of your lord High Prince Godwyn. You will give me and my companions the water we need and speak nothing of payment" said Pyp nearly screeching at the man.

The farmer had a amused look on his face, "You must think I'm an idiot lad, Baldwyn's the High Prince, Godwyn died a few weeks ago, the countryside's been rife with bandits and scum since his death," said the farmer.

The news hit Arthur like a musket ball to the chest, A lie he thought immediately but he knew in his mind that the farmer had no reason to lie to strangers.

Pyp went white as a sheet at the news, all colour drained from his face. Els spoke up in the silence.

"We will pay for the water."