They crossed the distant mountains and back over Librona's borders as morning broke the horizon. The horses walked across the battlefield slowly. Calliope scanned the field. The metallic smell of blood stained the air and lingered in their noses as a reminder of the battle that took place just hours before. The Earth was painted in the spilled blood of their comrades. Weapons lay scattered and abandoned across the battlefield, grave markers of where their owners had fallen. She turned to Mido, meeting his gaze. She felt the familiar lump return to her throat. Their horses walked side by side and she reached for Mido's hand.

“Don't look,” he instructed her, not meeting her gaze.

Calliope tried to avert her eyes from the morbid scene, but she couldn't ignore the smell of war in the air. Her eyes fell on every abandoned piece of equipment; every blood stained scar on the Earth. She shivered as she pictured the soldiers fighting to their deaths right where they rode, alive and well, and she began to weep.

Mido's heart flipped in his chest as he heard Calliope's sobs. He slowed Lily when he realized she had fallen behind. He reached for Calliope's hand and pulled it toward him, catching her attention. Her wet, red, hopeless gaze met his weakly.

“Look at me,” he growled. “Don't look away. Just look at me.”

Calliope nodded and held her gaze. She pinched her lips together and pushed through the pain in her chest, forcing each breath into her lungs.

Mido kept his gaze locked on hers and forced a crooked smile. “Don't look back,” he reminded her. He hoped she couldn't see through his faux confidence. He tried to remain reassuring and strong, but inside he could feel himself falling apart; Calliope was all that held him together.

Calliope squeezed her eyes shut and let the horse carry her through the kingdom, her hand still safely in Mido's, until they reached Alryn's walls. Their journey seemed to drag endlessly, and she was relieved when she was back in the city she called home. She hoped seeing the people of Librona would cheer her up, but instead of celebratory cheers, they were greeted by a distraught city as soldiers had only just made their return. Wounded soldiers were scattered in the roads as citizens hurried between them, searching for loved ones and carrying supplies. Mothers and daughters called to their missing fathers and sons; young women cried over the loss of their husbands.

Calliope couldn't bear to see the pain she brought upon the citizens of Librona. It was all too much. Their anguished cries echoed through her ears. Her heart tore through her chest; she wished she could sacrifice her own life to bring back their loved ones. She shook her head and slid off the horse's back. Mido turned Lily around and watched Calliope run out of the city. He tried to run after her, but King Sloan's voice called him back. He hesitated for a moment, watching her disappear, and turned to join the king at his side on the castle's grounds.

Mido dismounted and found Jon standing alone as the soldiers busied themselves with their horses and equipment. They carried the wounded inside and shouted orders to one another, causing a chaos unlike any battle. Jon watched with a blank stare as the soldiers hurried around him as if he weren't there. His eyes scanned the scene before him but he didn't move. Mido hurried to Jon's side; his face was cold and emotionless as he watched Mido approach. He looked into Mido's eyes but said nothing. Mido guided the lost young man inside the castle where it was quiet.

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“Where's William?” Jon's voice was hoarse.

Mido shook his head. “I don't know.”

“What am I going to tell them?” His eyes began to well.

“Don't worry about that now,” Mido said quickly, forcing his voice through his tight throat.

“He was going to marry that girl,” Jon added quietly, looking past Mido. “He told me.”

Mido looked away from the teary kid and pinched his lips together. He patted Jon on the shoulder and left him alone in the castle. Mido pushed the memories that flashed through his head away as he made his way back outside. He trotted to his king's side, who waited anxiously.

“This isn't over, Mido,” King Sloan said to his knight, his eyebrows knit together. His wrinkles deepened from the wears of the war upon them. He looked over his distraught city with helplessness in his eyes. “This is far from over.”

Mido nodded, feeling at a loss. Their war with Asmar was only just beginning. They were a kingdom without a king; a rogue nation. They wanted revenge, and they wouldn't rest until Calliope was dead. Mido swallowed hard and tried to remain focus as the reality of the situation began to sink in dauntingly.

King Sloan turned to him. “Calliope cannot stay in this kingdom.”

Mido looked to his king nervously. “Sir?”

“She will not be safe here.” King Sloan hesitated. “And I cannot put my kingdom through the risk of protecting her any longer.”

Mido said nothing. He turned away and looked over the mourning city.

King Sloan cleared his throat. “I cannot afford to send any soldiers to her aid. She will be on her own from here on out.”

Mido turned to his king, angry. “What do you think she's going to do?” he hissed. “This is her home. She saved your kingdom from Scarletta.”

“She murdered a king, Mido,” King Sloan growled. “I cannot protect her from that. I did what I could for her. She went too far. We're in too deep now. I have to be here for my kingdom. Asmar is a rogue nation now.”

“She can help us.”

“What do you think she can do, Mido?” he said loudly. “She is a witch. If we let her help, she will destroy that kingdom.”

“Either she does, or we die trying.”

“This war started because we were protecting her. I cannot protect a witch who will use her magic to kill. She will no longer be the good witch, even if she is doing it to protect us. Our kingdom will be a threat to all kingdoms, not just Asmar.”

“She will be a threat anywhere she goes. She has nowhere to go. You cannot abandon her like that. She has nothing.”

King Sloan straightened and held his gaze on the knight. “My decision is final.”

Mido stared at his king in silence for a moment. He pulled his shoulders back and he, too, held his gaze. “I will not help you in this war any longer,” he stated after a moment.

King Sloan raised an eyebrow. “Excuse me?”

“I'm leaving with Calliope.”

“You will abandon your kingdom and your duties as a knight?” King Sloan asked angrily. “You will be banished for this. I will not see your face within these borders ever again.”

Mido held his gaze on Librona's king as he removed his sword from its sheath and let it fall to the ground at their feet.

King Sloan glanced at the renouncement of Mido's knighthood, hesitant. “Don't do this, Mido,” he said, meeting Mido's gaze once more.

Mido held his gaze a moment longer, then turned away from the king. He mounted Lily, pulled her around, and pointed her towards the city. He shouted to his horse and, without looking back, they galloped through the city and across the kingdom in search of Calliope.