“I never liked fighting. War, weapons, brutality, deaths… All of that. I hate it.”

Zac stopped in order to drink from his beer and he wiped the remaining froth circling his mouth before continuing.

“I love music. Calmness. Tranquility. I love hanging out with friends. But being a low noble means you can’t really do all of this. You’re constantly ordered around by someone higher ranked, and my family has to work hard every day to maintain its status. I saw how my parents are treated although they worked hard all their life. I can’t give them up.”

Mahon nodded as he listened to Zac’s story with attention.

“So I decided to change my fate and that of my family. I know it sounds stupid but listen. I’m not smart enough to discover a new business idea that would earn us tons of gold and recognition. But I know myself, I’m cut from the same cloth as my parents. I can work hard and never quit. And what’s better than the army to change one’s fate?”

Mahon sighed. He knew what was coming next.

“In the army you can become a great commander and then it directly impacts your fame and family. You don’t need to become a hero, but one or two great feats and the road is paved for you. I hate fighting, but that’s still the main reason I’m here. I could use it as a springboard to uplift my family conditions.”

Zac finished his glass and put it back along with the three others that were laying empty in front of him.

“So you want to become a hero.”

“Hey! Didn’t you hear what I said? No need to become a hero, I just need to work hard and I can have a shot at unlocking a rank prestigious enough to raise my family to new heights.”

“And how do you plan to do that?”

“Well, first by enrolling in the best officer institute there is. And I did it.”

“Good point.”

“Then there is a lot to learn here, and I think it will naturally lead me to the next steps. I’m not afraid of what it will take to go there. I’m determined.”

“I can see that.”

Zac raised his head and looked straight into Mahon’s eyes. He thought he would detect sparks of irony, but instead he found himself facing two scrutinizing eyes that leaked intense seriousness.

“So… Ah… What do you think?”

Mahon was observing Zac, but he was not Mahon, the weak student, anymore. He was Mahon, Last Red Nightmare commander, hero of Nightmare. He could recognize conviction and courage when it was in front of him. He had seen people like Zac many times before.

“You stand no chance.”

“Hey! You don’t know that!”

“You’re just a First Red. You don’t know how to fight. You don't know how to battle. You’re miles behind people like Joris or Ravatoris. Even Wyrran, in fact. You think they are less hardworking than you are?”

Zac looked at Mahon with stern eyes that condemned this betrayal.

“I wouldn’t dare say I’m smarter or stronger than these guys. But I have a goal. A mission. They are driven by politics and money, while my motives are closer to the heart. I can’t quit. If I fall, it’s to raise stronger and if I fail, it’s to try harder. I know it may sound silly but trust me, I can do it.”

Mahon smiled and nodded. He had known the man for three weeks now, but he had never suspected he had such hidden resources. Alone, he would struggle to accomplish this goal and there was a fifty-fifty chance that he would fail miserably. But if he was guided by someone who knew how to fight. Someone who knew how to battle. Someone who had been a hero. Then it was an entirely different story...

“What about you then? What is driving you forward day after day?”

Mahon froze. When the evening had started, he had thought he would lose Zac by hiding his past. But instead of what he had predicted, Zac had confessed to him first. He had shared his utmost secret.

He had not lost his duo. Instead, he might have gained a friend. And then somehow, in his mind, all the switches aligned, and the answer appeared blatantly obvious. So he said it.

“I’m a Nightmare soldier. I was a Nightmare soldier, I should say.”

Mahon glanced at Zac, but the man’s smile had not moved in the slightest. It was hanging there, encouraging him to go further.

“In fact, I was a pretty good soldier and some would say I was a… veteran. Yes, let's call it that way. As a veteran in Nightmare, my daily life consisted of fighting Amentiae, training soldiers, and so on. I… I fought in the last Nightmare battle and lost all my... friends.”

“Don’t you know anyone from Ratho?”

“I do. But I can’t say we are friends.”

“Ah…”

“I fought for years and that’s why I’m in this pathetic condition. I appear to be much older than you, but the truth is that I spent all my life fighting in Nightmare and I know nothing about this world.”

Zac’s eyes showed a hint of sadness as he heard Mahon’s story, but the man chose to stay silent and raised his hand to order the next beers.

“The only thing I know for sure is that I can’t stand this war that swept away friends and broke apart families. I’m tired of fighting but I’m a dreamer, just like you.”

Somehow Mahon showed no hesitation before saying what he thought he would never share with a noble.

“We ended the Nightmare’s war. And I realized how much it meant to me. War creates deep bounds easily. But it also breaks them with even more ease. I don’t want to live in the constant fear of losing my friends. Ending the Nightmare’s war was part of this process, but it’s only half of the solution. There is still Ratho’s one. And I think we can end it.”

This time Zac didn’t resist and intervened.

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“You don’t believe in Blue?”

“Quite the opposite. I’m Blue to the bones. I believe in order and balance and that’s why I must fight for it. Whoever truly thinks a war brings both these things is just a madman lost in illusions and selfishness.”

“Wow, I never thought someone would once dare to say that aloud.” Zac smiled as he pursued. “Can’t say I disagree, though.”

“Think about all the wrongs you’re trying to correct yourself. How many of them are due to the war? Ratho is messed up because of this conflict.”

Zac acquiesced and lost himself in his own thoughts while Mahon drank from one of the newly arrived beers to quench the thirst his revelations had caused. Was it the beers, the atmosphere or the discussion? Mahon didn’t know, but, for the first time in Ratho, he felt at ease.

They spent hours in the tavern, sharing hidden goals and secret motives they had told no one else before. Around them other customers came and went, but the two men discussing at the table never spared them a look, too focused on their conversation. The empty glasses accumulated between them until a waiter came to tell them the tavern was closing and that they were the last ones inside. The interruption only lasted the time to stand up and exit the inn.

“You want to roam in the streets?” Mahon proposed.

“I’ve a better idea.” Zac paused to look at Mahon. “You know, I’ve never been in Nightmare. Not that I remember at least.”

“You want to go?” Mahon was surprised.

“Well, why not? You described it for hours and I figured I might as well have a look.”

Mahon observed Zac’s face for a while and the noble’s playful smile told him it was not the only reason.

“You don’t trust me?”

“Haha, I do, I do. But I admit I’m quite curious about this world that would cause someone to abandon reality for years without second thoughts. Also, even if you’re just half the Nightmare veteran you say you are, you could show me some tricks that work in Ratho too, right? Could you coach me and improve my fighting skills?”

Mahon’s grin grew larger and larger as Zac spoke.

“What? I don’t like when you smirk like that.”

“I’m not smirking! I’m smiling.”

“Yeah, sure...”

“You never forget about your goal, do you?”

“Told you I was determined. Now hurry up and show me some nice tricks.”

“Ok, you asked for it. Don’t regret it afterwards.”

“Blablabla… Show me your home then Mahon, the Nightmare veteran.”

Mahon cast a look around them, worried, but the streets were empty at such a late time in the night.

“I would rather prefer you don’t say that aloud.”

“Ah yeah, sorry. That hatred for Nightmare warriors is something I would never really understand.”

“So do I, but that’s how it is.”

“Let’s head home then.”

The way back was somehow curvier than when they had first left the school, but neither complained about it. In fact, they didn’t even notice, given how immersed they were in their quick exchanges of confidences, jokes and taunts. When they arrived at their empty residence, they sat side to side on Mahon’s bed. It was the same situation as a few hours ago, however much had changed.

“So how does it work?”

“You just have to lay in your bed and wait for sleep to come.”

“And I will arrive at that spawning point and you will wait for me there?”

“Precisely.”

“But what if I never fell asleep? I can’t remember not taking a no-dream pill to sleep.”

“Don’t worry, I will make sure you sleep before going in.”

“That’s exactly my point! How could you wait for me in Nightmare if you wait for me to go first?!”

Mahon looked at Zac with exasperated eyes.

“Cut the crap. Do you want to go or not?”

“Yeah, yeah, I will go.”

Zac went to his own bed and with a last falsely mad look at his roommate, he pulled the blanket and turned his back to him. Mahon hardly contained a chuckle as he watched the scene. After long minutes, he noticed how Zac’s respiration was getting slower and deeper with each breathing. He waited a bit more and then went to sleep himself. From closing his eyes in Ratho to opening them in Nightmare, less than a minute had passed.

As usual, the nightmarish land was almost empty, so when someone appeared in the spawning zone, Mahon walked to him.

“Zac?”

“Is that you Mahon?”

“Yes, it’s me.”

“You don’t look the same at all!”

“You should see your face, it’s even worse than in Ratho.”

“Shaddap, you moron.”

Zac tried to hit Mahon, but he was moving so slow and unbalanced that if Mahon had not caught him, he would have fallen on the ground.

“It’s… so weird. It’s like trying to swim but without water.”

“Let’s walk a bit, it will help you assess your new body.”

Mahon led them to the path he traveled on every time he went to meditate in Nightmare. He stayed close to Zac to prevent him from falling, and the noble soon got the hang of it.

“Let’s see if we can go faster.”

Mahon sped up and Zac had trouble following him at first, but he was getting faster and faster with every minute spent in Nightmare. Mahon was instinctively gauging Zac’s skills and choosing the best pace that would challenge the noble just enough.

Mahon’s two hours walk transformed into an almost night long journey because of Zac’s speed. But they didn’t care and spent their time discussing and playing. Mahon spoke about Nightmare and himself while Zac talked about his family and Ratho.

On the way, Mahon showed Zac the different stances they were learning with Slander as he was perfectly proficient in them in Nightmare. At Zac's request, he invoked his lance and displayed some fighting moves with it. Sometime they raced, some other time they rested while Mahon explained things about Amentiae or specific strategies he knew of. He confessed to Zac why he had only a few friends and how he had spent his time in Nightmare.

He talked about how the man who trained him died and how he learned that he had trained him himself in his past life. He explained why that had led him to isolation and how Margot arrived. He spoke about her help and how she had dragged him back to people. He revealed their discussion about a better world and how she had died in the last battle.

Mahon said to Zac everything that was weighing on his heart except for the fact that he was Mahon. He had said he was a veteran out of many others. He said he had been a great warrior, but he had said nothing about his true rank. Zac had somehow avoided asking specifically about it and Mahon was happy it went that way. He was not sure why he had hidden that part, but the fact that he had already said so much about himself had eased his inner turmoil, regardless.

But he had not been the only one to confide. Zac had talked about his own motives and his close relationship with his parents. He had explained for a long time how music was the center of his world and had opened dozens of opportunities. He had also spoken about nobles and Ratho and had explained many things that were still unfamiliar to Mahon.

Their discussion had lasted an entire evening in Ratho and a full night in Nightmare. During these hours, they had opened their heart and created a bond that felt way stronger than the short time they had spent creating it. It was a relation born from quality instead of quantity.

As they better understood the other, they were somehow more eager to give their best at their respective goals. It was like training together. Each person had its own personal motives, but it was the act of doing it together that prompted them to do their utmost.

Having confessed so much and realized who the other was, deep inside, they had made a deal. They had talked a lot, but there was much more to share. And so they had shaken their hands in a promise to each other. Mahon could perfectly remember Zac’s smile as he had extended his hand.

Ratho lessons for strategy advice? Deal!

What they had built that night, they were not completely understanding it yet, but as they meditated in Nightmare, they were both at ease and knew they could count on each other in the future.